There are plenty of reasons to visit Thailand – the pristine white beaches, lush green forests, limestone cliffs, dynamic cities, and nightlife included. But the astoundingly diverse, world famous Thai cuisine tops the list. From street food to fine dining, one cannot miss the delicious burst of flavors in Thai foods. While some are zesty and hot, others are sweet and tangy. If you do not want to tickle your tongue spicy, I suggest to always ask them to get your dish mildly spicy.
Here’s my list of top fifteen Thai Foods that you must try on your visit to Thailand. This will include both non-vegetarian and vegetarian options.
Fifteen Thai Foods that you must try on your visit to Thailand:
- Pad Thai: This is the quintessential Thai dish and the very first dish we tried on our arrival at Thailand. It is basically stir fried noodles with chicken or seafood, but you can also get it done with vegetables. Topped with crushed peanuts, Pad Thai is one of the most sort-after dishes across the world. It is not spicy but is sweet and sour. And no, somehow I didn’t like it much. Oh yeah. I really did not.
- Green Curry: When it comes to curries, this is my favorite amongst them all. You can order it with vegetables, chicken or beef. The curry is made of green chili paste (Yes, it is spicy), spices like galangal root and kaffir lime leaf, rich coconut milk and diced eggplants. You can always ask for a milder version.
- Massaman Curry: This curry is often prepared with Pork. But you also get the chicken or beef versions as well. It is a thick curry, flavored with different spices, potatoes, and coconut milk. It is a great side dish to rice.
- Shrimp Fried Rice/Khao Pad Goong: This was one dish which we had every single day. Thai Shrimp Fried Rice is easily available and every restaurant in Thailand serves it. You can see that the shrimp head is left on so as to induce the oily goodness to the rice.
- Potato Tornado: I found it in one of the night markets in Pattaya and was curious to take a bite. These are potato chips on a stick, spiced with Barbeque powders or sprinkled with cheese. A whole potato is cut into spiral shape and is batter fried.
- Steamed Fish: It is sour, spicy, garlicky and yummy! This marvelous Thai Steamed Fish is so delicious and refreshing. The fish is steamed, cooking the fish gently but also creates an instant outburst of flavor on your palate.
- Chicken Stir Fried with Basil and Chilies/Pad Kra Pao: It is a common dish, available in night markets and street stalls. In this dish, the meat is minced and chopped finely and is cooked in spices and basil. The flavor is just out of the world. It is served over rice and often crowned with a fried egg.
- Barbecued Pork, Duck and Roast Pork with Rice: That just blew my mind away!
- Mango Sticky Rice: It is a delicious combination of tender, fragrant and sweet mangoes, sticky rice, and coconut milk and is a favorite among all. It can be had as a snack or a dessert.
- Thai Papaya Salad/Som Tam: is another popular dish in Thailand. It is spicy with the bold flavors of chilli and has unripe grated papaya which adds to the crunchiness of the dish.
- Juices and Shakes: You can find different fruit juices and milkshakes everywhere in Thailand. And in the hot and humid climate of Thailand, this is heavenly. Topped with lots (and lots!) of ice, they invariably become a part of your diet on your stay in Thailand.
- Pancake: There are different varieties of pancakes that we’ve had in Thailand. While my husband favored the regular Egg with Onion and Tomato Pancake, I (almost always) opted for the delectable Nutella pancakes.
- Barbecue Skewers: Often found in Night markets, these skewers are a thing to die for. We loved this shrimp skewers among them all.
- Tom Yum Goong: One of the best soups in the world, Tom Yum Goong is a clear, hot and sour, spicy prawn soup flavored with lemon grass, galangal root, and kaffir lime leaf.
- Satay: Satays are grilled meat/chicken skewers marinated with spices and served with peanut sauce. Serves as an excellent starter.
I am sure these are drool worthy and that you’ll definitely book a flight to Thailand, immediately! 🙂
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Tina Basu says
Thai Food is heaven for lovers of food – we gorged on pork ribs, sea food, dumplings, kung pao and every thing! Wonderful list compiled here SHalini.
