The 10 Dishes You Have to Eat in Thailand at Least Once

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The 10 dishes to eat in Thailand, in the order I'd eat them

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   1. Som tam (green papaya salad)

   Pronounced som TAHM, it means roughly "pounded sour." Shredded unripe papaya is bruised in a clay mortar with garlic, bird's eye chilies, lime, fish sauce, palm sugar, tomatoes, long beans, and dried shrimp or peanuts. It's crunchy, sharp, and far hotter than it looks. Som tam comes from Isan, the northeast, and shares roots with Lao cooking. The version most visitors get is som tam Thai, sweeter and made with peanuts. Ask for som tam poo pla ra if you want the funky Isan original with salted crab and fermented fish sauce. Order it <em>pet noi</em> (a little spicy) the first time. "Thai spicy" at an Isan stall is a real thing, and the vendor pounds the chilies in to order, so what you ask for is what you get.

   

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   2. Pad kra pao (holy basil stir-fry)

   If Thailand has a default lunch, this is it. Minced pork or chicken is flash-fried with garlic, chilies, and a fistful of holy basil (kra pao), which is peppery and clove-like and nothing like the sweet Thai basil in most Western restaurants. It's served over jasmine rice with a <em>kai dao</em>, a fried egg with a crisp, lacy edge and a runny yolk. Say "kra pao moo, kai dao" at almost any made-to-order stall (look for a wok and a pile of raw ingredients) and you'll have it in three minutes. The small bowl of fish sauce with sliced chilies, prik nam pla, is on the table for a reason. Spoon a little over the egg.

   

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   3. Tom yum goong

   The hot and sour shrimp soup was added to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December 2024, and one spoonful explains why. The broth is built on lemongrass, galangal, and makrut lime leaves, sharpened with lime juice and chilies, and deepened with fish sauce and often nam prik pao, a roasted chili paste. There are two styles. <em>Nam sai</em> is clear and bright. <em>Nam khon</em> is creamy with evaporated milk or coconut milk and is what most visitors picture. Try both. And don't eat the lemongrass or galangal pieces, which are there for flavor, not chewing.

   

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   4. Khao soi (Chiang Mai)

   This is the dish that makes the overnight train north worth it. Egg noodles swim in a rich, mildly spiced coconut curry broth, usually with a braised chicken drumstick, and are topped with a nest of the same noodles deep-fried until crunchy. On the side: pickled mustard greens, raw shallots, lime, and roasted chili paste, all of which you're meant to add. Khao soi reflects the north's links to Burma and to Chinese Muslim (Chin Haw) traders, and it's hard to find a great version outside the region. In Chiang Mai it's a morning and lunchtime dish, and many of the best shops close by mid-afternoon, so go early. Khao Soi Lam Duan Fah Ham, near the Ping River, is one of the city's long-running names.

   

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   5. Green curry (gaeng keow wan)

   The name means "sweet green curry," and it's the only major Thai curry with "sweet" in the name, which refers to the soft green color, not a sugary taste. Fresh green chilies pounded with lemongrass, galangal, shallot, and shrimp paste give it its color and a sharp, grassy heat that's often hotter than red curry. It's simmered with coconut milk, Thai eggplant, and sweet basil. In Bangkok look for it at <em>khao gaeng</em> shops, rice-and-curry places with a row of pots at the front, where you point at what you want over rice. It's one of the cheapest good meals in the city.

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   6. Khao man gai (Thai chicken rice)

   A Thai take on Hainanese chicken rice, brought over by Chinese immigrants. Poached chicken sits on rice cooked in chicken fat and stock, served with a bowl of clear broth and, most importantly, a sauce of fermented soybean, ginger, garlic, and chili that makes the whole dish. It looks plain. It isn't. In Bangkok, Go-Ang Pratunam Chicken Rice (the shop known for its staff in pink shirts) is famous enough to have long lines, but good khao man gai is everywhere, usually at a stall with whole poached chickens hanging in the window.

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   7. Moo ping with sticky rice

   Thailand's best breakfast is sold on a stick. Pork shoulder is marinated in garlic, coriander root, white pepper, fish sauce, palm sugar, and often coconut milk, then grilled slowly over charcoal until sticky and caramelized. Buy a few skewers and a small bag of <em>khao niao</em> (sticky rice) from carts that set up early in the morning, and eat it walking. Sticky rice is eaten with your right hand, rolled into a small ball. The fat from the pork is the point, so don't pick the leanest skewer.

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   8. Larb

   A warm minced meat salad from Isan (also a national dish of Laos) that shows how different Thai food can be from the coconut curries most people know. Minced pork, chicken, or duck is dressed with lime, fish sauce, dried chili, shallots, mint, and the key ingredient, <em>khao khua</em>: toasted ground sticky rice that adds a nutty crunch. It's eaten with sticky rice, raw cabbage, and long beans. Order it next to som tam and grilled chicken (gai yang), and you have the classic Isan meal.

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   9. Pad thai

   Yes, the tourist dish belongs here, and knowing its history makes it more interesting. Pad thai was actively promoted in the late 1930s and 1940s under Prime Minister Plaek Phibunsongkhram as part of a nationalist campaign that also changed the country's name from Siam to Thailand. It's younger than your grandparents. A good version is lightly smoky from a hot wok, tangy from tamarind, with rice noodles, egg, dried shrimp, tofu, chives, and bean sprouts. It comes with lime, crushed peanuts, sugar, and chili on the side for you to add. Thip Samai on Maha Chai Road in Bangkok is the famous address. If you want to cook it at home, our <a href="/recipes/easy-weeknight-pad-thai">weeknight pad thai</a> is a good start.

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    10. Mango sticky rice (khao niao mamuang)

    Sticky rice steamed and then soaked in sweetened, lightly salted coconut milk, served with ripe mango, more coconut cream, and sometimes crunchy fried mung beans on top. The salt is the secret, because it makes the coconut taste richer and the mango sweeter. The classic mango is the fragrant nam dok mai variety. It's sold year-round now, but it's at its best in the hot season, roughly March through May, when mangoes are at their peak and vendors pile them high. It's the right way to end any meal on this list.

    

How to eat your way through Thailand like a local

• <strong>Use the condiment caddy.</strong> Most noodle shops set out four jars: sugar, fish sauce, dried chili, and chilies in vinegar. Seasoning your own bowl is expected, not rude.
• <strong>Spoon, not chopsticks.</strong> Rice dishes are eaten with a spoon in the right hand and a fork in the left to push food onto it. Chopsticks are for noodles.
• <strong>Share.</strong> A Thai meal is several dishes placed in the middle with rice for everyone. Order one per person plus rice, rather than one plate each.
• <strong>Follow the timing.</strong> Moo ping and jok (rice porridge) are morning foods, khao soi shops close early, and the best wok stalls get busy after dark.
• <strong>Drink for the heat.</strong> Water spreads chili oil around. Thai iced tea, fresh coconut, or a cold beer help more, as we explain in <a href="/drinks/what-to-drink-with-spicy-food">what to drink with spicy food</a>.

The debate: is pad thai overrated?

Your move