As a thai i’m so glad finally someone said it. I used to see a group of 5 friends come to a restaurant and ordered 5 big bowl of Tom Yum Kung for each individual. No rice that was super odd. They desperately needed help. The staff could have help them.
@@ClockemanAs a Thai i think that is still ok. It not that odd . If you’re in a restaurant and they served variety of international food. If one of the dish is happened to be spring roll then it’s not that difficult to use the fork and knife which you already have on hand.
@@Clockeman Spring roll with knife and fork make sense If you buy in Thai it'll usually already cut into bite size before serve so you can eat it with fork and spoon
I am Thai and this is exactly what my family discussed when ordering a meal. And when I say 'exactly', it is EXACTLY....like every point. We do this naturally...never thought this is a thing lol
Thai here. This is my mental checklist when ordering Thai food for sharing with friends and family. 1. Something meaty 2. Something veggies 3. Something soupy. But in overall when we order food, all the dishes somehow match Pailin’s checklist perfectly!
Please also be reminded that Thai Foods are supposed to eat with spoon and fork. It is also a Table Etiquette for Thai dining. Spoon is a dominant tool to scoop rice and food to your mouth (hold it in the right hand). Fork is supposed to help scooping rice and food into a spoon not a main dominant. Moreover, Pai has demonstrated many times through specific videos and throughout her channel. 😂😂
Another way to order Thai food is Tom (Soup), Pad (Stir fried), Gang (Curry), Tod (Deep fried) and sometime Yum (Salad).This combination would make the meal full of favours, different food textures and looks. Additionally, Thais would tend to order more food than less. The full table meal!. It is a must to leave the meal full and satisfied. :P
woah! total of 5 items. i do want to try this but honestly i can't my parents are seniors and they can't eat much. I can't eat much too :( we are only 3 in the family so no one will help me to finish all the food
@@densetsughem1 Just Tom or gang (soup or curry), pad (stir fry) and yum (salad) is okay too. Thai people love to balance the flavors! Like if you have something spicy, the soup should be bland or light flavor and salad should be something that refresh your taste bud (personally, I prefer something sour)
I love how almost every Asian culture eats this way and it's truly the best way to enjoy a meal because of the social aspect. In Singapore, we call it 'zi char' which literally just means 'cook and stir fry'. Every restaurant or stall has their own menu with classics and chef's specials. We will always order a variety of dishes with a variety of textures, flavours, and proteins, usually to be enjoyed with plain Jasmine rice. For example, we would rarely order two chicken dishes in the same meal. It would be preferably to go one chicken and one beef or pork. A typical order would be one or two vegetable dishes, several meat dishes (one each of chicken, pork and beef), a tofu dish, a seafood dish, and an egg dish. Soups are generally ordered at more expensive places and for special occasions because we like broths made with good ingredients over a long, slow fire.
Pai, I suspect the restaurant owners will consider this video a blessing and a curse, so informative and delicious people will come in droves and overwhelm the kitchen. Lol Your brother does an amazing job capturing your Thailand adventures. Bravo!
This was a eye opener for me. Thank you for teaching us. I live in Europe and we always have soup as a starter. It makes so much sense how you do it. I am born Thai but adopted when baby. I am very curious about my Thai roots....learning to make thaifood and this is great to know. I am so hungre now...😂 Yes please a recipe for the doughnut like dessert.
That’s how we Bengalis order too! Bengalis, Thai and Asians in general are collective in nature, so similarly, our meals are meant to be shared among a huge group of people. There is no ‘this is my order, this is yours.’ Which is whenever we are in Thailand, which is at least once a year, we love ordering! We order a main ‘filler’ dish like rice or noodles and side dishes which, based on the number of people sharing, usually has one chicken dish and/or one beef dish, a couple of seafood dish (one whole fish and the other with shrimps and other seafood) and one vegetable. We also like to balance it out with dry and curried dishes!
