Thai cuisine

The unique cuisine of Thailand is considered one of the country's attractions. Chinese, Indian and European cuisines undoubtedly played a role in existing traditions and customs, but the main influence, of course, was Thai's own unique philosophy.

Features and traditions of Thai cuisine

Sometimes tourists after a trip to Thailand believe that Thais eat once a day: they start in the morning and finish in the evening. This opinion may arise because you can meet a local resident chewing something everywhere. In fact, Thais eat small meals many times a day. They do not have meals tied to a specific time. Simply put, they eat when they want. This is why Thais often eat outside the home: while on the road, on the streets or, for example, on the beach.

Thais do not really like to cook at home, and in some houses there is simply no kitchen. The climate leaves a certain imprint; cooking increases the temperature in the house even more. Local residents buy ready-made food in makashnitsa, markets and shops. A makashnitsa is a motorbike equipped for cooking.

Thais may start their meal with dessert and end with soup. But rather, all dishes will be served at the table at the same time. There are no clear rules or preferences about what to eat first or last. You can eat soup in the morning, lunch or dinner. In resort restaurants, the waiter will most likely take into account European rules of eating and bring you soup first, and then the second. But, for example, in the north of Thailand, neither the waiter nor the cook will think about such rules and will do what is more convenient for him: what is prepared first will end up on your table.

The food prepared both in the restaurant and in a regular bakery is always at the highest level. Thais use only fresh and high-quality products for cooking!

Thais do not use a knife when eating. The utensils used are a spoon and a fork. The fork most often simply helps to transfer food from the plate to the spoon. During the cooking process, the cook cuts all the ingredients of the dishes into small pieces, so the people of Thailand consider the presence of a knife unnecessary.

The same dish prepared in different places may differ in the method of preparation and even in the ingredients. Every chef in Thailand creates his own work of culinary art, forgetting about recipes.

Much attention is paid to the design of food: each dish is decorated and looks very appetizing. Even plain boiled rice will look beautiful on a plate.

Locals drink all their drinks with plenty of ice. And this is not surprising, because Thailand has a hot tropical climate. Popular drinks are: regular drinking water, fruit shakes and juices, iced coffee. Locals are not fond of alcohol, but sometimes they can drink Thai beer Singha, Leo or Tiger.

Main ingredients of Thai dishes

Rice. We can say that rice in Thailand is the head of everything, just like bread in Russia. The word “food” is translated from Thai as “eating rice.” Rice is used to prepare main dishes or served separately, in its pure form. Thai “bread” is a must in all meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Many sweets are also made from rice.

Fish and seafood. These are the freshest shrimp, oysters, crabs, squid, fish and much more. Poultry meat is also popular, but much less so.

Herbs and spices. Thais manage to combine 5 tastes in dishes: sour, sweet, salty, bitter and spicy. Spices and herbs are an integral part of any dish. Hot chili peppers are added to some main dishes in quantities unimaginable for a Russian.

Vegetables. The country's climate allows for vegetable harvests several times a year. On vegetable stalls you can always find fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, Thai zucchini, various types of cabbage and lettuce, corn, etc. Vegetables are added to all soups and main dishes, steamed separately, and also serve as food decoration.

Fruits. Thailand is famous for its unusual local fruits and berries, which are available, as well as vegetables, all year round. These are the familiar papaya, yellow and red watermelon, tangerines, strawberries, limes, several types of mangoes, bananas, pineapples, etc. There are also lesser-known fruits: durian, sapodilla, rambutan, carambola, pitaya. The favorite fruit of Thais is coconut. Fresh coconut juice is widely used for cooking and also quenches thirst in its pure form.

5 dishes you need to try in Thailand

1. Pad Thai

The unique cuisine of Thailand is considered one of the country's attractions. Chinese, Indian and European cuisines have undoubtedly played a role in existing traditions and customs, but the main influence on Thai cuisine has been the Land of Smiles' own unique philosophy.

Instead of the usual “Hello,” when meeting, Thais sometimes ask each other: “Have you eaten yet?” The answer: “Yes, I have already eaten,” means that everything is fine, and the answer: “No, I haven’t eaten,” indicates some problems. Thinking about this amazing tradition, you understand that food and cooking occupy an important part in Thai life.

Features and traditions of Thai cuisine

1. Sometimes tourists after a trip to Thailand believe that Thais eat once a day: they start in the morning and finish in the evening. This opinion may arise because you can meet a local resident chewing something everywhere. In fact, Thais eat small meals many times a day. They do not have meals tied to a specific time. Simply put, they eat when they want. This is why Thais often eat outside the home: while on the road, on the streets or, for example, on the beach.

