Cuisine / Thai Dishes
Thai Cuisine is in a class of its own. It does not really resemble any other cuisine of the world, though if it is to be described by being compared to the cuisine of other countries one could say that it is somehow a blend between Chinese and Indian.
A feature shared with Chinese cuisine are the staple foods, rice and noodles. A similarity to Indian cuisine are curries though Thai curries often are prepared without coconut milk.
The spices used are also a mixture of Chinese and Indian influences. Like in Chinese cuisine, a lot of soy sauce is used; and similar to the Indian cuisine, there is lots of chili around. However, chili in Thai cuisine is not as finely ground as in Indian cuisine, and in Thai curry spices, other ingredients than chili are more noticeable. Nevertheless, Thai cuisine classifies several kinds of chili.
Phrik lueng is the hottest chili around despite its lovely yellow-orange color, phrik khi nu is not so potent and phrik yuak and phrik chi fa are relatively mild. Phrik thai (pepper) is a common flavoring. Aside from black pepper, green pepper corns are widely available. However, green pepper is probably rather suited for European than Thai cuisine as in hot dishes the fine flavor of green pepper is not noticeable.
There are several other important spices. Coriander leaf is sprinkled on everything; coriander root is combined with garlic and pepper to flavor meats. In southern Thailand, turmeric is much used, while many forms of ginger are used throughout Thailand with meats, vegetables and soups.
Other highly popular spices include lemon grass, used extensively in Thai soups and certain salads, which are also often seasoned with vinegar. Then, too, there are mint, basil, cardamom and pandanus.
A number of basic sauces accompany most meals; these include fish sauce (the essential Thai salt substitute) and tamarind sauces which can make the blandest food taste simply astonishing.
As many Thai dishes are spicy hot it might be well to note that a hot beverage, especially tea, with the meal will help cut the heat. Water or cold drinks only increase the intensity of the spices. It is well to know a few words of Thai to regulate the amount of spices. Phet nit noi is a little bit hot, mai phet is not hot and spicy hot is phet.
The extensive use of monosodium glutamate, known in the West as meat tenderizer, can be criticized in Thai cuisine as it has been suspected of causing side effects. Monosodium glutamate is not a spice in itself as it is basically tasteless. However, it does contribute to blend and enhance flavors. In Thai street kitchens it is not unusual to see a teaspoon full of monosodium glutamate added to just one bowl of soup.
To what extent monosodium glutamate is harmful to health has been a worldwide debate over the years. The fact is that anywhere in Asia, it is used to blend tastes, not just in Thailand. And it’s also a fact that noticeable effects are hard to establish, at least as long as it is not consumed in immense amounts. Used in overdoses, monosodium glutamate is alleged to cause problems of disorientation.
Derek Davies of the Far Eastern Economic Review joined the debate with the following contribution, printed in his column Traveller’s Tales of the FEER of July 11, 1991: "Almost every day, the ‘findings?cancel themselves out. Frying is bad, of course, but so - according to one of the most recent myriad alarmist ‘results?of tests - is roasting or barbecuing (they could be cancer-friendly, experiments on laboratory animals had ‘indicated?. Flavor is out, so one should eat one’s food raw, poached, steamed or stewed. Monosodium glutamate enhances flavor, so it must be bad, despite the fact that MSG had only had deleterious effects on rats which had been filled to the gills with the stuff for weeks on end."
Khao rice
Nua beef
Mu pork
Kai chicken
Khai egg
Pet duck
Pla fish
Kung shrimp
Pu crab meat
Phak vegetables
Curries
Kaeng curry
Kaeng mat sa man a rich beef curry with peanuts, not spicy
Kaeng ka ri a mild flavored Indian type curry made with potatoes and most commonly chicken though sometimes other meats are used
Kaeng kai chicken curry
Kaeng nua beef curry
Kaeng pla duk catfish curry
Kaeng som fish and vegetable curry
Soups
Kaeng chut a mild flavored soup made of vegetables and/or shrimp, chicken and pork
Kaeng chut wun sen the same as kaeng chut but with shredded jelly
Kaeng liang a typical Thai style vegetable soup
Tom yam a chili hot and sour soup made with pork, shrimp, beef, chicken or fish
Tom indicating that a dish is boiled
Khao tom mu a mild rice soup flavored with pork
Khao tom pla a mild rice soup flavored with fish
Khao tom kung a mild rice soup flavored with shrimp
Tom khlong salted fish boiled with tamarind and onions
Pet tun steamed duck soup
Khao phot corn soup
Hu cha lam sai pu shark fin soup with crab meat
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