Michelin-star-worthy dishes
Street food and Thailand belong together. The culture of street food belongs to all Thais, young and old, and all Thai cultures and traditions. There are urban Thai who never cook for themselves anymore because they can devour the most fantastic and fresh dishes for relatively little money. In contrast, there are all those cooks and chefs who produce truly culinary delights on the street or in a simple roadside restaurant day after day, year after year, in a blackened wok with some simple kitchen equipment and a multitude of fresh ingredients. Take Raan Jai Fay, the queen of street food, who was awarded a Michelin star for years in a row in part because of her iconic crab omelet: juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside, and unparalleled in taste. You do stand in line with her for at least two hours and the price, meanwhile, towers over all those other delicacies. Maybe look further anyway? It buzzes with food stalls and street restaurants, delectable fumes pass by, you are at most minutes away from a delicious meal here.
The complex flavor of a simple Pad Thai
One of the most popular dishes is Pad Thai: a sweet and sour wok dish of rice noodles with pieces of peanut, bean sprouts, garlic, egg, tofu and - usually - chicken or shrimp. Above all, be tempted to explore sophisticated family recipes, sometimes very spicy Thai curries and curries that betray influences from India, Thai-Chinese rice - or noodle dishes with crispy chicken and duck, sweet treats with coconut and mango. For the culinary adventurers, remarkable protein appetizers await: roasted scorpion and skewers of crispy fried spiders.
Street food tour by tuktuk
You can find street food everywhere in Thailand. In cities like Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket, even entire streets and squares are filled with stalls full of cooking pots and woks. On a street food tour, a local guide will take you to the best addresses for an informal tasting of divinely delicious dishes.