2. Thais do not really like to cook at home, and in some houses there is simply no kitchen. The climate leaves a certain imprint; cooking increases the temperature in the house even more. Local residents buy ready-made food in makashnitsa, markets and shops. A makashnitsa is a motorbike equipped for cooking.

There are fast food cafes in villages and on roads. The owners of such establishments display several pots of cooked food for visitors. Cafes and restaurants are also in demand.

3. Thais may start their meal with dessert and end with soup. But rather, all dishes will be served at the table at the same time. There are no clear rules or preferences about what to eat first or last. You can eat soup in the morning, lunch or dinner. In resort restaurants, the waiter will most likely take into account European rules of eating and bring you soup first, and then the second. But, for example, in the north of Thailand, neither the waiter nor the cook will think about such rules and will do what is more convenient for him: what is prepared first will end up on your table.

4. Food prepared both in a restaurant and in an ordinary bakery is always at the highest level. Thais use only fresh and high-quality products for cooking!

5. Thais do not use a knife when eating. The utensils used are a spoon and a fork. The fork most often simply helps to transfer food from the plate to the spoon. During the cooking process, the cook cuts all the ingredients of the dishes into small pieces, so the people of Thailand consider the presence of a knife unnecessary.

6. The same dish prepared in different places may differ in the method of preparation and even in the ingredients. Every chef in Thailand creates his own work of culinary art, forgetting about recipes.

7. Much attention is paid to the design of food: each dish is necessarily decorated and looks very appetizing. Even plain boiled rice will look beautiful on a plate.

8. Locals drink all drinks with plenty of ice. And this is not surprising, because Thailand has a hot tropical climate. Popular drinks are: regular drinking water, fruit shakes and juices, iced coffee. Locals are not fond of alcohol, but sometimes they can drink Thai beer Singha, Leo or Tiger.

Main ingredients of Thai dishes

Rice. We can say that rice in Thailand is the head of everything, just like bread in Russia. The word “food” is translated from Thai as “eating rice.” Rice is used to prepare main dishes or served separately, in its pure form. Thai “bread” is a must in all meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Many sweets are also made from rice.

Fish and seafood. These are the freshest shrimp, oysters, crabs, squid, fish and much more. Poultry meat is also popular, but much less so.

Herbs and spices. Thais manage to combine 5 tastes in dishes: sour, sweet, salty, bitter and spicy. Spices and herbs are an integral part of any dish. Hot chili peppers are added to some main dishes in quantities unimaginable for a Russian.

Vegetables. The country's climate allows for vegetable harvests several times a year. On vegetable stalls you can always find fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, Thai zucchini, various types of cabbage and lettuce, corn, etc. Vegetables are added to all soups and main dishes, steamed separately, and also serve as food decoration.

Thailand is famous for its unusual local fruits and berries, which are available, as well as vegetables, all year round. These are the familiar papaya, yellow and red watermelon, tangerines, strawberries, limes, several types of mangoes, bananas, pineapples, etc. There are also lesser-known fruits: durian, sapodilla, rambutan, carambola, pitaya. The favorite fruit of Thais is coconut. Fresh coconut juice is widely used for cooking and also quenches thirst in its pure form.

5 dishes you need to try in Thailand

1. Pad Thai

Rice noodles fried in sauce with seafood, soy sprouts and peanuts. Pad Thai is one of the mild but filling dishes. You can buy Thai noodles both in a restaurant and on the street in makashnitsa.

2. Tom Yam soup with chicken/shrimp/seafood

This soup is the hallmark of Thailand. Translated into Russian, Tom Yam means hot spicy soup; the third word in the name is the type of meat, fish or broth. Tom Yum Kung is a soup with shrimp, Tom Yum Kai is with chicken, Tom Yum Pla is with fish, Tom Yam Thale is with seafood. The required ingredients of the soup are kaffir lime leaves, galanga, and lemongrass. In the original, Tom Yum is prepared hot, but you can always ask the chef to make it without adding pepper. A dish may differ in recipe, as well as ingredients, not only in different parts of the country, but even among chefs of neighboring restaurants. Boiled rice is served separately with the soup.

3. Tom Kha soup with chicken/shrimp/seafood

Another well-known and adored Thai soup with seafood, shrimp or chicken. Tom Kha differs from Tom Yam by adding coconut milk to the broth. Mandatory ingredients also include kaffir lime leaves, galanga, and lemongrass. One of the types of mushrooms grown in Thailand is added to the dish. Boiled rice is served separately with the soup.

4. Rice with chicken/shrimp/seafood/pork

Classic Thai rice cooked with vegetables, mushrooms and egg. Garnished with vegetables and herbs. Chicken or pork is added in small pieces. This dish is a favorite among tourists; Thai rice will help you become familiar with Thai cuisine.

