Amazing Thai Food You've Probably Never Tried

54 Shares

I’ve observed a lot of people tend to eat the same things over and over when they visit Thailand (PAD THAI ANYONE??). This makes sense: a lot of the restaurants catered to tourists feature the same items on the menu and a lot of tourists are absolute pussies about spicy food.

Now, I’m not especially adventurous when it comes to food — keep your deep-fried water bugs FAR AWAY FROM ME. And your chicken feet, live shrimps, and congealed pig’s blood for that matter. But. I have explored a bit in the past 2.5 non-consecutive years of living here.

So here are my favorite Thai foods you’ve probably never tried.

Thai soups and apps

Khao tom gai / Chicken and rice soup – Rice and usually chicken (or pork) meatballs in a soup. Simple and tasty.

Khao tom gai or chicken and rice soup — Khao tom gai | Source

Bamee moo daeng / Red pork noodle soup – A few slices of red [white meat] pork, egg noodles, bok choy, sometimes wontons, in a clear broth.

Red pork Thai noodle soup — Bamee moo daeng

Jim jum / shabu shabu / Hot pot – Oo this one’s fun. You’ll see a bunch of people sitting around steaming clay pots or a massive outdoor restaurant with people sitting over mini steaming hot pots and that’s how you know. Every place does the set up a little differently but the idea is you get a bunch of ingredients and you put them into the broth or on a grill, or both, and cook it all yourself. Then you eat it.

Tom jeau salay / Seaweed soup – Clear soup with seaweed, silken egg tofu, and usually pork meatballs but I like foregoing the pork and adding rice noodles instead.

Seaweed soup in Thailand — Thai seaweed soup, vegetarian style

Guay tiaow gai / Chicken noodle soup – Rice noodles and chicken! Sometimes comes with congealed blood but I’m not crazy about that bit.

Thai chicken noodle soup, though you usually add lots of spicy to it as well | Source

Gang hed / Mushroom soup – One of Thailand’s few dishes that naturally doesn’t have meat in it. Usually different types of mushrooms, pumpkin, and Thai eggplant.

Gaeng hed or mushroom soup with som tam in Thailand — Gang hed or mushroom soup in the foreground with som tam or papaya salad and fried pork and sticky rice in the background

Sukiyaki (soup) – Glass noodles, morning glory, cabbage, meat, egg in a broth with sukiyaki flavoring. You could also get the “dry” version which is stir-fried instead but I prefer soup because I love soup.

Mains

Bla pao / Salted grilled fish – Fish stuffed with lemongrass and other spices and salted. Grilled to tenderness and served with spicy sauces and sticky rice.

Bla Pao or salted grilled fish Thai food — Bla pao or salted grilled fish, with sticky rice and papaya salad

Gai yang or gai tod gap khao niaow / Grilled or fried chicken with sticky rice – Eat it northern Thai style with som tam and the best sauce ever, nam jim jayo.

Grilled chicken northern Thai style — Grilled chicken and papaya salad | Source

Moo tod nam jim jao / Fried pork and spicy sauce – Marinated, sundried, and deep-fried pork served with the best spicy sauce ever. The meat is like jerky – it’s really good.

Sundried pork Thai food — Moo tod and accompanying sauce | Source

Gai pat pongaree / Yellow curry chicken – Made creamy with an egg added to the sauce.

Pad pongaree or yellow curry Thai food — Pad pongaree jay kai dhao / Veggie yellow curry with a fried egg

Pak boong / Stir-fried morning glory – Vegetarians rejoice: you aren’t stuck with just pad pak ruam (stir-fried mixed vegetables)! There’s also this dish!

Stir fried morning glory Thai style — Stir-fried morning glory | Source

Fruits

Durian – King of fruits. Everyone says it’s stinky and tastes like garbage and I’m over here like okay fine more for me. Durian’s delicious. It’s creamy and sweet. Now I want some just writing about it.

Mankut / Mangosteen – Queen of fruits. I already wrote an ode to mangosteen, you can read it here.

Hand holding a mangosteen in Bangkok, Thailand — Mangosteen

Khanun / Jackfruit – I prefer mine raw and uncooked. It tastes and smells like juicy fruit gum.

Sawarot / Passion fruit – Thais like to put salt on it to cut the sourness but I forego the salt for the full effect.

Dessert

Gang buad fuktong / Pumpkin in coconut syrup – You would think the richness of pumpkin AND coconut at the same time would be too much but it’s not.

Khanom khrok / Mini coconut pancakes – You can find these little guys freshly cooked at night markets. Sweet, spongy, coconutty.

Sang kaya fuk tong / Pumpkin filled with custard – Like Thai pumpkin pie.

Pumpkin filled with custard in Thailand — Pumpkin filled with custard | Source

Things that are more mainstream that I still love

You’ll see these items on menus in more Westernized restaurants. I really hate most things on the tourist menus (not because I consider myself too good for it or anything but because I’m sick of eating it) but these ones still get me going. I recommend trying them Thai style, in a non-Westernized restaurant if you get the chance because you’ll find some are prepared totally differently.

Khao niaow mamuang / Mango sticky rice – Tried and true. Can’t miss this if you visit Thailand. PS the coconut sauce should be a bit salty!

Pa pia sod / Fresh spring rolls – You can also get them fried but I prefer the fresh ones. They come with a dipping sauce which differs depending on the restaurant but usually includes sweet chili sauce and peanuts in some form.

Fresh spring rolls in Thailand — Fresh spring rolls | Source

Som tam Thai / Papaya salad – Your best bet for an authentic version is to find someone with a mortar and pestle serving this on the street. I find the Westernized version lacks a certain punch.