a bamboo shoot, boiled until it loses its (bitter) taste - if it is a large shoot, cut it into smaller parts of the right size for soup and wash 40 yanang leaves, washed and then put into 2 metal jugfuls (2 pints) of water and rubbed until they are all broken up - the liquid is then strained through a fine white cloth (or through a strainer) and left in a pot

2 soupspoonfuls of sticky-rice flour

5 (small) shallots, pounded

2 pieces of the dried skin of a pa leum (a large catfish), grilled until 'puffy' and then cut into smaller pieces

20 small eggplants

chopped spring onion leaves

sweet basil leaves

salt and fish sauce

1 stalk of lemon grass, placed in glowing charcoal embers and ashes and then washed

Method

Put the juices obtained from the yanang leaves in a pot to boil. Add the pieces of bamboo shoot, the dried fish skin, the sticky-rice flour, the pounded shallots, the lemon grass and salt. Put the lid on the pot and leave it to come back to the boil. Then add the fish sauce and eggplants, cover again and leave to boil again. When it is done, taste and check the saltiness.

Garnish with the chopped spring onion leaves and the sweet basil leaves and put in a (large) bowl to serve.

Note

One should not put fresh meat in Keng No Mai (Bamboo soup), because it will then have an animal odour.

If dried fish skin is not available, dried water-buffalo skin or dried water buffalo meat can be substituted.