5. Green/Yellow/Red curry

This is not one, but three separate dishes. The curry is prepared with seafood, shrimp, chicken and pork to choose from. All types of this dish are made with coconut milk. It turns out to be a liquid sauce with meat, vegetables and lots of spices. The color of the curry depends on the paste added to the dish, each of which has its own unique taste. Green, yellow and red curry are very spicy foods. Boiled rice is served separately with the curry.

Getting hooked on Thai cuisine may require as little as one or two tastes of dishes flavored with galangal, cardamom, lemongrass, coconut milk and chili pepper. Their taste and smell have such a strong effect on the brain's pleasure center that the desire to please the receptors of the tongue and nose once again with something similar will periodically arise against one's will. Thai dishes will appeal to both inveterate meat-eaters and vegetarians, because almost each of them has a double. According to one of the recipes, the list of ingredients may include pork, chicken, seafood, in another - only components of plant origin. Many Thai dishes can be enjoyed at attractive prices from mobile carts called .

The most famous and popular Thai dish Tom Yam, to which the epithet “sour” is usually added, although it is both sweet and salty, and, traditionally, very spicy. It is very thick, almost everything in the house is put in it. In coastal areas, for example, shrimp, and in villages in the north - mushrooms. Mandatory ingredients are tomatoes, lime leaves, galangal. The basis of Tom Yum soup is coconut milk; in the “basic” version, “Nam Sai” is added to its name. But if the recipe also includes coconut cream (something similar to our sour cream), then “Nam Kon”. This soup has more calories, and the sourness in it is less pronounced.

2

Second most popular dish Thai cuisine Kung Som. At its core, it is a light vegetable soup prepared in meat broth. The taste is traditional for Thailand - it combines sour, sweet and spicy. Main ingredients: stewed cabbage, carrots, green beans. There is a recipe where omelette and acacia leaves are added to this soup. Then “Cha Om Kai” is added to the name. This soup is served with fresh herbs and the obligatory chili pepper.

3

Rice for Thais, like all residents of Southeast Asia, is the basis of the diet. Therefore, recipes Thai rice dishes I can’t count it – one of my favorites. Rice noodles, quite large in size, which are fried with shrimp, along the way adding everything that is edible at home. For example: tofu, bean sprouts, green onions... The dish is seasoned with lemon juice, fish sauce, and pepper is traditionally added to it. The finished noodles are poured with egg. The result is a kind of casserole. Depending on the degree of readiness of the egg, it can be thick, semi-liquid or chunky. It is topped with lime juice, vinegar, and some gourmets add granulated sugar.

4

Panang Gai - favorite Thai chicken dish, cooked in red curry sauce and topped with whipped coconut milk cream, which enhances the flavor sensation. To stimulate appetite and suppress the feeling of fullness, serve with finely chopped lemongrass leaves.

5

A Thai scrambled egg called Gai Pad Pongali, which contains chicken, onions and tomatoes. It differs from the European one, consisting of bacon and tomatoes, with a killer portion of spices. Yellow curry paste and finely chopped parsley are used, which is generously sprinkled on Thai scrambled eggs. In general, many people eat this dish in the morning, but have absolutely no idea that it is Thai.

6

Very delicious Thai dish It is popular mainly among tourists, since meat is not very common in the Thai diet, and also because each chef can cook it in his own way. For example, use meat in pieces or minced meat. The types of spices used also vary. The main ingredients are meat, garlic, basil and chili pepper. There are recipes that allow deviations from the canons and the use of chicken or fish fillet. It is prepared using the “stir-fry” technology – quick frying in hot oil.

7

The main ingredients of green, yellow and red curry are: green chilies, lime leaves, lemongrass, basil, shrimp paste, coconut milk. Changes color depending on the recipe. The hottest and hottest is green curry, a little milder is red, and yellow curry is tolerated almost calmly by Europeans. Basic seasoning for rice.

8

Kung Massaman is a Thai sauce that falls out of a fiery sweet and sour symphony of flavors. It is sweet and moderately spicy. The base includes yellow curry with coconut milk, cumin, cinnamon, nutmeg. Originates from the southern provinces of Thailand, bordering Malaysia, and is considered a halal dish. Served with boiled potatoes and meat (beef), poultry, tofu mushrooms.

9

Keo Wan - one of the national dishes of Thailand is prepared based on green curry paste. Additional ingredients are: bamboo shoots, eggplant, basil, galangal, lemongrass leaves. Serve thick with rice and boiled chicken.