I've been watching your channel for years now, and i have to say you're one of my biggest inspirations for food and cooking. My parents have dreams of travelling around asia after they retire (from owning a restaurant 😊) and one of my big dreams is to go to Thailand with them. We're white midwesterners, but we eat and make SO much asian food, and you've truly helped to bring Thailand right into our kitchen. I make your green curry, pad gaprao, maple/fish sauce brussel sprouts, and many more weekly, and im finally going to dive into Thai desserts (just got a big pack of frozen pandam leaves). I just really wanted to share my thanks and gratitude for bringing so much joy through food to my family ❤ love from Minnesota
It's interesting to see this thought process played out into a video form. Growing up in a Thai household, this is something we automatically do every meal we share family style, whether it's Thai or not.
Coming from a Chinese family its so intuitive to order based on variety. Example- always order several meat dishes, a chicken/pork/beef/seafood dish, then you must order a vegetable or vegetable/tofu/mixed dish, sometimes soup. We also like variety in terms of how its cooked and the flavor profile. Like one dish can be deep fried, but the others might be stir-fry, steamed, saucy, etc. So interesting that Thai food is similar but with the extra spice factor.
This was super informative and educational! What a fascinating and beautiful array of dishes! Honestly, it made me miss my Dad, who has passed on, and who was raised in rural Mexico. He had the most adventurous palate. He loved foods of all cultures, especially spicy foods and he was not afraid to try anything once. He would have relished a meal like this. Thank you for sharing this experience. If I'm ever lucky enough to visit Thailand, I would happily order everything you did here and enjoy it in honor of the memory of my father! ❤
Fascinating. Mexicans also drink that tea (aka Hibiscus flower) and they call it Jamaica. You can get the dried flowers in your local Latin markets. Search for recipes for Jamaica aguas frescas. Those Thai dishes look so amazing and perfect.
Pailin someone contacted me today wanting information from me through Telegram app in regards to a giveaway you are doing. Was that you? Or as I suspect a hacker?
The template my parents taught me when ordering at a Thai restaurant for friends and family is: 1 protein heavy dish 1 seafood 1 curry/soup 1 veggie dish 1 carb heavy dish, ie. fried rice, pad thai, pad see ew, etc. Of these dishes I'll order at least 1 of them non-spicy, everything else spicy
I love that their entire menu has pictures of what everything is. As someone who has trouble remembering the names of things, especially if I was served something ordered by someone else, this is so helpful in being able to find a specific dish.
Roselle is Hibiscus :) Delicious when making it into a hot or cold tea. But you can also find it candied or fried as a vegan alternative to meat. Love your channel !
It's a type of Hibiscus, but be careful. There are many types of Hibiscus, and in most places if you just say hibiscus you'll be talking about the large red (or sometimes white) flowers. (commonly seen in subtropics of Asia or famously Hawaii). Roselle removes all doubt. I like to soak them in syrup and use in fancy drinks. (Roselle, not the hibiscus flower!)
I'm not Thai but I always intuitively ordered thai food like this! Re: naturally sour greens, in Telugu cuisine (my family's culture), we cook a green called gongura, which is actually the leaves of the roselle/hibiscus plant your drink is made from, and it has a natural acidity to it that is incomparable. Hard to find in the states, but it's soooo delicious.
Know exactly what you mean about the Holy Basil, we have to use regular basil too. You can sometimes source Holy Basil here in the UK but it's very expensive and the quality is poor. So ga prow is definitely one of the first dishes we have when arriving in Thailand.
Thank you very much for these cultural insights. I started to get interested in southeast asian food when I had a green thai curry and a creamy coconut cookie dessert with panadan leaf juice and sweet basil ice cream (garnished with flambé fruits with mirror). Then, it became a highlight each time when having meals on foodcourt markets in southeast Asia. It was all: smell, flavour, appearrance, colour, taste... Kind Regards from Germany.
