About Thai food

In his book Thai Food, chef and author David Thompson describes Thai cuisine as, “A singular cuisine that is easily distinguished even from its nearest neighbours”.

Indeed, despite the fact that Thai food uses many of the same core ingredients as other South East Asian countries – chilli, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, fish sauce, palm sugar and lime juice – it manages to retain a unique flavour all of its own.

The essence of Thai food is all about balance – achieving the perfect harmony between sweet, sour, hot and salty. Pungent fresh herbs, such as lemongrass and galangal, tone down overpowering spices, while salty sauces are tempered with sugars and offset by acids, such as lemon and lime.

Thailand’s various regions all have their own complex cooking styles, flavours and unique dishes. For example, in the north of Thailand steamed glutinous rice is preferred to the soft-boiled rice of the central region and curries tend to be thinner, without the coconut milk and cream that is widely used in central and southern cooking. The influence of neighbouring Burma and Laos are also more apparent in northern Thai cooking.

Southern Thailand sees greater rain and has many coconut and banana plantations and a strong fishing industry. As a result, seafood dishes are highly popular here and the richness of coconut is tempered with sour fruits and hot chillies – southern Thai food is the hottest in the country.

Banana trunk and chicken curry

The food of the central plains is perhaps the most complex of all, with the influence of Royal Thai cuisine being most strongly felt here. These sophisticated dishes, which use many ingredients, represent the type of Thai food that foreigners tend to be most familiar with.

Rather than being served in courses, a Thai meal is presented all at once, so that diners can enjoy the juxtaposition of contrasting flavors. Rice is an integral part of every meal; such is the role its cultivation has had upon the country’s development that a Thai meal without rice is unthinkable. Typically on the table there will also be soup, a couple of curries and some side dishes. With the beautiful variety of tropical fruits available in Thailand, fruit is popular for dessert but there is also a wide variety of colourful Thai sweets.

The Thai have a saying, gan gin gan yu, that translates to “as you eat, so you are”, which is reflective of how integral food is to Thai culture and identity.

 

View our Thai recipe collection here.