10

The most famous and equally unusual salad in Thailand. Firstly, the ingredients for it are not cut, but pounded in a mortar. Secondly, it is often added to fermented fish sauce, known in Vietnam as Nuoc Nam - spicy and fragrant, a real test for European stomachs. For cooking, use: chili pepper, garlic, tamarind juice, tomatoes, lime juice, cane paste (sugar), beans, green papaya, crab meat or shrimp.

As you can see, Thai dishes They are very appetizing and attractive, but if you decide to taste all the delights of Southeast Asian cuisine, then first assess the health of your stomach and start with small portions. Bon appetit!

What are the national dishes of Thailand? Fried cockroaches or grasshoppers? Black rotten eggs with durin paste? Everything is much more interesting! Details in the article.

Thai national cuisine can rightfully be considered a real creation and a place where “incongruous things come together.” The national dishes of Thailand are distinguished by a riot of colors, an unusual list of products used for us, strong spiciness and a pronounced “contrast” taste. No, no, now we will not talk about the “seeds of the Thais” - bugs, but about the most normal, traditional cuisine that tourists can safely try. Almost all national dishes of Thailand are prepared using chili pepper and sweet and sour sauces. Such “mixes” do not leave even the most fastidious gourmet indifferent. After all, the main rule of a deep, bright taste of a dish is a combination of acid, sweetness and spiciness.

Be careful with the latter. When ordering, tell the waiter “no spicy,” which means not spicy. Or “little spicy”, which means a little spicy. Don't forget that almost all Thai food is spicy by definition. For someone who is not used to it, even classic Thai national dishes “without pepper” can seem like a real fire of hell, so don’t hesitate to say “no spicy” so as not to be left without lunch.

National dishes of Thailand that you will find very tasty

Tom Yam soup

The “star” of Thai cuisine, the leader in sales among tourists and local residents. Served and cooked with different (main) fillings: shrimp, pork, chicken. The base of the soup is sweet and spicy chicken broth, chili peppers, California lime leaves, ginger and kolgan. The name of a Thai dish has 2 components: “tom” - boil and “yam” - spicy salad. The basic name is supplemented if they want to indicate the composition of the soup, or rather, what ingredient the food is made with. Eg:

• “kai” - with chicken;
• “thale” - with seafood (fish sauce, etc.);
• “kung” - with shrimp;
• “khon” - shrimp + coconut milk (a relatively new variation of soup);
• “ka-mu” - based on pork knuckle;
• “kung-maphrao-nam-khon” - with shrimp, coconut pulp, and coconut milk.

Pad Thai

A fantastic national dish of Thailand, the translation of which means “Thai-style fried noodles.” Thais consider it the main second course. Properly prepared noodles can trick the taste buds and “open up” like an expensive, aged wine. The original Pad Thai initially tastes sweet, then sour and salty, then spicy. Moreover, the spiciness of properly prepared Pad Thai should “go out” after a few minutes.

The basis of this national dish of Thailand is rice noodles, tamarind, bean sprouts, cashew nuts, fish sauce, chili pepper. As a rule, the “correct” Pad Thai is served with chicken, but sometimes a modernized recipe is used: with shrimp and seafood; veal

Som Tam

The national salad, which is on par with Olivier in the CIS, is loved and prepared by Thais for any occasion and hint of a holiday. Consists of dried green papaya, dry shrimp, cashew nuts, green beans, tomatoes and crushed chili pepper. Very easy to prepare, refreshing and energizing.

Som Tam should be eaten freshly prepared, because... its ingredients fade very quickly.

Spring Rolls

A spring treat that came to Thai national cuisine from China. Thais associate it with the holiday and the beginning of the new year. Thai spring rolls are prepared exclusively on the basis of rice paper, with the addition of juicy vegetables and minced meat, generously seasoned with chili pepper. Rolls, depending on the clientele (in restaurants, markets, stalls), are constantly modified, but adhere to the traditional recipe and appearance.

There are several main types of spring rolls:

• Guay-tiew lui suan - base - rice paper, filling with vegetables, chili peppers, minced fish and herbs. Served in contrast with sweet and sour sauce.
• Por-pia sod – served with green mango and carrots soaked in fish sauce.
• Por-pia tod – are smaller in size and generously seasoned with chili pepper. Served with hot and sour sauce.

Khao Pad - fried rice

If not noodles, then rice! This is exactly what most Thais think. An equally popular national Thai dish is Khao Pad - fried rice. It is this ingredient that is the hallmark of all of Asia, including Tailnad.

As a rule, brown rice is used for cooking. For the filling, finely chop pork, chicken or seafood (your choice), add leeks, chili, bean sprouts and fry it all over an open fire in a sweet and sour sauce.

Super User

Traditional Thai dishes are a must try

In order not to bore my dear readers with long prefaces, which I love, and I'm sure you don't, let's immediately move on to listing the most basic traditional Thai dishes.

