Thailand tourist information

Thai cuisine refers to typical foods, beverages, and cooking styles common to the country of Thailand. Thai Cuisine is known for its balance of five fundamental flavors in each dish or the overall meal - hot (spicy), sour, sweet, salty and bitter (optional).

Although popularly considered as a single cuisine, Thai food would be more accurately described as four regional cuisines corresponding to the four main regions of the country: Northern, Northeastern (or Isan), Central and Southern. Southern curries, for example, tend to contain coconut milk and fresh turmeric, while northeastern dishes often include lime juice. Thai cuisine has been greatly influenced by the cuisine of its neighboring and nearby countries, especially India, China, Malaysia, and Laos.

Thai food is known for its enthusiastic use of fresh (rather than dried) herbs and spices as well as fish sauce. Thai food is popular in many Western countries especially in Australia, New Zealand, some countries in Europe such as the United Kingdom, as well as the United States, and Canada.

Rice is a staple component of Thai cuisine, as it is of most Asian cuisines. The highly prized, sweet-smelling jasmine rice is indigenous to Thailand. This naturally aromatic long-grained rice grows in abundance in the verdant patchwork of paddy fields that blanket Thailand's central plains. Steamed rice is accompanied by highly aromatic curries, stir-frys and other dishes, incorporating sometimes large quantities of chillies, lime juice and lemon grass.

Curries, stir-frys and others may be poured onto the rice creating a single dish called khao rad gang, a popular meal when time is limited. Sticky rice is a unique variety of rice that contains an unusual balance of the starches present in all rice, causing it to cook up to a sticky texture. It is the daily bread of Laos and substitutes ordinary rice in rural Northern and Northeastern Thai cuisine, where Lao cultural influence is strong.

Noodles, known throughout parts of Southeast Asia by the Chinese name kwaytiow, are popular as well but usually come as a single dish, like the stir-fried Pad Thai or noodle soups. Many Chinese cuisine are adapted to suit Thai taste, such as khuaytiow rua, a sour and spicy rice noodle soup.

There is a uniquely Thai dish called nam prik which refers to a chile sauce or paste. Each region has its own special versions. It is prepared by crushing together chillies with various ingredients such as garlic and shrimp paste using a mortar and pestle. It is then often served with vegetables such as cucumbers, cabbage and yard-long beans, either raw or blanched. The vegetables are dipped into the sauce and eaten with rice. Nam prik may also be simply eaten alone with rice or, in a bit of Thai and Western fusion, spread on toast.

Thai food is generally eaten with a fork and a spoon. Chopsticks are used rarely, primarily for the consumption of noodle soups. The fork, held in the left hand, is used to push food into the spoon. However, it is common practice for Thais and hill tribe peoples in the North and Northeast to eat sticky rice with their right hands by making it into balls that are dipped into side dishes and eaten. Thai-Muslims also frequently eat meals with only their right hands.

Individual dishes

• Khao Pad - One of the most common dishes in Thailand, fried rice, Thai style. Usually with chicken, beef, shrimp, pork, crab or coconut or pineapple, or vegetarian.
• Pad Thai - rice noodles pan fried with fish sauce, sugar, lime juice or tamarind pulp, chopped peanuts, and egg combined with chicken, seafood, or tofu.
• Rad na - wide rice noodles in gravy, with beef, pork, chicken, shrimp, or seafood.
• Khao pad naem - fried rice with fermented sausage (typically from the Northeast).
• Pad see ew - noodles stir-fried with see ew dum (thick soy sauce) and nahm plah (fish sauce) and pork or chicken.
• Pad kee mao - noodles stir-fried with Thai basil.
• Khao khluk kapi - rice stir-fried with shrimp paste, served with sweeten pork and vegetables.
• Khanom chin namya - round boiled rice noodles topped with various curry sauces and eaten with fresh leaves and vegetables.
• Khao soi - crispy wheat noodles in sweet chicken curry soup (a Northern dish).
• Khao pad gai - fried rice with chicken.
• Gai pad grapao - minced chicken with garlic, chilies, and Holy basil.
• Gai pad med mamoung himaphan - juicy chunks of chicken with cashew nuts and chilies.

