Thai Food: Basics

Thai Food

What’s not to love about Thai food? Thai stir-fry, Thai curry, Thai drinks – all of it! I understand not everyone is as adventurous with their meals as I am and it’s helpful to know some fall-backs before you go. I’ll start basic and get more wild with my favorite Thai eats after living and working in Thailand for six months. We’ll cover some less-adventurous go-to comfort food (read: not spicy, familiar ingredients), common stiry-fry options, curries, condiments, and drinks here. Beyond Basics will cover fancy dinner options, Western things, and my personal favorite – all the street food. I wasn’t keen on the street food when I got there but it’s the best bang for your buck (er, baht?) and belly. Don’t be shy – watch someone else order or point and try it out!

This is by no means a comprehensive list of foods available, just what I experienced, enjoyed, and found in several places – well, there’s a few things I didn’t enjoy but you can make your own judgements. Each region of Thailand has different specialty foods based on the accessibility to certain ingredients and the preferences of the people. Most of the posts I saw didn’t cover the region I lived in – Central Thailand, not Bangkok. I lived where the Ping and Nan Rivers meet to form the larger Chao Phraya River and the most famous food there is the Mochi Nakonsawan, different from Japanese mochi but along the same vein.  The food there was from the river and plentiful fields versus the seafood and coconuts of Southern Thailand. Beef is more common in Southern Thailand as well because there is a larger Muslim population due to the shared border of Malaysia. However, there was one Halal food shop nearby where I went to satisfy my occasional beef cravings.

If you aren’t familiar with Thai food, start at home. You’ll find a lot of the same dishes available here. Get familiar with the standard dishes, paying close attention to the pictures and any ingredients. You will find menus in English in Thailand, however they may not have a full ingredient list in English. If you have allergies or other dietary requirements or preferences, learn how to say those in Thai before going! Check out the Language for Food post for a good starting point.

Please excuse my guess of the American version of Thai words – it’s what’s in my notes and I didn’t starve! I break it down more in the Language for Food post. I have a lot of pictures of food from my time there, but not every dish I wanted to mention, so I scoured the web for pictures that most accurately depict what I ate in real life. (Sidebar- why did I not take a single picture of curry?? Too excited to eat it, I’m guessing!)

Comfort Food

Your stomach may not be the strongest or you may be adverse to spice-ful food. That’s cool, you can still eat Thai-style! Here are my favorite comfort foods, when I was feeling sick, sick-of-spice, or sick of making decisions.

Khao pad – fried rice. My favorite is khao pad goon, with shrimp. Khao pad American is a hard pass (for me) with raisins and tiny hotdog-like sausages. You can get vegetarian versions easily, too.

Khao kai jiaw – omelet over rice. This was my major fall back, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Made with fresh brown eggs, and usually ground pork, you can sometimes find a gal who will add veggies for ya. The eggs are then fried in a wok until crispy – salty deliciousness especially with hot sauce! Favorite. 

Jok or congee – rice porridge. Not veg friendly as it appears as it’s usually made with pork broth to get the rich, creamy rice porridge texture. Served with ground pork or pork balls and a variety of toppings like fresh ginger (good for your tummy!), chives, sometimes fried garlic, and, upon request, a fresh cracked egg. Do it, the hot dish cooks the egg in no time. Mega comfort food.

Khao man gai – Hainan-style chicken and steamed rice. Simple, and surprisingly flavorful. The chicken is simply poached and served with rice, as well as a cup of chicken broth and spicy chili sauce. Simple, easy, totally identifiable. 

Soups

I consider soups in my comfort food list, for sure. It seems odd to want a bowl of steaming hot anything when it’s already hot outside, but you’ll be surprised how comforting it really is. Also, it makes you sweat which helps cool you off! Like most Thai dishes, you can get your soup with the type of protein you’d like so I’ll cover the basic flavors.

The 3 major soup bases are:

Gang jued – clear chicken broth soup made with fresh herbs. 