Many of our (and not only our) compatriots are delighted with how interesting Thai dishes taste. Yes, and for good reason, because for us it’s completely exotic! I warn you right away that almost all of them are sharp, and not as sharp as we are used to, but truly spicy. Therefore, if you are not a fan of “fire in the mouth,” when ordering, repeat to the waiter “No spicy!!!”

Tom Yum Gung Soup

It is the number one leader in popularity among tourists and Thais, the calling card of Thailand. This spicy Thai soup is made with shrimp, mushrooms, tomatoes, spices, lemongrass, kolgan and lime leaves. All this is cooked in coconut milk and there are two options for how it will be served to you - Tom Yum Gung Nam Kohn soup with coconut cream or Tom Yum Gung Nam Sai without coconut milk. The taste is impossible to describe, as it is truly unique. As for the choice, try both options. I always suffered greatly between choosing one and the other, since both of them are very tasty and are not similar to one another.

Som Tam

This salad is one of the most popular in Thailand. Som Tam is a spicy salad made with garlic and chili. Other salad ingredients: shrimp, fish sauce, peanuts, tamarind juice, tomatoes, lime juice, sugarcane paste, beans, a handful of green papaya. You understand how many flavors are combined here - sweet, spicy and sour! There are also two options for how you will be served Som Tam - with crabs Som Tam Boo, with fish sauce - Som Tam Plah lah.

Pad Thai

Thailand's favorite dish after Tom Yum! Pad Thai is a delicious dish made in a large skillet where rice noodles are stir-fried with nuts, shrimp, bean sprouts, green onions, garlic, tofu, lime juice and fish sauce. All this is filled with egg and fried again. Sugar, dried chili pepper and a little vinegar are added as a separate seasoning, but this is optional.

Fried rice (fried rice)

This is one of the main traditional dishes of Thailand, which is enjoyed not only by locals, but also by tourists. As you already understand from the name, the main ingredient of this dish is rice. Rice is fried in a huge frying pan with high edges, onions, carrots, eggs, bacon, chicken, shrimp are added (depending on what you want). If you order fried rice with chicken, only chicken and some vegetables will be added. You can order without meat at all, but only with vegetables or eggs. Insanely delicious, but they cook it differently everywhere. We ate very tasty fried rice and not so much.

Gang Som Pak Ruam

This is another unusual Thai soup with a very specific taste, where sweet, sour and spicy flavors merge in one bowl. The basis of the soup is stewed vegetables - carrots, beans and cabbage in meat broth with chili pepper. This soup can be served with omelette and Thai acacia leaves, in which case its name will change slightly to Gung Som Cha Om Kai.

Gang Keow Wan

A very popular traditional dish of Thailand, loved by the local population, is green curry. From experience I can say that it is impossible to eat it; even my husband, who has eaten hot peppers as a bite since childhood, said that it is unrealistically hot! This dish is not just a fire in your mouth, but a conflagration! Ingredients – green curry paste, coconut milk, bamboo shoots, chicken, basil, Thai eggplant, galangal, lime. The dish is quite thick and served with rice. Probably, when ordering it, you should also ask for no spicy. We apparently lost sight of this.

Panang Gai.

Also one of the most popular dishes, spicy! The chicken is fried in red curry paste, coated with coconut cream and topped with lemongrass leaves.

Kung Massaman

Massaman is a sweet curry that came from southern Thailand, and everything is the same - coconut milk, curry paste, peanuts, nutmeg and cinnamon. Traditionally served with potatoes as a side dish.

Gai Pad Pongali

This dish is also prepared in a large frying pan, chicken, onions, tomatoes and peppers are fried together in yellow curry paste, then the main ingredient is added - an egg, everything is sprinkled with parsley. The taste is somewhat reminiscent of scrambled eggs and bacon, only a little better!

Kung Jut (Gang Jued)

This is such a light Thai soup that is nice to eat during the day when it is very hot. The soup is prepared in vegetable broth from cabbage, carrots and onions, with pork, tofu and glass noodles added. Sprinkled with parsley, very similar to our native cabbage soup, but the noodles are a significant difference.

Jim Jum

A very original dish of Thai cuisine, but a little heavy, since fatty meat is used here. It is prepared as follows: a small clay pot sits on coals, inside there is a fatty broth, various herbs, pork, beaten eggs, basil and glass noodles are placed there. Vegetables in a pot are slowly stewed, the soup turns out rich and satisfying.

Kao Na Phet

Khao Na Phet is a Thai dish made from duck, so beloved in Asian countries. Served, of course, with rice. Pieces of cooked duck are placed on the rice and topped with duck broth and acacia leaves. Often sold on street food carts, be sure to try it!

