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Home > Thailand Info > Thai Food and Cooking
THAI
FOOD AND COOKING
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 SNACKS
These
savoury titbits can be eaten alone or as side dishes.
Traditional favourites include stuffed dumpling,
satay, crisp-fried noodles topped with sweet-and-spicy
sauce, and spring rolls. |
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SALADS
Thai salads, called yam, are
sour, sweet and salty. A simple dressing works equally
well for meat, seafood, vegetable and fruit salads.
This is made from fish sauce, lime juice and a dash
of sugar. The heat comes from the fiery little chillies,
but just how hot a salad should be depends on the
texture and flavour of the meat, vegetable or fruit
used. Fresh herbs such as marsh mint, lemongrass,
kaffir lime leaves and cilantro are usually used
as garnish.
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CHILLI
DIPS
Usually served with vegetables,
meat or fish, chilli dips are very versatile. A
dip can be a main dish or side dish, added to a
pan of fried rice to flavour it, or drizzled on
chips to liven them up. A cook will make up a bowl
of dip from whatever is available, including chillies,
garlic, onion, shrimp paste, sour tamarind etc.
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SOUPS
Thai
soups are either hot and spicy or clear and bland.
The soup is served not as a first course but together
with the other dishes, and can be spooned onto the
plate of rice the same as the other dishes.
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CURRIES
The
heart of all Thai curries is the curry paste, which
is made from fresh herbs and spices. The paste is
cooked in coconut cream before the meat or vegetables
are added. Main ingredients in most curry pastes
are chilli, garlic, shallot, galangal, coriander
root and krachai, the latter a small indi |
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DESSERTS
Thai desserts are sweet, but
not intensely so. Sticky rice with ripen mango,
banana or flour dumplings in sweetened coconut cream
and seasonal fruits in sugar syrups with crushed
ice are favourites. Fresh fruit is always on hand
to end a Thai meal. |
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