Tom yum – hot and sour soup, clear broth. 

Tom kha – also hot and sour with coconut milk.

They all come with vegetables specific to the soup.Both tom yum and tom kha are commonly found with chicken (gai), mixed seafood (talay), or shrimp/prawns (kung) primarily. You can get the big beautiful hot pot for a table to share. Both are delicious, the tom kha is a little less spicy due to the cooling coconut milk.

Tom yum tien gai or tom saab tien gai or tom yum sappoe – chicken feet soup. Not for everyone. I had a problem with the texture of the boiled chicken feet more so than the taste of the soup. Tom saab tien gai is the spicy version (of course there’s a spicy version!). We had this after a night of drinking as the insistence of lovely Thai people, my guess is hangover prevention! It’s considered quite a special dish. You can watch me drunkenly try chicken foot soup here. 

Suki or sukiyaki – a clear broth with vegetables, chicken, and glass noodles, the excitement is in the Thai Suki Sauce, spicy of course. You can also get suki dry, sans broth. File this under “hangover food” when you’ve had too much Hong Thong. 

Kuay teow and it’s many options. mega favorite! At the core, it’s noodle soup, usually with pork broth. You can choose a variety of noodles (more on that here). You can choose the type of pork you want on top, basic ground pork (muu), red pork (muu daeng because dang it’s good!), or my favorite, ga du muu which is pork bones and amazing. Any meatballs you see on a menu are probably fish balls (loo chin plaa). Thais often add blood (nom taok) for extra nutrients and flavor, and it’s not half bad! You may also get jellied blood patties thrown in there. Kuay teow reua is the famous boat noodle soup, named for the popularity in floating markets, and comes with nom taok blood sauce mixed in. Give it a try! Oh, and don’t miss the crunchy topping of chicharrones/fried pork cracklins (cap muu) that are fresh and amazing.

Common Stir-Fry Dishes

Noodle Stir-Fry

You can customize the protein of your stir-fry and I recommend going with the shrimp (kung) as much as possible. They often come with the heads and tails on – those heads are crunchy and delicious but not for everyone! Chicken (gai) and pork (muu) are also readily available with beef (neua) being less so in the North, but common in the South. And you can add a fried egg (kai dao) to just about anything – big fan!

Pad see ew. Wide rice noodles with Chinese broccoli or leafy greens (like kale but not kale), scrambled egg, and a slightly sweet and salty sauce. Another go-to favorite and not spicy at all.

Rad na. Similar to pad see ew, sans egg, with a richer gravy-like sauce. Also not spicy and totally delicious.

Pad kee mao. Drunken noodles (mao means drunk, if you need to use that one!). Wide rice noodles in a spicy salty basil sauce with bell peppers and onions.

Pad Thai. Rice fettucine-size noodles (sen-lek) stir-fried with a tamarind based sauce, giving it that classic orange tint (though you’ll find it less orange in Thailand than at home). Tamarind is slightly sweet and tangy. Pad Thai always comes with noodles, eggs, lime, and peanuts, but the rest can vary. Usually a mix of seafoods. The Thai version is more pungent and exciting than our Western version so don’t skip it! Super cheap form street vendors, often wrapped in a banana leaf to go.

Rice Stir-Fry

Thai stir-fry is served with steamed white rice, you may have the option for brown rice (for an additional price) and almost always can add a fried egg (kai dao) to the top! There are a ton out there – try them all! These were my favorite go-to meals.

Kana muu krob – crispy pork with greens. Kana indicates a leafy green vegetable that you can pretend is kale, but is definitely not. It may be Chinese kale or sometimes Chinese broccoli (close to broccolini) and I like my leafy greens so this was a favorite. The crispy fatty pork (muu krob) is delicious and better than any I have found in the States. The sauce is garlicky, salty, slightly sweet and to die for! Favorite.