Kai Jiew Moo Saap

In principle, you can cook Kai Ji Mu Sap yourself, since the base is a simple omelette. Beat the eggs with soy and fish sauce and add minced pork. Well, and to top it all with rice! Served with chili and fresh herbs. A simple and tasty dish.

Kao Niew Moo Yang

Pork shish kebab, eaten with rice, noodles or potatoes. You can do it without everything or with vegetables. You can buy it everywhere - in makashnitsa, at night markets, in shops.

Moo Dad Diew

Marinated pork is fried in vinegar and soy sauce, pieces of fried pork are served with hot sauce and green onions. Garnish with whatever you want - rice, vegetables, potatoes, noodles.

Yam Khor Moo Yang

This is a meat salad made from grilled pork. Pork, cut into pieces, is poured with lemon juice and mixed with herbs and chili. The so-called holiday salad, like our Olivier salad or crab salad. You can order it without chili.

Gai Yang

Grilled chicken is a very popular dish in Thailand, sold everywhere - on street carts, in inexpensive cafes, in restaurants, even in stores in prepared food sections. Usually eaten with rice and spicy Soy Tam salad (see above). Everywhere tastes different.

Kao Ka Moo

It takes a long time to prepare - the pork is boiled for an hour in soy sauce with cinnamon and anise, this gives the meat a specific aroma. Served with rice with sauce, the taste can be salty or sweetish. Even sold on street stalls in large pots, you will recognize this dish by the golden color of the meat.

Kao Mok Gai

This is a dish from Muslim Thai cuisine. Rice cooked in chicken broth with turmeric, saffron, cardamom and bay leaf. The chicken is cooked separately. The dish is sprinkled with fresh herbs - cilantro, parsley, an option is fried onions.

Kao Moo Dang

This Thai dish is prepared both in restaurants and at street stalls and cafes. Very tasty due to the spicy sauce. The rice is topped with a large portion of sliced ​​pork and Thai sausage with a boiled egg, and topped with barbecue sauce. An option is to serve it with cilantro or fried onions.

Kao Man Gai

Pieces of boiled chicken are placed on a plate with rice and filled with chicken broth - that's it, Ko Man Gai is ready! Spices, naturally, chili or chili with garlic.

Nam Tok Moo

The name of this dish is translated from Thai as “waterfall”. Grilled pork is mixed with lemon juice, green onions, hot peppers, mint, fish sauce and toasted rice. The pork in Nam Tok Mu is tender and soft.

Lam Moo

This famous dish from the Thai province of Isan is made from minced pork and liver, seasoned with fish sauce and lime juice. Mint leaves, onions and peppers are slightly fried with rice. The juice from the leaves becomes a sauce for the rice.

Pag Ga Pow Moo Kai Dow

This dish is prepared with chicken, minced meat and meat. All ingredients are fried in oil with garlic, chili and various vegetables - basil and green beans, served with rice and a fried egg.

Gai Pad Met Ma Muang

The chicken is fried in a deep frying pan with onions, cashew nuts, and dried chili. Add fish sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar and other spices. Serve with rice, be careful, hot pepper is added during cooking, so warn in advance.

Plah Kah Pung Neung Manow

Perch with spicy sauce, the dish is served in a metal form on fire, lime juice is poured into it, garlic, chili, and lime zest are added to the fish, the fish turns out a little sweetish. You can eat it cold, the taste will not change much.

Gang Som Plah Chon

Large fried fish is served in a spicy sweet and sour sauce. A lot of vegetables and herbs are placed on top of the fish.

Plah Plow

A popular dish in Thailand, this is a simple fried small fish, which is stuffed with lemongrass and lime leaves, possibly other aromatic herbs, and sprinkled thickly with salt. They grill it and it tastes like sweetish white fish meat that melts in your mouth. Pla Plu is prepared from any type of fish.

Yam Plah Duk Foo

Nice light soup. Pieces of catfish are deep-fried, the sauce is made from sour mango, red onion, cilantro, squid, nut sauce, limes, squid. Soup with crispy fish pieces.

Kanom Jeen

Made from soft rice noodles with curry, fish balls and sweet chili paste. Cabbage and fresh cucumbers are placed on top.

Gai Pad King

To prepare this dish, ginger, a favorite among Asians, is used. Chicken fillet, grated ginger, mushrooms, chili peppers, and onions are all fried in oyster sauce.

Pad Pak Bung Fai Daeng

Pad Pak is a hot salad made from legumes, herbs, basil and impomea. Everything is fried over high heat with oyster sauce and, of course, chili pepper! Despite being lightly fried, the vegetables remain fresh and crispy.