@@renekaminski2818 Hi Adam here and didn't realize this was a question :) What was it you were asking? If you're referring to the green curry and desert I try hot-thai-kitchen.com/#growMeSearch=green%20curry and hot-thai-kitchen.com/#growMeSearch=pandan ? Cheers! Adam
For me, there is no better food than Thai food, and thanks to you and your excellent recipes, I am able to eat Thai meals at home regularly that are usually tastier than what I can get at a restaurant in Portland, Oregon, a place known for outstanding food. Balance in all things - you teach it well. I’ve learned so much from you and am very grateful. I can get holy basil year round from the markets in Portland, and I have grown my own. It’s one of my favorite flavors. How sad that in not too many miles north holy basil is absent. I visited Thailand 21 years ago. It’s time to return and spend more time eating.
Dear Pai. I'm a big fan of yours in many many years. And when I see videos from Thailand I really can not comprehend why would you ever choose to live in cold and dark Kanada over sunny and beautiful Thailand. I just cannot. Best wishes from Norway I hope one day to leave for ever in favour of a more sunny place on Earth.
As a non Asian who lived with Asians at uni, I order Asian food this way all the time- but I also tend to consider what meats are in things- so I try not to get 2 pork or 2 chicken etc- obviously depending on how many people are there!🤷♀️👍🏻 At least try and get a variety of meats and cooking styles plus rice and at least 1 veggie dish!👍🏻🥰 Edit: Welp!- I should have waited and trusted Pailin- she mentions the protein choices also!😂👍🏻🥰
As an Aussie, I LOVE rosella- in my family we tend to buy the flowers in jars, with a syrup, and add a flower too sparkling wine or champagne!- it’s delicious!
You might try growing holy basil (also called tulsi) in your garden. Even if it's not a perennial in BC just let it go to seed in the fall and it should regrow in the spring. ❤ I remember a Thai coworker laughing at me when I asked where she bought her lemon grass...here in California you grow it once and it never dies, you just have to cut it back to stop it from garden domination. 😄
I've had luck here in the Midwest (Missouri) in two different cities at Farmer's Markets. A lot of farmers grow a variety of basil, and I've been pretty fortunate to find holy and Thai basil for sale for pretty cheap ($3 for a decent sized bag).
@aaronwhite1786 yes a few farmers markets around the country now sell holy and thai basil. As some people have now invested in farms to supply the restaurants as well.
I’ve grown holy basil from seed in the Vancouver area. I’ve gifted the plants to very appreciative South Asian acquaintances who consider it sacred. Thanks to your vlogs I’m going to try cooking with it.
@@leesonmadrona9753 it’s actually quite extensively used in the preparation of ayurvedic medicine. Put a few leaves in your tea and voila your cough is gone!
The holy basil which they use in cooking is called as karum Tulasi in Tamil. It's leaf will be darker and larger than the normal ones which we use for puja.
Pai I’ve been learning Thai cooking from you for a long time. I never realized we Asians do this naturally when we order food family style at a restaurant. When done with all contrasting elements, the sum of each of the dishes is definitely greater than its parts. Thanks for sharing this wisdom to the greater public. P. S. I looked up this restaurant in Bangkok and it’s soo far, but I’ll definitely make a visit next time because the dishes look unique and out of this world. Next series on seafood eating experience please. We Southeast Asians have a special category for seafood that’s different from general restaurants. Now I’m wondering what you think about Khin Lom Com Saphan 😇
In Thailand, not just sour taste in the leaf like tamarind, but there is the leaf that gives the salty taste by it self as well, it’s a Bai Shakram. 😊 🍃
Informative and useful video. I don't know what to say when I see some of my Western friends eat tom yum soup on its own without the rice or when they order many curries in one meal. Thai food is about mixing and balancing flavours and textuals even on our own plate.
What a fun episode! I watched a Mark Wiens video awhile back. The theme was; we all know which Thai dishes are favorites in America. But what are Thai people’s favorites? At the top of the list? Pad Gra Prao! As a matter of fact, he said when Thai people come home after being away for awhile, the first dish they want is Pad Gra Prao! LOL!
