Thai cuisine is one of the most popular in the world and it’s famous for its freshness, the balance of flavors and its heavenly taste. The popularity of Thai cuisine grows each day. Currently, there are approximately 15,000 Thai restaurants around the world.
The biggest misconception of Thai cuisine is that all Thai dishes are very spicy. This is not true, all traditional Thai dishes are the perfect balance between 5 flavors: spicy, sour, sweet, salty, and bitter.
From curries, soups, noodle dishes or savory salads, there is something for everyone. As in many other countries, also in Thailand, many dishes differ in taste from region to region, and each part of Thailand has its influence from neighboring countries.
The Pad Thai you loved in Chiang Rai will be probably very different to the one you will be served in Trang.
I love Thai food and even after almost eight years living in Thailand I love discovering new dishes and experiment with new tastes. At the end of this post, I prepared for you list of the BEST Thai Cooking Classes and some useful Thai vocabulary.
Here are my 15 classic Thai dishes everyone should try when coming to Thailand.
- Tom Yum Gung: Hot and sour soup with shrimp
- Khao Pad: Thai Fried Rice
- Pad Thai: fried noodles
- Pad Ga Paow Gai: Stirred Fried Chicken with Basil
- Kaeng Khiao Wan: Green Curry
- Som Tam: Green Papaya Salad
- Gaeng Phed: Thai Red Cury
- Guay Teow: Spicy noodle soup
- Gai Pad med ma muang: Chicken with Cashew Nuts
- Penang Curry
- Tom Kha: Coconut Soup
- Massaman Curry
- Pad See Ew: Stir fried soy sauce noodles
- Larb: Spicy meat salad
- Yam Taley: Spicy glass noodle salad with seafood
- DESERT: Khao Niaow Ma Muang: Mango And Sticky Rice
1/ Tom Yum Gung: Hot and sour soup with shrimp
Thai people love Tom Yum, it’s their choice of soup and very popular version is served with shrimp. But it can be also served with meat or vegetables. It’s usually very spicy and it has a typical taste of herbs, like kaffir lime leaves and lemongrass.
3/ Pad Thai: fried noodles
Pad Thai, or Phad Thai, is a stir-fried rice noodle dish commonly served as street food and at most restaurants in Thailand. You can choose if you wish to have with shrimp, meat or vegetarian with tofu.
During World War II, Thailand suffered a rice shortage due to the war and floods. To reduce domestic rice consumption, the Thai government promoted the consumption of noodles instead. Pad Thai since became one of the most popular Thai dishes.
4/ Pad Ga Paow Gai:
Stirred Fried Chicken with Basil
Poplar dish with many tourists and expats living in Thailand. Pad Ga Pao is a delicious dish of rice stirred with meat (usually chicken) with garlic, basil leaves and chilly.
You can have this dish on its own with rice, but the most popular way is to have it with a fried egg. This classic combination is called “pad ga pao gai kai dao”, which simply means rice with chicken holy basil stir-fry and a fried egg.
6/ Som Tam: Green Papaya Salad
My Thai family and friends love Som Tam and it is always on the table when we eat. The base of the salad is grated unripe green papaya and there are many varieties of this dish with different ingredients.
The original of the dish is from Lao and its popularity around south-east Asia is huge.
7/ Gaeng Phed: Thai Red Cury
Red curry is one of my favourite Thai dishes and I can say I eat it a few times a week. It is usually the spiciest of the curries, depending on the region. So if you not too much in spices opt-out for Penang or Massaman curry which are much milder.
8/ Guay Teow: Spicy noodle soup
Thai noodle soup is one of the most popular Thai dish and can be found almost everywhere. Guay teow describes any type of noodle soup. It can be made with chicken, pork, or beef (rarely vegetarian-friendly) as well as either rice noodles or egg noodles. Most of the time, vendors also add wontons or meatballs to the broth.
The dish is best topped with a selection of condiments including, sugar, dried chilli peppers, lime juice, and fish sauce. Guay teow can be eaten at any time of day and is particularly good as a late-night snack.
9/ Gai Pad Med Ma Muang: Chicken with Cashew Nuts
Very easy and colorful dish, very easy if you are not too big on Asian food and for children. It’s a tourist’s favorite as it has very mild with a pleasant taste and it fits well within the comfort zone of most westerners.
Make it your first Thai dish if you worried about trying Thai cuisine.
This dish is served with steamed rice and usually chicken-based, fried with vegetable and delicious cashew nuts.
10/ Penang Curry
Panang curry is delicious thick curry that is salty and sweet, with a nutty peanut flavour. Although beef is the most common meat ingredient of Panang curry, however chicken, pork, liver and fish can easily be used instead.
