Traditional Thai Dishes

Many people are scared to try new cuisines. Ethnic foods can seem rather daunting to the first timer, but Thai cuisine has many dishes that scintillate the taste buds and leave you craving it time and time again.

When trying Thai cuisine for the first time, you cannot miss some dishes. Go all out your first time. Try a bit of everything.

Vegetable hand rolls are similar to the more popular Chinese egg roll. With a hand roll, however, a variety of fresh, uncooked vegetables are laid onto a sheet of rice paper and then wrapped tightly. These are usually served with a spicy peanut dipping sauce.

Satay hand rolls have the same ingredients, but grilled Satay chicken is added. Satay chicken is similar to chicken teriyaki, only the chicken is marinated in coconut milk, spices, honey, and peanuts and then grilled to perfection. If the hand rolls do not appeal to you, ask for a Satay Mixed Grill. It contains shrimp, beef, and chicken that are cooked in a Satay fashion.

Mee Krob is a unique dish of sweet and sour rice noodles that are tossed with ground chicken and minced shrimps. It is full of flavor and delicious!

Move on to a soup next. There are two that you should try. Tom Yum is a soup that blends mixed vegetables and meat or seafood in a spicy broth flavored with lemon grass. Alternately, you can try Tom Kah. This is a soup made from coconut milk, mushrooms, galanga root, and lemon grass.

Pad Thai is a traditional noodle dish that cannot be ignored. Pan-fried rice noodles are tossed with tofu cubes, mung bean sprouts, slivers of scrambled egg, chicken, and shrimp. The noodles are lightly tossed with a spicy Thai sauce.

Thai cuisine introduces some unique curries that are unlike anything you have had before. Panang is a thick curry packed with peas, carrots, chilies, and basil. You must try it!

Try Tongdang fish, as well. Typically, the dish utilizes a whole fish, even the head is left on for the presentation. The fish is fried until extremely crisp and then tossed with sauce containing basil and chilies. Trout and catfish are commonly used.

Mango Ma Muang is a dish that mixes fresh mango, cashews, onions, red peppers, and other vegetables in a succulent plum sauce. It is perfect for a first-timer.

Do not leave until you have tried a Hot Pot. This unique dish is served in a steaming vessel at the table. Hot Pot includes a crispy fried fish that is steamed with salted plums, ginger and onion. Hot fish broth is poured over it and it is served in that soup-like fashion.

When eating at a Thai restaurant, even the steamed bowls of rice are unique. Thai cuisine utilizes Jasmine rice. Jasmine rice is fluffy and has an aromatic aroma that makes it far superior to normal white rice.

For dessert, do not overlook traditional Thai sweets. Thai cooks make a dish of sweetened Jasmine rice that is often topped with fresh coconut ice cream. Banana fritters are also typical of the cuisine. The bananas are battered and then quickly fried. These are certainly worth trying.