I don't think I've ever had stronger meal envy than I do after watching this 😂. Still, I found it very informative and I agree that it is actually intuitive, because it makes perfect sense. The quick reference guide of dry/wet/fresh/spicy really helps, though, and explains - for me at least - why my favourite combo is Pad Krapow and Papaya Salad 😋
So nostalgic seeing all these thai dishes. Pad Kaprao, Som Tam and Khao Man Gai are my go to dish that I eat first whenever I visit thailand. Freshly grilled River prawns with sea food sauce are so good and one of few crustaceans I'm not allergic to.
What a wonderful restaurant to teach us how to eat Thai, and you Pailin are such an excellent teacher. Yes it made me hungry,lol, it also made me wish I was there! Thank you Pailin for taking us along for a mini class in Thai cuisine, hope you have a wonderful visit.
Truly mouth watering explanation of the logic behind thoughtful Thai food ordering. Now, the challenge is to find a true Thai restaurant that offers the variety necessary to satisfy the desire for great Thai food.
ปาท่องโก๋ + โจ๊ก is my absolute favorite breakfast combination (followed closely by moo ping). As for my "wet" component, I always look for หมูชะมวง whenever I'm in Rayong and Chanthaburi!!!
This was great - I learned so much! I subscribed to your channel ages ago, but you got lost in the mix of all of the cooking shows I watch - Glad to see your channel again. I am a diabetic, so when you eat, I am calculating how I can fit all of the yummy Thai dishes into my low carb diet - I can only eat rice in strict moderation. Best of luck to you!
Palin, Thai is just a different kind of beautiful! I think if we had the means travel the world,and sample their food we could make that statement about all cultures. I've never had any of the items served,except the donuts (Vietnamese version),no dipping sauce provided. Loved the video, thank you!😊
Thanks for the explanation! I’ve watched my Thai mom and aunts order over the years and could not make heads or tails out of what they were doing. We’ll sit down and they will start to order a minimum of five dishes and I had no idea what they were doing. It didn’t make any sense to me. Thanks for clearing things up!
I miss ordering food like this so much even I’m Thai living in Bangkok. Because I’ve lived alone I can only order an Alacart. Or If I wanna go fancy, i will go with a Tomyum soup which I’ll take the leftover home later since I can’t finish a whole bowl myself. I have so many friends that want a bf just for sharing กับข้าว. Such a Thai thing to say but makes so much sense 😂
I live in southern New Jersey, and our local garden center sells both Thai basil and holy basil. I have a nice plant that I’m hoping will set seeds before the first frost comes. Otherwise I will just flash freeze it and use it in recipes until next spring.❤❤
It's 10:30 pm in where I live and seeing your video makes me feel so hungry lol! I have just tried Ajarn Malika in a trip back to Bangkok last couple months. By far, I think it is the best Thai food I have had after having been away from the homeland for almost three years. Looking forward to coming back there again.
I'm Thai and yes this is what Thai people order. 1. ทอด/ย่าง Fried or grilled food e.g. Fried Fish, Fried omlet with mint pork/shrimp, Grilled meat, Grilled pork neck. 2. ยำ Salad or Yum e.g. Salted egg salad, Salted fish salad, Salmon salad. 3. ต้ม Soup e.g. Tom yum koong, Tom Kha Kai, Tom Klong, Egg tofu with sea weed soup. 4. ผัดผัก Stir fried veg. e.g. Stir fried morning glory, Stir fried water mimosa, Stir fried Cabbage with fish sauce.