Prig khing – long beans in red chili paste. Long beans are very similar in taste and texture to green beans just, well, longer and maybe tougher. This is a great way to get your curry flavor without the creamy coconut milk. With or without meat, this is a delicious, spicy treat.  With meat, I’d go muu krab again here – crispy pork is good with anything! 

Pad khing – ginger stir fry. On the gentler side, we have a pretty straight forward dish here. The ginger is great for your traveler’s tummy and it’s a simple yet exciting dish. 

Pad ka pear-a – (or khraphao or ka pow) spicy basil stir fry. Another lunchtime favorite. This is similar to drunken noodles but you could skip the carbs. All the flavor of spicy basil, usually with ground pork or chicken and rarely vegetables. Also excellent with a fried egg on top!

Nam liab muu sap – minced pork with salted olive. Must try! I didn’t find this dish until the week I left, sad story. If spicy isn’t your thing, keep an eye out for this treat. The olives are like a mix of kalamata and black olives, briney, salty, delicious. And it works especially well with the pork. A favorite I’ve never seen in America.

Fak thong sai kai – pumpkin with egg and basil. This is another lesser known treat. Pumpkin is closer to our kabocha squash, but still orange and starchy. This is a surprisingly good combo! Vegetarians may see this one on their list. It’s very filling and I liked it for breakfast at school. You may also see pumpkin curries, soups, and a spicy basil variation to this stir-fry.

An American teacher told me it was pronounced “f*ck Todd” and I always felt bad for poor Todd every time I ordered it! It’s more like, “f*ck tong” though. Have fun ordering this one! I couldn’t find a reusable pic of what I saw, but here’s a link to a legit Thai recipe – this one has chicken in it but I only saw the vegetarian version in real life. 

Curries

We can’t even discuss Thai food without mentioning curry. Eat Thai curry! Try them all. For me, the coconut milk is a bit heavy and can disrupt my tummy functions. I eat it anyway. One major difference to note is the contents of Thai curries in Thailand versus elsewhere. In America, most curries are served with some mix of bell peppers, carrots, and  onions. In Thailand, each curry has it’s prescribed meat and vegetables. Green curry has the little squash balls, massaman had potatoes. Usually. Also usually served with a side of rice.

Most curries are made with fish sauce and/or shrimp paste and that part can’t be left out at restaurants. Making curry paste is a process and it’s not made to order – it’s batch made once per day. I wouldn’t ask for it spicy – add the spice at your table if it’s not hot enough for ya, but it probably will be!

Khang kiowan – green curry, the spiciest. Usually made green vegetables like squash balls. Made with coconut milk. This was the most common curry found in Central Thailand where I lived. The teachers were impressed that I could each such spicy stuff! My favorite. Curry is typically served with steamed white rice but you may have the option to get ka nom jiin with green curry, steamed rice noodles that come in a twisted bunch. Yum! 

Khang peht – red curry. It’s not usually the spiciest curry and it’s not very red. Usually with Thai eggplant, bamboo shoots, and Thai basil. Made with coconut milk. 

Khang kari – yellow curry.  Usually made with chicken drumsticks and potatoes.  Made with coconut milk. Kari is the Thai pronunciation of curry.

Khang phaneang – (or penang) Red curry with peanuts. The peanuts make it thicker and a little sweeter, lower on spice. It’s a very satisfying dish. Usually made with red vegetables like bell peppers. Made with coconut milk.  Not for those with a peanut allergy or sensitivity!

Khang matsaman – massaman curry. Here’s where curry gets a bit different in the spices it’s made with. If you’ve tried the stoplight color curries and they’re not for you, try massaman. It contains spices not found in other curries like star anise, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and peanuts, giving it a spice-ful warmth. This curry is attributed to the Muslim population so you’ll rarely found it made with pork, usually made with potatoes and chicken drumsticks or beef. Made with coconut milk most of the time. Heads up, peanut allergy!