Nam Prik Kaphi

Several types of vegetables are steamed with the addition of small fish. Serve with rice and chilli shrimp paste. The thick and salty sauce combined with the fishy taste gives a complex and inexplicable taste and aroma. Just don't eat it if you don't like the aftertaste of fish or garlic in your mouth.

Pad See Eiu

This dish is large and is usually eaten for lunch. Wide rice noodles are fried in a large frying pan with pork, garlic and broccoli, soy sauce. Filled with egg. Served with sugar, vinegar and dried chili (optional, of course).

Guay Teow Rhua

Translated from Thai as "boat noodles", this dish is very popular in floating markets, where there is a lively trade from boats. Sweet broth made from pork blood, choice of noodles - sen ai (wide rice noodles), sena lek (medium rice noodles), wun sen (glass noodles). Chopped pork, beef, liver or fish balls.

Kai Teg Naa or Sen Lek (Guay Teow Nuaa, Sen Lek)

A light, delicious soup that you can find in almost any street cafe in Thailand, and even more so in a restaurant. Prepared with beef or pork and rice noodles, fish balls are added. Add bean sprouts, herbs, hot chili as desired. We recommend it to everyone; once you try this soup, you will remain a fan forever!

Guay Jab

Wide noodles in a sweet brown broth, with beef or pork, fried onions, crispy pork skin, bean sprouts, fish balls, black pepper. Delicious! We loved this soup so much that we specially went to the other end of the island to eat it.

Guay Teow Lui Suan

Fresh vegetable filling of carrots, lettuce, basil, and minced pork are placed in a thin layer of rice noodles. In addition to this comes a green sauce with a sweet and sour taste. These pancakes can come in different sizes and shapes.

Cha Yen

Cha Yen is a famous sweet Thai drink that can replace coffee; it is prepared with ice and a lot of condensed milk. This drink is sold everywhere - in shops, street cafes, restaurants, and on trays.

Kao Niew Ma Muang

Yellow Thai mango with sticky rice. A mango cut in half is topped with a spoonful of glutinous rice and topped with a thick layer of sweet coconut cream. During mango season, this dessert is sold everywhere.

Sang Kaya Fug Tong

Custard coconut cream is placed in a medium-sized pumpkin; when the cream hardens, the pumpkin is cut into small pieces. Candied pumpkin is placed on top and again filled with cream. It turns out to be a sweet amazing dessert!

see also

To visit Thailand and not try the national food means to return there again. It’s not for nothing that most hotels offer breakfast as a meal option.
It is almost impossible to remain hungry in the land of a thousand smiles. A variety of dishes that you simply cannot find in your homeland, incredible spices and amazing seafood await tourists at every turn.

Three advantages of Southeast Asian cuisine:
1. Taste
2. Price
3. Exotic.

The best Thai dishes

Massaman curry

An Asian version of everyone's favorite goulash. You can start getting acquainted with Thai cuisine with it, since the amount of spices per serving is not particularly large. Massaman curry is meat fried with onions in a sauce made from coconut milk and curry paste. Served with potatoes or rice.
Cost: from 80 baht (≈ or )

Tom Yum Kung
The “calling card” of the country is coconut milk soup, which has a huge number of variations. The most common recipe includes shrimp, fish (or chicken) stock, shiitake mushrooms, lime or lemongrass, and Tom Yum paste. Each cook complements the dish with ingredients according to his own taste: these can be tomatoes, rice, galangal, ginger, seafood.
Cost: from 60 baht (≈ or ).

Som Tam
A spicy salad that can be prepared quickly, is inexpensive, and will be remembered forever. For Thais, green papaya is not a fruit, but a full-fledged vegetable, which serves as the main ingredient for Som Tam. Papaya cut into strips is mixed with chili and garlic, tomatoes, green beans, nuts and shrimp (or crab meat) are added and sprinkled with lemon juice.
Cost: from 30 baht (≈ or )

Fish Plah Plow
Grilled fish seasoned with all sorts of aromatic spices and herbs with a crispy, salty crust. Plah Plow can be served separately, or can come with a side dish of rice or vegetables. A popular dinner option for both tourists and locals.
Cost: from 90 baht (≈ or ).

Rice Khao Phat
Khau Phat is prepared extremely simply from whatever comes to hand. Boiled rice is fried with meat or seafood, vegetables, spices, and sometimes an egg are added - and the dish is served to the table, decorated with fruits and herbs. It is important that the rice is not slightly heated in a frying pan, but fried. To add juiciness, it can be sprinkled with lime juice.

Khao Man kai, Khao Man Gai
Boiled “fatty” rice with chicken. One of the few dishes that will suit the most delicate stomach. The chicken is cooked separately, and then rice is cooked in its broth. Sometimes an already cooked dish can be poured with broth or served in a separate bowl, adding a little winter melon. Served with a mixture of soy and bean sauces, seasoned with garlic, ginger and chili.
Cost: from 40 baht (≈ or ).

