Food & Wine in Thailand

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Food & Wine in Thailand

Thai food is becoming an international favourite. The variety of flavours caters to many tastes; bitter, sweet, salty, sour and spicy. Because the flavours of each Thai dish are derived mainly from fresh herbs, Thai food is mostly very healthy.

Eating in Thailand is a social affair; Thai people rarely eat alone. Usually, meals consist of several communal dishes which are placed in the centre of the table. Each person has their own plate of rice and they help themselves to small portions from each dish throughout the meal.

Exceptions to this include bowls of noodle soup (coit-tee-yao), fried noodles (rat-naa or pat-thai) and fried rice (khao-pat). These are usually eaten from individual servings. In many restaurants, individual portions of stir-fried food served on top of a plate of rice can also be ordered. This is called rat-khao, for example, stir fried vegetables with rice (pat pak roe-um rat-khao), crispy fried pork and spicy basil with rice (kra-pao moo-grob rat-khao).

For an overview of Thai food and cooking:

• Thailand Tourism
• Sawadee.com

Chopsticks or Spoons

Most of the country eats the famous Jasmine Rice (khao hom ma-lee) three times a day; breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is a fragrant white rice which is usually steamed and eaten using a spoon and fork. In parts of the south, many Muslim families use their right hand to eat it.

In the north-eastern provinces, people usually eat Sticky Rice (khao niao). This is a unique variety of rice which is steamed in a bamboo basket until it is soft and slightly sticky. It is eaten by rolling it into balls and then dipping it into the accompanying dishes.

Noodle soup, which is usually served as individual portions, is generally eaten with chopsticks and a small spoon. A spoon and fork is used to eat fried noodles. 

Vegetarian Food

Few Thai people are vegetarian and almost every Thai dish uses fish sauce. Therefore, strict vegetarians should always tell the cook that they are vegetarian. The easiest way to do this is to request vegan food (a-han jay). It should be fairly easy to find specifically vegan (jay) restaurants in the larger towns and cities.

The annual two-week Vegetarian Festival takes place in the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar, usually around the end of September and the beginning of October. It will be very easy to find vegan food throughout the country at this time as many Chinese-Thai people become temporarily vegan.

Regional Specialities

There are four regional styles of cuisine in Thai food, the main dishes of which can be found throughout the country:

• Northern
• North-eastern (Isaan)
• Central
• Southern

Each style is characterised by the combination of fresh ingredients found in the area and the history of the people living there. Southern food shows a heavy Indian and Malay influence through the use of coconut cream in its many varieties of curry. Isaan food is strongly influenced by Laos and has Sticky Rice as its staple.

Northern Dishes

• Naem: pickled pork sausage with green chillies. It can be eaten raw with sticky rice or cooked with fried rice
• Geng Hang Lay: a Burmese Curry which does not use chillies. It uses pork and tamarind to produce a sweet and sour flavour and is usually eaten with sticky rice
• Khao Soi: egg noodles served with curry sauce and meat, spring onions, pickled onions and lime

North-eastern Dishes

• Som Tam: a spicy, sour, salty salad made with unripe papaya. It can be sweet, with peanuts and dried shrimps (Som Tam Thai), or salty, with pungent salted fish and river crab (Som Tam Phoo Pha Ra)
• Laap: minced meat flavoured with dried chillies, roasted rice powder, chopped onions, mint and lemon juice
• Nam Tok: made in the same way as Laap but using thin strips of barbecued meat
• Gai Yang: marinated and barbecued chicken

Central Dishes

• Tom Yam: spicy, sour soup flavoured with lemongrass, galangal, and kaffir lime leaves with chicken or seafood
• Tom Kha: made in the same way as Tom Yam but with coconut milk added to it
• Geng Kiao Wan: a sweet green curry made with green chillies, meat or fishballs and sweet Thai basil
• Geng Phet: a spicy red curry made with dried red chillies

Southern Dishes

• Geng Som: a spicy, sour curry flavoured with red chillies and turmeric which gives it a strong orange colour
• Roti: somewhere between a pancake and a tortilla, it can be sweet, with condensed milk or bananas, or savoury with meat curries
• Kanom Jin: Noodles made from sticky rice served cold with fresh herbs and pickled vegetables and freshly made sauce (it is possible to choose the sweet, spicy or pungent sauce)
• Massaman: a sweet meat curry with coconut cream and peanuts
• Khao Yam: a spicy, sour rice salad with fresh shredded herbs, vegetables and fruit, toasted coconut, chillies and sweetened sauce made from local fish

Desserts and Snacks

Thailand has an extensive range of sweet snacks, generally known as ka-nom. These can be bought from street vendors at any time of the day. Thai people often like sour, unripe fruit dipped in salt and chillies or small fish glazed with sweet syrup and there is a vast selection on offer on nearly every street.

Fruit

There are many fruits available in Thailand. They are sold at the local markets by the kilogram or from food stalls on the street in ready-to-eat slices. Although many fruits are available all year, the variety and quality greatly increases during the rainy season from May to October.