11/ Tom Kha: Coconut Soup
This classic chicken spicy and sour coconut soup gets its rich and dynamic flavor from quintessential Thai ingredients such as coconut milk, lemongrass, fresh ginger and lime juice. Usually, it prepared with chicken or beef meat.
12/ Massaman Curry
Massaman curry is one of the more unique Thai curries, the curry is influenced by Malay and Thai Muslim cultures. It has mild very aromatic flavor, typically cooked with potatoes and beef or chicken.
13/ Pad See Ew: Stir fried soy sauce noodles
Second stir-fried noodles dish seen on the street food stalls all over Thailand. While Pad Thai is sweeter and nuttier, Pad See Ew is salty, balanced with a touch of sour and a wonderful chargrilled flavor.
14/ Larb: Spicy meat salad
Larb is a very popular dish from the Isan region of Thailand. This dish is originally from Lao but it is very popular all over Thailand. Larb is a dish of browned ground meat (usually beef or chicken), mint, basil and red onions dressed with lime juice.
This dish is a perfect dish for hot climate- spicy crunchy and light.
15/ Yam Taley: Spicy glass noodle salad with seafood
Yam means “mix” but in Thai cuisine, it normally refers to a type of salad-like dishes. Yam Taley is a very refreshing often very spicy salad of mix glass noodles, vegetables, fresh herbs and seafood such as squid, prawns or crab.
FAVORITE THAI DESSERT
Khao Niaow Ma Muang: Mango and Sticky rice
This is a typical Thai dessert you will find everywhere. The main ingredients are sticky rice, canned or fresh coconut milk, salt, palm sugar and mangoes. If you like mangoes and/or sticky rice, you’re going to love this exotic Thai dessert.
5 Useful Tips For You:
1/
If you are not sure how spicy you want your dish, order mildly spicy and you can always add dry chillies or chili powder later.
2/
If you are conscious of your healthy diet you can ask the restaurant or stall not to add much sugar in your dish. Surprisingly most Thai dishes are full of sugar which is used to complement the other flavors. If you don’t have sweet tooth also ask for fruit shakes and Thai coffee without sugar as it can be extremely sweet.
3/
Unfortunately, on the small islands and in the countryside, there are still not many vegetarian or vegan restaurants. But mot dished are made to order so don’t be afraid to ask for a vegetarian option, if that is your preference. For vegan options be wary of fish sauce, oyster sauce and dried shrimps, which are added to many dishes.
4/
Don’t eat loudly. Don’t slurp to show that the food is delicious, like the Chinese or Japanese. Thais eat quietly and keep the table area clean.
5/
Take part in one of the Thai cooking classes on your holidays, they are great fun, and everyone can join in. There are some amazing places in Bangkok or Chang Mai. But can find fun exciting cooking schools all over Thailand. Not only you will learn and eat some amazing food you will get a fantastic peek into the Thai culture.
Here are some of the best Thai cooking classes schools in a few different regions:
Bangkok: Chef Leez Traditional Thai Cooking Class
Chiang Mai: Thai and Akha Cooking Class in Chiang Mai
Phuket: Kata Thai Cooking Class
Krabi/ Aonang: Thai Charm Cooking Class
Koh Lanta: Lanta Thai Cookery School
Would you like to know more about Thai food Thai Food culture?
10 Interesting Facts about Thai Food and Food Culture
Useful Vocabulary
Food:
- Khao pad – Fried rice
- Moo – Pork
- Moo daeng – Red pork
- Gai – Chicken
- Neua – Beef
- Talay – Seafood
- Gung – Prawn
- Pla – Fish
- Pak – Vegetable
- Kai dao – Fried egg
Food preferences:
Gin- Eat
Gin jay – Vegetarian
Mai sai namtang – No sugar
Gin tua mai dai – I can’t eat nuts
Gin kung mai dai – I can’t eat prawns
Gin talay mai dai – I can’t eat seafood
Mai ped – Not spicy
Ped mak mak – Very spicy
Mai sai prik – No chili
Drinks:
Beer – Beer
Nam – Water
Nom – Milk
Nam Som – Orange Juice
Gaffe yen/ron – Coffee iced/hot
Nam polamai – Fruit juice
Nam keng – Ice
Gaew – glass
Chai- Tea (chai yen- Ice tea)
Other:
Arroy – Delicious
Chob mak mak – I liked it a lot
Im mak mak – I’m very full
Hong nam yoo ti nai ka/kaap? – Where are the toilets?
Kop khun ka/kaap – Thank you
Sawasdee ka – Hello/Goodbye
Paying:
- Tow ry ka/kaap? – How much?
- Chick bin ka/kaap – The bill.
- Kit tang ka/kaap – The bill (slang).
- Mai sai tung ka/kaap – I don’t want a bag, thanks