This was so interesting. Thank you for all the tips. I live opposite a Thai restaurant here in Aotearoa New Zealand and the food is good but, has been anglicised, of course. ALL of the dishes are spicy as well, and it wasn't until l had a Thai housemate that, l learned that's not the case in Thailand. Thank you so much for adding links to the recipies too as, so much of what you showed l could only dream about but, I love to cook and really enjoy cooking dishes from all around the world. It's spring here so almost time to start making 2 of my favourite Thai summer dishes, larb moo ลาบหมู and Thai Green Papaya Salad som tum ส้มตำไทย. Green papaya is impossibly expensive here so, l have to substitute. Usually with green apple but l have heard swede (rutabaga?) is ok too. I'm trying that next and I'm sure it's wildly different but hope it still tastes good. There are a lot of different cultures here so, luckily, it's quite easy to get most ingredients even Thai basil or holy basil. 😊
such an interesting way of ordering...makes so much sense. BTW, Roselle is much more commonly known in the west as Hibiscus, and in Spanish speaking places, "Jamaica"
I stir fry cabbage or other greens as a side for Beef Rendang (not Thai but rich and heavy) so a great recommendation as a side. Pailin is spot on in her recommendations.
Wow, my sister and I did this intuitively when we went out to a Chinese restaurant. We both really wanted to try their sweet and sour pork (I wanted to see if it was the real deal, the Sichuanese version, and I do believe it was close enough). The rest of the meal just sort of fell together on its own. I had rice (my sister just wanted to focus on the pork lol). We wanted to balance the bright sweet and sour flavours and the rich pork, so we went with some sautéed snow pea leaves with king oyster mushrooms in a simple Chinese white sauce; we also ordered some crab and corn soup, for variety. And I think there might have been some spicy, deep fried tofu. Honestly, it was one of the best meals we both ever had, and we kept going back again and again! We also did this at the Korean restaurant we frequented, which gave out little dishes of banchan. We would just intuit which things to eat; a bite of rice, some spicy pork bulgogi, a little pickled mu, a sip of kalbitang broth, etc… we both grew up eating Western food, but I think it was watching all those K-dramas that sort of changed our perspective subtly without realizing. Haha I love this style of eating, and I can’t wait to try it at a real Thai restaurant one day. Man… I wish you could be my tour guide through Thailand… we’d eat so many things… lol
I just came back from Bangkok (my 16th visit to Thailand!) and had been there since Saturday. Wish I’d seen this video earlier, I would’ve tried the restaurant. Will definitely go there on my next visit.
You probably don't need another "project", but, I grow Holy Basil from seeds. I have a small grow tent + LED grow lights. I'm sure you can also grow other herbs that are difficult to find fresh.
Basically. I will order 3 or 4 favors as following my grandma s foods. 1. salty favor ( ex. Fried Salty fish ) 2. Sweet favor ( sweet shrimp or pork - moo wan) 3. Sour ( Tomyam soup’ or Tomka soup or yellow spicy fish curry) 4. Can be any deep fried dish - fish cake. They will make a perfect Thai meal for a family.
Roselle beverage is also ubiquitous in Mexico and the Caribbean made from a sour hibiscus flower. It is very easy to get in the USA if you know where to look.
OMG! You're in Thailand. All the videos I watched before this one were filmed in Vancouver, including the long one at the supermarket. I'm enjoying your videos and you've motivated me to try some of your recipes! Thanks Pailin!
Pailin, you're killin' me! Canadian farang here who's spent the past 18 winters in Thailand, primarily Chiang Mai. My salivary glands kick into overdrive when I watch your shows. Can't wait to get back and truth be told I feel more at home in Thailand now than I do in Ottawa. Arggh, why is the LOS so far and airfare now so expensive?? Cheers!
