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Introduction to the Regional Thai Cuisine
In the South of Thailand there is an abundance of coconut trees and seafood. Food in the South is renowned for being strong in taste - very hot, salty and sour. Spicy curries are eaten every day, especially coconut curry and sour curry. Generally Southerners eat more seafood than meat, because they reside close to the sea. The most common dipping sauce or paste is nam phrik kapee (also called nam chuke), eaten with raw vegetables and crispy fried fish. This dipping sauce is prepared with the best quality shrimp paste (kapee or kuey), fresh chilies (prik kee noo), a bit of palm sugar and fresh lime juice. Southern Thai food is renowned in Thailand for being the spiciest of all regional cuisines.
Typical Southern Dishes:
The Isthmus was the first point of contact for seagoing people from India, the Middle-East, and the West and it still supports a large Muslim population. One-third of the population of the southern provinces is Muslim, and their culture and food is very different from that of their Thai Buddhist neighbors. Thai Muslims tend to live in fishing communities on the coast, while the Buddhists live on inland farms or in cities. Though the majority of the Muslims in the South speak Thai and consider themselves to be Thai, in the Deep South, bordering Malaysia, they might also be Malay-speaking (Yawei Dialect) and have less connection to the rest of Thailand.
Southern food is the hottest in Thailand, often seasoned with fresh tiny bird's eye chilies (prik kee noo) and its usual tastes are spicy, salty and sour. The curries are colored red, yellow and orange employing both dried and fresh turmeric which is often rubbed into seafood to kill its “fishy” flavor. Southern curries make generous use of coconut milk and coconut oil, often boiled with sour pineapple and tamarind to balance the richness of the coconut milk.
When Central Region curries, like green and red curry, are prepared in the South, they are usually hotter and use much more shrimp paste (kapi) to intensify their flavor. The thick curries made by Thai Muslims often use ghee or yogurt in place of coconut and add fragrant dried spices like cumin and cardamon to the curry paste, in addition to the usual fresh herbs and spices used in the rest of the region.
Because the South has a huge coastline, fish and seafood are a major part of everyday diet and are often grilled flavored with chilies and lime, roasted in a pot filled with sea salt, boiled in curries, stirred into salads or simply deep-fried. Outdoor vendors operated by Muslim Thais sell deep-fried fish and chicken, with packets of sticky rice and sweet chili sauce or a ladle full of fish sauce laced with fresh chilies. Numerous seasonal vegetables are available year-round along with tropical fruits like mango and papaya which are served both ripe or unripe.
In the South of Thailand there is an abundance of coconut trees and seafood. Food in the South is renowned for being strong in taste - very hot, salty and sour. Spicy curries are eaten every day, especially coconut curry and sour curry. Generally Southerners eat more seafood than meat, because they reside close to the sea. The most common dipping sauce or paste is nam phrik kapee (also called nam chuke), eaten with raw vegetables and crispy fried fish. This dipping sauce is prepared with the best quality shrimp paste (kapee or kuey), fresh chilies (prik kee noo), a bit of palm sugar and fresh lime juice. Southern Thai food is renowned in Thailand for being the spiciest of all regional cuisines.
Typical Southern Dishes:
- Flaky, folded roti, fried on a griddle, comes alongside Southern curries at breakfast time and roti filled with grilled bananas and drizzled with condensed milk, is a night-market snack favorite in the rest of Thailand
- Gaeng Sohm - a sour orange-colored fish and sour pineapple curry
- Gaeng Masumam - a rich and sweet Indian-influenced coconut-milk curry based in dried curry powder and fresh herbs
- Thai-style grilled meat Satay is slivers of chicken or beef threaded on sticks, dipped into spicy peanut sauce, served with a relish of pickled cucumber and chilies. (ajad)
- Broad, twisty Sator beans (twisted cluster beans) often fried with fresh shrimp, chilies and plenty of shrimp paste - perhaps to kill their distinct smell!
- Khao Yam - a crunchy breakfast “rice salad” of naturally-colored steamed jasmine rice, roasted shredded coconut, chilies, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, pulverized dried shrimp, lots of local vegetables and lime juice in a special spicy and sweet sauce called nahm boo-doo.
- Chinese-style filter coffee and snacks like steamed salabao buns
- Gaeng Tai Pla - fermented fish stomach curry, is one of the regions most famous dishes
- Goong Gatee Naw My Sot, shrimp and fresh bamboo shoots in coconut milk
The Isthmus was the first point of contact for seagoing people from India, the Middle-East, and the West and it still supports a large Muslim population. One-third of the population of the southern provinces is Muslim, and their culture and food is very different from that of their Thai Buddhist neighbors. Thai Muslims tend to live in fishing communities on the coast, while the Buddhists live on inland farms or in cities. Though the majority of the Muslims in the South speak Thai and consider themselves to be Thai, in the Deep South, bordering Malaysia, they might also be Malay-speaking (Yawei Dialect) and have less connection to the rest of Thailand.
Southern food is the hottest in Thailand, often seasoned with fresh tiny bird's eye chilies (prik kee noo) and its usual tastes are spicy, salty and sour. The curries are colored red, yellow and orange employing both dried and fresh turmeric which is often rubbed into seafood to kill its “fishy” flavor. Southern curries make generous use of coconut milk and coconut oil, often boiled with sour pineapple and tamarind to balance the richness of the coconut milk.
When Central Region curries, like green and red curry, are prepared in the South, they are usually hotter and use much more shrimp paste (kapi) to intensify their flavor. The thick curries made by Thai Muslims often use ghee or yogurt in place of coconut and add fragrant dried spices like cumin and cardamon to the curry paste, in addition to the usual fresh herbs and spices used in the rest of the region.
Because the South has a huge coastline, fish and seafood are a major part of everyday diet and are often grilled flavored with chilies and lime, roasted in a pot filled with sea salt, boiled in curries, stirred into salads or simply deep-fried. Outdoor vendors operated by Muslim Thais sell deep-fried fish and chicken, with packets of sticky rice and sweet chili sauce or a ladle full of fish sauce laced with fresh chilies. Numerous seasonal vegetables are available year-round along with tropical fruits like mango and papaya which are served both ripe or unripe.
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