Here is a list of a few of the fruits in Thailand and the months that they are available. There are many other fruits which are listed with photos in the links below.

• Rambutan (ngoh): This looks like a small red egg covered in rubbery hair. The thick skin is peeled back to reveal a sweet, white, juicy fruit with a large seed in the middle. It is available from May to September
• Mango (ma'-muang): There are many varieties of mango in Thailand. Some of them are eaten ripe, when they are sweet and yellow; others are eaten while they are still green and range from very sour to sweet-sour. When ordering, ask the vendor which it is – sweet (wan), or sour (bri-ao). Thai people generally prefer to eat them green and sour, dipped in salt, sugar and chillies. Another favourite is sweet, yellow mango served with sticky rice cooked in coconut cream (ma'-muang khao niao). Although some varieties are available all year, there is a much wider selection during January to May with a greater variety of sweet mangoes available at this time
• Lychee (lin-chee): These have a red skin with a small white fruit inside which is sweet and tangy. They are sold in bunches by the kilo. They are very popular but have one of the shortest seasons, being available only between April and June
• Mangosteen (mong-goot): These have a hard, dark skin which is bright pink inside with a small white fruit in the centre. The fruit is made up of small segments, each with a seed which can simply be swallowed if it is still small. The fruit is sweet, tangy and very refreshing
• Durian (durian): One of the most famous fruits in Thailand, it is well known for its strong and pungent odour which has caused it to be banned from some of the up-market hotels in Bangkok. It is a big fruit about the size of a large football with a thick green skin covered in large, sharp spikes. The skin is cut open to reveal a soft and very smelly yellow fruit. The fruit is in segments, each of which has a large seed. It is best eaten when neither under ripe or over ripe, this is when the fruit has a firm but soft texture and is sweetest. There are many varieties of durian but the most popular is mon-tong. Durian is another fruit with a very short season, available from May to August
• Jack Fruit (kan-noon): This is another unusual fruit and is related to the durian. It's even bigger than the durian but the skin is covered with small bumps rather than spikes. Also, it lacks the strong odour which makes the durian so unpalatable to some people. The yellow fruit inside is sweet and in small segments, again, each with its own seed. These can be boiled in salted water and eaten as a snack. Jack fruit is one of the few fruits which is not sold by the kilo; usually it is sold in 20-baht portions. It is available year-round
• For an extensive list of fruits in Thailand: Click here
• For a list of fruits and when they are available: Click here

Eating Out

There are many options in Thailand for eating out. Everything is on offer, from a quick meal from a cart on the street to 5-star international cuisine.

Thai people tend to rate restaurants on the quality of food served, rather than the surroundings or décor of the restaurant. Therefore, some of the best food in Thailand can be found at street stalls and simple restaurants. Hygiene is usually of a high standard and although newcomers may take some time to adjust to the new food, generally speaking, eating from street stalls is safe and clean.

Food stalls

This is the cheapest and quickest way to get a meal. Food is sold from a small cart at the side of the road. Various snacks, drinks and even complete meals can be bought and taken home or back to the office. Sometimes, the cart will have plastic tables and chairs lined along the side of the street for people to sit and eat there. A meal from a food stall will generally cost around THB 20 to 50, depending on what they sell and where they sell it.

Small restaurants

These also offer a quick and cheap meal option. Often they are simply one room which opens out onto the street. The food is cooked at the front and there are tables and chairs inside. A typical meal for one person will cost about THB 20 to 60 depending on what they sell and on the restaurant's decoration.

Scenic restaurants and air conditioned restaurants

These are for those who have more time or wish a little more comfort. There are riverside restaurants, garden restaurants or decorated and comfortable air-conditioned restaurants. Usually, these restaurants are for eating with friends rather than eating alone. Generally, a person will pay more for the surroundings and a meal can cost between THB 100 and 500 per person, depending on what is ordered and where the restaurant is.

Resort restaurants and foreign food restaurants

These are generally found only in areas with a high percentage of tourists or expatriates. In the larger cities there is a wide selection of international cuisine available and it is easy to find European meals. These restaurants are more expensive than a typical Thai food restaurant and a meal can cost between THB 200 and 1,000 per person.

• For more information on eating out in Thailand Click here

Thai Wine

Thailand is not traditionally a wine-drinking country and has only recently begun producing wines. However, the wine industry is growing in size and reputation each year.

Thai wines are generally produced to compliment the spicy flavours of Thai food. They are light, fruity and somewhat sweet, which can often make them less compatible with western dishes and may seem bland when drunk alone. As is always the case, do a little research before choosing a wine to make sure it fits the flavours of the meal.

For more information on Thai wine:

• Thai Wine
• Wine-Searcher
• Article on Thai Wines from the Tourism Authority News Room
• International Living - Thai wine

Further Information

• Wikipedia on Cuisine of Thailand