Khao soi – red curry noodle soup. This is a Northern Thailand speciality. It squarely straddles the fence of soup and curry. I’ve had it with clear broth and chunky tomatoes and I’ve had bright orange creamy curry-style. It always has noodles, and that’s where the name comes from, usually with crispy fried noodles on top. Usually made with some sort of pickled vegetable. Made with coconut milk.

Condiments

On most tables, you’ll find a couple jars of sauces and spices so I’m going to explain the relish tray, or “mysterious jars” here. You may find a jar of white crystals and think, oh cool, salt! Nope, it’s sugar. Smell stuff before adding to your dish or put a little on the side to taste because Thai condiments are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get!

The 4 most common jars you’ll find together on a table are: spicy fish sauce, vinegar chili sauce, chili powder, chili sauce, and sugar on the side (not salt!). 

Nam jim or nam chim refers to a dipping sauce in general. There are standard recipes for certain types of food, like a seafood dipping sauce, but most vary from cook to cook. If you want a sauce, ask for this. 

Nam pla/prik nam pla – fish sauce with chilies, my favorite. My name is Traci and I’m addicted to spicy fish sauce. There, I said it. It stinks, people leave the kitchen when I open the bottle, but I can’t resist it! It’s so salty and umami and spicy! I love it on my khao kai giaw, in my jok, on pad see ew – on a plane, on a train… you get the idea. I never touched that jar in American Thai restaurants but I developed a serious problem over there. I love spicy and I love salty. It’s everything! Easily identifiable by the golden color liquid, floating chilies, and fishy smell.

Prik pung – dried chili flakes. Yes, like the ones that come with your pizza delivery. An easy way to add a little kick to non-spicy dishes like pad thai.

Prik ki noo – vinegar chili sauce. It may look a lot like nam pla, but it tastes very different! It will be the more clear sauce of the two and usually only have the sweeter green chilies, no red. Emphasis on the vinegar component!

*I couldn’t find a picture of prik ki noo and I’m not certain that’s the name you should ask for.. Some articles referenced prik ki noo as the same as prik nam pla. But they are very different in taste. Ki noo translates to “mouse poo,” I’m guessing to describe the floating chilies. I know this one because I liked talking about the key to my apartment around school children for a laugh. Have you seen my key?

Nam jim gai – sweet Thai chili sauce. A little sweet, a little sour, this is a common accompaniment to chicken in Thailand, or anything fried. It’s not nearly as spicy as the other chili sauces. You can find this one back in the States, too. Love it! This isn’t on every table but it’s not hard to find. Definitely get some when buying chicken from a street vendor – they’ll wave a little red baggie at ya, take it!

Sambal oelek – chili sauce. Sambal oelek is a thick and chunky chili sauce.  This is a foodies purist form of chili sauce with no added sugar or vinegar. Just chili.

Beyond those staples, there are other condiment bottles commonly seen. The Thai sriracha as mentioned and a couple special cases. 

Thai chili sauce aka Thai Sriracha (not the American Rooster version). It’s important to compare and contrast right? Like sriracha at home, it is a chili and vinegar sauce. Vinegar can ruin some things so taste first!

Maggi sauce. Saltier than normal soy sauce, lighter in color, it’s the perfect little splash on eggs. Or anything really. You may have seen the brown bottle with yellow cap at a Mexican restaurant. It’s actually from Switzerland and common throughout Asia. Not gluten free. Brown bottle with yellow and red label. Great on jok.

Golden Mountain. Like Maggi, it’s akin to a salty soy sauce addition but has it’s own twist. Big benefit for some is the salty umami doesn’t come from any sort of fish ingredient. Yay for those with fish allergies or strict vegans. No gluten free.  Not gluten free. The larger brown bottles have a yellow and green label. 

A Word About MSG

From the soap box: MSG is a common seasoning in Thailand and the rest of Asia, you will find it more readily than salt.  It does not negatively affect most people. “Indeed, most scientists today agree that the notion that MSG causes sickness in humans is unfounded.” If you have a glutamate allergy, like you’re allergic/sensitive to mushrooms and Parmesan cheese, okay, avoid the MSG. If you’re on a low sodium diet for health reasons, yes avoid the MSG, soy sauce, Maggi, Golden Mountain, etc (and good luck in Thailand!).

