Dill. An herbaceous plant which grows practically all over India and north and west across Russia into Europe. It is about 1 meter (3 ft) in height, with wispy leaves bearing clusters of small yellow flowers and oval, pod-like fruits. The fruits are left to ripen on the plant until they have dried. The fragrant seeds are then extracted, threshed and dried. It has an aroma slightly reminiscent of caraway, warm, aromatic and tingly.
Ivy gourd. A small crunchy gourd reminiscent of a gherkin, green ripening to red, popular in the cuisines of India, Thailand, Indonesia and other South East Asian countries. The shoots and leaves can also be eaten.
Garlic. Lao garlic has small cloves, so recipes often call for larger numbers than we might generally use.
European waterclover. An aquatic fern which grows in rice paddies in Laos and which is itself eaten.
A version of laap pa in which the fish is wrapped in a banana leaf and cooked over a fire, before being pounded with small cooked aubergines (US: eggplants), garlic and so on. The head of the fish is stewed and cut into slices and the soup used to mix with the salad. The roe should be included if available.