Me and my friend actually do this already, we just thought it was logical and a natural thing to do to vary tastes and textures and it certainly enhances the experience! We always get a curry dish, we vary the meat in each dish, and often get a "dry" fish dish. We then get a veggie stir-fry or veggie noodle dish for the vegetables. One of us ALWAYS get Tom Kha! I'm glad we've been doing it right. Unfortunately, there is only the two of us, as when it's a larger group of my friends, we have vegan people, veggie people, people who only eat fish and people who don't like fish, and then someone is allergic to coconut! It's not always as easy as it appears. As well, my husband is a picky eater and only likes a couple of Thai dishes. I went out for lunch on my birthday on my own (which I loved) and ordered about 4 dishes to vary the experience, and then ate some of each and took the rest home! I LOVE Tom Kha, and that one you had in the restaurant looked amazing with the dried fish. I'm surprised you can't get holy basil in Canada, we can get it in the UK, but admittedly it is hard to find and you have to go to specialist shops, but most decent Thai restaurants have it and you can tell the distinct smell, texture and taste of it. Thanks, this was a great video to watch.
Hi Pailin! We were at A. Mallika last week and with the guidance of your video, we had a very enjoyable lunch! The coconut pancakes topped with spring onions and the ones that came in those adorable little ceramic bowls were the perfect finish. We’re still raving about the grilled eggplant salad and the tom kha gai. We were primarily after the krathong tong (spelling?) but left in an almost enlightened (!) state. Thank you. We are now back in Vancouver and planning our next visit to Bangkok (and maybe visit Chiang Mai again and stay a bit longer).
As a Thai person, I still remember when I craved for Pad Krapao so much after being in Japan for 2 weeks. Nothing beats the flavorful of Thai food if you grew up with it. At the 17:06 I believe that is similar to ‘Ka Moo’ but they used pork ribs instead of pork legs, and the stew looks thicker than usual, and looks so appetizing, too. I don’t think I ever come across any Thai restaurants in Sydney would have one to offer this dish.
There's a huge difference between Thai restaurant in other countries and Thai restaurant in Thailand. Outside the country your restaurant can do just fine if you can serve a dish with normal Thai market level but for restaurant in Thailand the dish has to be more elevate than that and the ingredients must be the best to get money out of Thai people's wallet. And the most elaborate dish of all Thai recipes is the royal recipe used to serve the king himself which is hardest to find and cook.
it's really sad how bland and generic the vast majority of american "thai" restaurants are - it's hard to find the few that are actually good; it seems that a lot of westernized 'chinese' restaurants add 'thai' themed dishes to the menu but have no clue how to make decent thai food... (not to suggest their 'chinese' food is all that authentic either)
โหยยยย ดูจนจบน้ำลายไหลแล้วไหลอีก มีแต่ของอร่อยๆ besides visiting my loved ones whenever im back home is food omg lots of thai food I most look forward to 🤤🤤
When cooking Thai food at home, I will often make 3 dishes consisting of a noodle dish, a soup/curry, and a stir fry. I will also try to incorporate different types of meat in each dish. I also like to include lots of veggies in one or all of these dishes. For example, one of my favorite combination is Chicken/shrimp Pad Thai, Chicken Green Curry and Holy Basil with Pork.
Thank you for this video! I have a few etiquette/logistics questions that I wonder if you (or someone in the comments!) could answer. 1. You mentioned that all of the food is supposed to be eaten be eaten with rice. Does the rice generally come with the food in Thailand? Or do you have to order it? And either way, if you finish the rice, can you get additional rice? Does that cost more? 2. In American family-style meals, we generally serve ourselves a bit of everything, eat what's on our plate, and then serve more as desired. It looked like you generally served yourself in-bite size portions, though. Is that typical when eating with a large group as well? And, if so, is there any etiquette that goes along with that? For instance, would it be poor form to pick up a piece of meat from a shared plate with your fork/spoon instead of the serving fork/spoon? And, if you're in a big group, how do you balance your bites if the things you want to eat are far away from you? While I 'm sure you could always ask someone to pass a dish over, it seems a little excessive to do that between each bite. Am I missing some cultural knowledge here? 3. Lastly, I'm always unsure what to do for the bill when I'm eating at restaurants from different cultures. In Thailand, is there a typical etiquette to how to pay for your food? Do you go to the front? Do you ask the waiter for a check? Do you normally have to waive down a waiter, or do they come and check on you frequently? I'd love any thoughts on these questions that people have!