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Sanch says
I love Thai food but Pad Thai isn’t my favourite. I love Green curry and Pad Kee Mao. I do love the papaya salad and tom yum soup
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Rajlakshmi says
WoW so many varieties ? I have tried a few here on Sydney but a lot is left to be experimented with ?
You sure had an awesome time in Thailand.
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Shailaja Vishwanath says
Did you know my husband is a Thai food fan? Vegetarian but he loves the coconut milk flavour. Guess you can’t take Palakkad out of the guy. He loves it so much that he ends up making Thai noodles/fried rice/ green and red curry on a regular basis at home! I’m not complaining 😛
Your pictures are incredible, Shalu!
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Shalini says
Ooooh your post is making me crave for thai food at 7 in the morning. I love phad thai noodles a lot. Great pics and des riptions of all the foods Shalzz
?
Flower power
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Swathi Shenoy says
You know the one thing that scares me most while I think of foreign visits is food. I am always scared thinking what if there aren’t enough Vegetarian options!
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Modern Gypsy says
I love Thai food! That grilled fish especially sounds yummy. I could almost taste the burst of flavours!
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Pratikshya Mishra says
Personally i loved Potato Tornado from the description.. and yummy pics… next is Tom Yum Goong … soups are always my favorite…
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Amrita says
I love Thai food specially thai green curry and also satays .The varieties are mindboggling!
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Roma Gupta Sinha says
Such an exhaustive list Shalini served so well. Like you I too don’t like Pad Thai, may be it has got to do something with our Indian taste buds 😀
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Suzy says
Unfortunnately I am not a fan of Thai food. But I do love satay which is actually a Malaysian dish.
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Kaddu says
I’ve heard a lot of good things about Thai cuisine. From your list, I think I would like to try the juices and shakes, pancakes, and Satay. I’m not a regular non-veg eater, so a bit skeptical in trying non-veg foods. I’m ok with chicken though.
Happy AtoZing!
Chicky @ http://www.mysteriouskaddu.com
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Ashwini Dodani says
I am a vegetarian but this is a crazy list for anyone who is planning for Thailand, another amazing post, Shal. Keep writing 🙂
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Dipanwita Chakraborty says
Love Thai food and I must say this was an absolute mouth watering post 🙂
Mocktail mommies says
Phew!!! That is some list Shalini!!! Also, it sent my salivary glands into overdrive… Hope to visit Thailand soon again!!
Deepa says
I love thai food and today only went to a thai restaurant with friends for lunch. I love satay and my families favourite is thai tom kha soup. Great list.
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Soumya says
Looks like I have tried almost all if it! My favorites are Pad Thai and Mango Sticky Rice 🙂
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Roshan Radhakrishnan says
These pics are making me cry. You know how painful it is to watch this and then have to go to the hospital canteen and eat their food!?
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Reema D'souza says
They are indeed drool worthy! I want to try it all. I’ve tried Satay here in India and I love it. But I wonder how the original Satay tastes like.
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Vidya Sury says
Such colorful cuisine! and what variety! They love their seafood eh? I love the salads and the juices!
Vidya Sury says
Not sure if my comment went through! Such colorful cuisine! and what variety! They love their seafood eh? I love the salads and the juices!
Tina S says
My favourite cuisine after Indian…love the flavours, the spice, the fish sauce base, the tropical fruits etc. This is another mouth-watering post.Keep writing. Cheers!
Anmol Rawat says
I have tried Pad Thai, Pad Kra Pao, Mango Sticky Rice and Satay from your list at Thai food outlets in Delhi and Culture Gully at Kingdom of Dreams, Gurgaon. I remember this one time I had to choose between Green Curry and Red and I chose red, which I liked, but after reading this, I would also love to try the Green Curry.
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Sreesha says
So I don’t know how authentic the flavours are that we get over here, for sure there would be a lot of difference I think, but I’ve tried pad thai, satay and the potato tornado thingy.
Such yummy looking pics!
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