Khao Pad
Rice is fried with chicken, and during the cooking process all kinds of vegetables and seafood are mixed in. Soy or fish sauce is served separately, or, at the client’s request, it can be poured over the finished dish. For those who prefer non-spicy food, it is better to refrain from experimenting with sauce.
Cost: from 40 baht (≈ or ).

Yams Nua
A spicy salad that will quickly satiate a tired traveler. The main ingredients are beef, onions and tomatoes. But the brightness of the dish is given by the abundance of spices, including: mint, coriander, lime and, of course, hot chili. If you want to try Yam Nua, but don't like it spicy, just ask the waiter to add less chili (or remove this ingredient altogether).
Cost: from 40 baht. (≈ or )

Geng Deng
The harmony of sour and sweet typical of Thai cuisine is Geng Dang red curry. Tender meat is cooked with plenty of curry in coconut milk. It is supplemented with kaffir lime leaves. It is noteworthy that relatively recently Geng Deng was not in particular demand among tourists, but with each new season its popularity increases.


Pancakes Roti
You should definitely try them and bring this gastronomic experience home. The dough is rolled out into a thin pancake and placed in a frying pan. The filling (usually bananas) is placed inside, the pancake is wrapped in an envelope and fried on both sides. The envelopes are topped with chocolate, condensed milk or another topper.

Video of making pancakes with a makashnik:

What to try in Thailand

It is not customary for Thais to cook at home. There are several reasons for this: expensive gas, a large number of street cafes and mobile food stalls, lack of time. Therefore, at any time of the day or night, you can eat cheap and tasty national dishes here or go to a European restaurant.
The most profitable way to satisfy your hunger is to buy food from a mobile tray. The tiles and workspace are attached to a motorcycle or cart, and the kitchen on wheels is sent to cruise the city streets. This structure is called a makashnitsa and is in demand both among the “farangs” and the indigenous population. Everyone who has visited the kingdom probably has photographs of this engineering miracle.

From the makashnitsa you can buy a hot dish, or you can refresh yourself with light snacks, of which there are a great variety of options in Asian countries. These include kebabs on a stick, amazing seafood prepared in various ways, sweets with fruit, and even exotic insects. Food in makashnitsa is safe because it is cooked right before your eyes, and the abundance of hot spices not only gives a colorful taste and aroma, but also helps the dish maintain its freshness. Often in makashnitsa you can find something that is not served in a regular restaurant, and you will pay pennies for it.

“Hits” of makashniks:

• seafood or meat skewers
• Kanom Jin (rice noodles with meat or fish and vegetables)
• Luk Chin (boiled meatballs and sausages, grilled and served with Nama Jin sauce)
• Hau Mok (crab or fish mousse with curry sauce or coconut milk; served wrapped in banana leaves)
• Hokkien noodles (noodles stir-fried with seafood, fish or bacon).

Thai sweets deserve special admiration, which even in the photo look like you really want to try them. Add to this a fantastic aroma and attractive prices - and your beach holiday will turn into a gastronomic tour.

Thai sweets

Kuay Tod
Bananas coated in flour, sugar and sesame are grilled and sold by weight. Sweet, fatty and, of course, high in calories.

Khao Tom Mood
Envelopes of banana leaves with sweet rice, tied with stems or pinned with toothpicks. Outwardly, they are very similar to the package that Mei received as a gift from the forest troll in the Japanese anime “My Neighbor Totoro.”
Cost: from 10 baht (≈ or ).
Khao Niao Mamuang
Sweet pilaf with mango. Rice is boiled in coconut milk and pieces of the aromatic fruit are added to it. The rice may be colored, and the kind vendors sometimes give you a little coconut sauce as a gift.
Cost: from 30 baht (≈ or ).

Roti Sai Mai
Multi-colored threads made from cane sugar are the Thai analogue of domestic cotton candy. They are sold in bags, but it is customary to eat them after wrapping them in thin roti pancakes.
Cost: from 20 baht (≈ or ).
Kanom Tarn
Yellow pies mixed with rice flour and coconut milk.
Cost: from 20 baht (≈ or ) for three pies.
Tong Yord
Egg yolk boiled in sugar syrup. Small balls are formed from the sweet mass and sold in bags of several pieces.
Cost: from 20 baht (≈ or ).
When you're going to eat, take a look at street cafes and mobile food trucks: this way you can save money and try more amazing flavors. Objectively evaluate your body’s capabilities and don’t forget to add “No Spicy” when you see chili peppers in the hands of the cook.