But everyone else (Mom!) – it’s time to acknowledge the myth that MSG is some boogey-salt. Don’t take my word for it. The article linked above goes on the tell the story of the origins of this myth and includes results of scientific studies proving it false. Fascinating stuff! Even more interesting though, and easier to do while driving, is listening to This American Life podcast (episode 668 The Long Fuse aired Feb 15, 2019) which tells the story of the creator of the MSG myth! Mega fascinating. The more you know.

Drinks

As mentioned in the Beat the Heat post, you are going to want to stay hydrated while in Thailand. It’s easy to do – there are so many delicious drinks to be had! I’m going to give quick coverage of common beverages you’ll find around town.

Thai coffee and Thai tea are both sweetened and served with condensed milk. You may have had a bright orange Thai tea at home – and gotten a big buzz and reorganized your spice cabinet only to crash later. You’ll find coffee shops that make Starbucks’ coffee drinks seem like a  a rudimentary beginning to coffee drinks. Unless you’re trying to buy coffee beans to make at home. I literally could not find a bag of beans in months of searching! I’m basic, I like cold black coffee. The answer, because I will not leave the house (especially to teach children) without coffee, was instant coffee.  Nescafe or Moconna were fine. It was also a chore to find it just plain black versus the 3-in-1 which means sugar and cream.

Cha yen – Thai iced tea, sweetened with sugar and served mixed with condensed milk, whole milk, or rarely coconut milk. It’s easy enough to get without milk, but almost impossible to get without sugar. The hot version of the same is cha rorn. The red tea used is Ceylon

Cha dam yen is the version without milk and may be Ceylon tea or a black tea. Delicious and dairy-free either way. Cha dam rorn is hot, milkless dark tea.

Cha keow – Green tea is also available. My favorite at 7 Eleven is the Ito En brand, no sugar added. It may be a little grassy for some, but it’s a personal favorite. 

Kafae is the Thai pronunciation of coffee, like a drawn out café.  Kafae yen is iced coffee, sweetened with sugar and served mixed with condensed milk, whole milk, or rarely coconut milk. It’s easy enough to get without milk, but almost impossible to get without sugar. The hot version of the same is kafae rorn.  But if you want Western style black coffee, ask for Kafae Ameri-can, yen or rorn. 

I don’t do fancy coffee shops often, but I loved this airy one in Chiang Mai. A little bird flitted around and always tried to steal the orange peel from my favorite honey cold brew. In the background, you see my friends traditional kafae yen.

Oliang – Thai iced coffee, sort of. Oliang has coffee grounds as well as other ingredients like sesame seeds or soy beans. I guess it’s like getting a chicory-coffee blend in New Orleans. When in Rome! You won’t be able to visually tell the difference.

Sam-oo-tee – fruit (ponlamai) and or vegetable (pak) smoothies – big fan. Cold, refreshing, and portable. If you get your fruit shake or smoothie to-go, you’ll get a plastic bag looped under the lid, better for riding on your scooter, you see. You’ll find a lot of to-go items are tailored to scooter life. Smoothies can be made with or without yogurt or milk and it’s not always clear which you’re getting. Watermelon or dragon fruit are my two favorites, although I found the dragon fruit had a diuretic effect, not ideal! One lady near Sawan Park had cups of mixed fruits and vegetables for you to choose from. Then she’d blend them up with ice and condensed milk (mai sai nom, without milk for me).

That covers what you may find in a typical Thai restaurant. There is so much more and I haven’t gotten to my all-time favorite foods yet! Keep reading the Thai Food: Beyond Basics where I cover street food and fruit, fancy meals, Thai desserts, and Western food options. And check out the Thai Language for Food post to get a leg up on ordering Thai food.  And for fun, here’s a Thai menu to check out.