Regional food

North, Isan, Central and South: different flavours, different ingredients.

8 articles

Pattani budu: 9-15 months of fermenting, 18-29% salt, different in every bottle

Budu is salt-fermented anchovy from Thailand's far south. Pattani research gives ratios, time and saltiness; a Malaysian study found microbes differ by bottle.

5 min read

#RegionsRegular

Phetchaburi's lost tastes: nam phrik lam paen, phat ai khui and a dish to skip

Three Phetchaburi dishes in Thailand's Lost Taste project: what goes in them, their seasons, why they faded, and why the horseshoe crab egg dish is to know, not eat.

5 min read

#RegionsRegular

Sticky rice is one gene away from ordinary rice, and why Isan and Laos eat it

Sticky rice sticks because its Waxy gene is broken, so its starch is almost all amylopectin. The mutation arose once, and Laos is still the heart of sticky rice.

5 min read

#RegionsFirst taste

Larb, nam tok, grilled chicken, sticky rice and jaew: ordering Isan, cooked

Larb uses minced meat, nam tok grilled sliced meat. Eat with grilled chicken, sticky rice and jaew, and know why Thai health officials warn about raw larb.

5 min read

#RegionsFirst taste

Northern Thai food: khao soi, nam ngiao, hang le curry, sai ua and nam prik

Six northern dishes you will meet most: what goes in, how they taste, which have coconut milk and which are hot, a meal for two, and what to ask with a food allergy.

5 min read

#RegionsFirst taste

Som tam styles: tam Thai, tam pu, tam pu pla ra, tam sua and fruit tam

Som tam is not one dish. What goes in each style, how it tastes, how to order heat by counting chillies, and how to pick pla ra and crab safely.

6 min read

#RegionsRegular

Southern Thai curries: gaeng som, gaeng tai pla, khua kling, and why so hot

Southern curries are hot: chilli-heavy paste, often black pepper and turmeric, and often no coconut milk to soften it. Four key dishes, plus phak nao.

6 min read

#RegionsFirst taste

Thai food by region: how North, Isan, Central and South differ

Each region tastes different because it grows different things and has different neighbours. Main flavours, rice, key seasonings, and a meal that covers all four.

5 min read