Desserts and drinks

• Kao niao ma muang - Sticky rice and ripe mango.
• Kao niao Durian - Sticky rice and durian in coconut milk.
• Gluay buad chee - Banana in coconut milk.
• Foi Tong, Tong yib, Tong yod - Different forms of egg yolk mixed with sugar and other ingredients. Some believe this is European in origin.
• Kanome Maw Gaeng - sweet potato pudding.
• Fried Banana with Ice Cream.
• Cha Yen - Thai Iced Tea.
• Kah-Feh Yen - Thai Iced Coffee.

Theravada Buddhism is central to modern Thai identity and belief. However, in areas in the southernmost parts of Thailand, Islam is prevalent. Several different ethnic-groups, many of which are marginalized, populate Thailand. Some of these groups overlap into Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Malaysia and have maintained a distinctly traditional way-of-life despite strong Thai cultural influence. Ethnic Chinese also form a significant part of Thai society, particularly in and around Bangkok. Their successful integration into Thai society has allowed for this group to hold positions of economic and political power, the most noteworthy of these being the Thai Prime Minister.

Worship of ancestors is a large part of Thai spiritual practice, as well as charity towards Buddhist monks. Thais have a very strong sense of graciousness and hospitality, but also a strong sense of social hierarchy. Honorifics are important in day-to-day Thai speech, especially titles of seniority.

Seniority is a very important in Thai culture. Thais respect the elderly so much that some natives wai or krab (bow) to the feet of their parents and grandparents. They honor the eldest first, and the elderly take precedence in all family decisions and any sort of ceremony.

Muay Thai, or Thai boxing, is the national sport in Thailand and its native martial art. It reached popularity all over the world in the 1990s. Although similar martial art styles exist in other southeast Asian countries, few enjoy the recognition that Muay Thai has received with its full-contact rules allowing strikes including elbows, throws and knees. Association football, however, has possibly overtaken Muay Thai's position as most widely viewed and liked sport in contemporary Thai society and it is not uncommon to see Thais cheering their favourite English Premier League teams on television. Another widely enjoyed pastime, while not a sport per se, is kite flying.

The standard greeting in Thailand is a prayer-like gesture called the wai. Taboos include touching someone's head or pointing with the feet, as the head is considered the most sacred and the foot the dirtiest part of the body. Stepping over someone, or over food, is considered insulting. However, Thai culture as in many other Asian cultures, is succumbing to the influence of westernization and some of the traditional taboos are slowly fading away with time. Books and other documents are considered the most revered of secular objects - therefore one should not slide a book across a table or place it on the floor. Many of these taboos are similar to those in Indian culture.

Thailand is a constitutional monarchy and the King is extremely respected and revered. It is illegal to insult the Royal Family. Unfortunately, this fundamental respect of the Thai royal family has led to politically powerful individuals unfairly citing the offence of Lese Majeste against outspoken political rivals to manipulate the political process. Police act quickly on such matters and western liberal democratic ideals of justice may be overshadowed by the emotional response of both the police and courts. There have been incidents where Lese Majeste was alleged for just using parts of published royal speeches as this, according to the accusers, requires interpretation of the royal word.

The Thai King recently celebrated 60 years on the throne and millions of Thai citizens commemorated the event and showed their reverence by donning yellow t-shirts - the official royal colour.

Thai cuisine blends five fundamental tastes: sweet, spicy, sour, bitter and salty. Some common ingredients used in Thai cuisine include garlic, chillies, lime juice, lemon grass, and fish sauce. The staple food in Thailand is rice, which is included in almost every meal.

Thai culture has been greatly shaped in recent years by its vibrant and free press. There are numerous English, Thai and Chinese papers in circulation and Thailand is the largest newspaper market in South East Asia with an estimated circulation of at least 13 million copies daily in 2003.