When visiting Thailand your taste buds will be thrilled and so will your nostrils with its cuisines’ taste and smell that have various flavors and fragrances which are hard to exhaust. We have therefore come up with a list of top 10 Thai food that you must try when in Thailand. The following dishes will leave you convinced that Thai food is among the best things in life.
1. Tom Yum Goong
This is a must try spicy shrimp soup with a classic aroma. It is made of refreshing blend of fragrances from chilli, lime juice, lemon grass, galangal, shallots, fish sauce and lime leaves. All of these give it a herbal touch. To give the soup dish some body are straw mushrooms and succulent fresh prawns. You can use it with any meal. If you love spicy-sour-hot taste and distinctive smells, you better start shouting “Thailand here I come!”
2. Som Tum
It is a spicy green papaya salad that originates from North East state of Isaan. It is made of green beans, garlic, chilies, shredded raw papaya and cherry tomatoes. The ingredients are pounded in a pestle and mortar. The end result is a spicy-sour-sweet flavor that is so distinct you cannot forget about. There are variations in the region where dry shrimp, peanuts or salted crab are added into the mixture. If you ever dreamt of thorough gut-cleansing, make the latter your best choice.
3. Tom Kha Gai
It is a chicken in coconut soup. Some refer to it as a mild tamer twist soup on Tom Yum. It is a blend of thinly sliced young galangal, fiery chilies, stalks of lemon grass, crushed shallots and tender chicken strips. Coconut milk lashings reduce the effects of spices in the soup. Fresh lime leaves makes it creamy, sweet-smelling concoction that is so mouthwatering.
4. Gaeng Daeng
This is Thai food to die for. Just like a beautiful woman, its tender, sweet and has a delicate fragrance. It is made of smooth coconut milk, morsels of meat, red curry paste and dressed with superbly sliced kaffir lime leaves. This aromatic, rich curry will amuse your taste buds to unimaginable extents.
5. Pad Thai
Pad Thai is among the must try 10 Thai food when in Thailand. It is simply a Thai style of fried noodles. It is an international Thailand dish. The small wide or thin noodles are added into a steamy mixture of crunchy beansprouts, eggs and onion. Variations can be created by adding sugar, finely-ground peanuts, and fish sauce. This dish takes your eating experience to a whole new level.
6. Khao Pad
When visiting Thailand, try this dish of fried rice for lunch. Its beauty is in its simplicity. Egg, fried rice, onion and few herbs all in their rightful amounts make Khao Pad. The dish is usually served with cucumber slices and pieces of lime. To dress it locals use crab, chicken, prawns, basil or vegetable left overs. The look of the final product forces you to eat like you will never eat again.
7. Gaeng Keow Wan Kai
There are different chicken dishes in Thai but Gaeng Keow Wan Kai which is green chicken curry leads the pack. The preparation of this Thai food require eggplants in the size of a cherry, fresh chicken morsels, tender shoots of bamboo, coriander sprigs and enough sweet basil handfuls. How do these meek ingredients make the curry green? You may ask. The green color is achieved by mixing green curry paste spoonful with coconut milk which is usually hot and creamy. You may serve the exquisite dish with Thai rice for an unforgettable eating experience.
8. Yam Nua
Yam Nua is a spicy salad that you must try while in Thailand. It is made of onions, coriander, lime, dried chilli, spearmint and tender beef strips. Its taste makes it the best salad in Thailand and most probably the whole world over.
9. Pak Boong
This Thai food is also referred to as morning glory. The main body is made of a leafy plant found across the whole of South East Asia. It’s a mixture of bird’s eye chilies, oyster sauce, black fermented bean, garlic cloves and fish sauce. Once the plant leaves shrink and become soft the spicy or non-spicy Thai dish is ready to be devoured.
10. Kai Med Ma Muang
It is time for chicken yet again. Chicken with cashew nuts. Kai Med Ma Muang is simply made with roasted cashew nuts, chilies, onions, mushrooms, pepper, carrot and sweet soy sauce and honey as the ingredients.
Tips to villa guests: All of the above Thai food can be cooked and served at the comfort of your own luxury villa rental in Phuket and luxury villas in Koh Samui. If any of the above does not exist on the food menu provided, you may inform the manager or your dedicated chef. The staff will be delighted to do the shopping and prepare the food for you. Meals and food arrangement at luxury villas are more flexible and totally different from 5-star hotels with a fixed menu. Speak to your dedicated concierge or villa specialist for more information about food and meals at the villa.
Travel and lifestyle writer in Asia