1) we need to order the rice. And most places don't offer all you can eat rice. 2) it depends. What I usually do is just take what I need once, but others do it for every bite. As for using your own spoon, it depends on the settings. Might be bad etiquette for large gatherings or fancy restaurant, but within close friends group or family I just use my own utensils (this is also bad hygiene). To get food further away, you can ask for a bowl to take some and put on your side of the table, or ask them to bring it over and take what you need before they take it back. 3) in a typical Thai restaurant, we call for the waiter and pay at the table. For some new places you pay at the front. As for the latter, that depends on how you want to present yourself, a lot of people shout and I hate it. Personally, I just put my hand up and call them only after they notice me.
My go to order (w/ family): Cold, fresh, spicy: papaya salad w/ shrimp or blue crab ~or~ pomelo salad Warming and rich: massaman w/ beef or panang w/ duck Spicy-ish dry and/or sweet: laab ~or~ hat yai fried chicken ~or~ a moo ping ~or~ a fried rice dish (bonus if has holy basil) Large format fish (only if celebrating something like a birthday, holiday, promotion, or graduation): 3 flavors ~or~ fried fish w/ mango salad Soup: tom yum (crowd pleaser) Noodle: pad see ew (crowd pleaser too) ~or~ spicy oxtail in lime noodles Vegetable: gai lan--others need not apply (you can tell i like pad see ew) Dessert (raised in a family with killer sweet teeth): mango sticky rice AND a pandan based dessert. If restaurant doesnt have both we are going to a bakery/sweet shop/che place
I wish I could fly to this place right now . I do believe they are as delicious as you show us. Enjoy your stay in Thailand with your family and friends. Awesome show as usual 😊
Great video, very informative. I live in Texas (DFW area) but I love going to Thai restaurants, so this will help when I bring my family along (usually unwillingly 😂). Thai food is always so fresh and delicately prepared, just love it!
Mouthwatering! So many unusual dishes I've never seen before, and all of them look SO delicious! I can't wait for my next trip to Bangkok - trying these dishes will definitely be on my list of things to do (especially that tamarind leaf soup, the tapioca balls and the cha-om!). And will put my new-found knowledge about how to order a harmonious combination of dishes (dry, wet, fresh and spicy) to good use! Thanks so much for another stellar video Pai! 😍
I’m Thai and I’m watching this in Japan and I missed Thai food so much. When you live alone you can’t really cook 3-4 plates to eat in a meal. I wish thai food could have a lot of side dishes 😅
@@ong2547 I'm Northern Thai Chinese but we do have vegetable on the side and stuff. Maybe it's a Central region but I know a lot of my Northern relatives have tons of side dishes like vegetables. Even my Chinese relatives have tons of side dishes to eat for themselves or just sharing. I'm not familiar with the central Thai tradition.
@@niallahorana3377 I'm from the northern Thai too, but I'm not familiar with small portion side dishes maybe like ขันโตก where there are different type of vegetable and dips to eat with sticky rice that could count as side dishes but there isn't really a main dish right? people just eat the side dishes with sticky rice straight.
I also live alone and have the same problem but, what l do is freeze portions. I make a meal and put 1 or 2 portions in the freezer. That way when you have a couple of different dishes in the freezer you can have a feast and most things heat really well in the microwave. I know not all dishes can be frozen but you could freeze some of your cooked meals and make a salad to go with it. Larb and most Thai curries freeze well and green papaya salad lasts in the fridge for a few days. I also cook and freeze portions of rice. 😊
The dessert with the coconut milk, rice powder, and chives.... the taste is so much better when it's grilled over charcoal vs propane. The smoke of the coals gets infused in the dessert and brings the taste to another level. Can't get that with propane.
As a Thai, when I going to have a meal in a restaurant, I usually order food as N+1. It’s number of people joining that meal then we add up 1 more and that’s how many plate we order. In that meal it has to be at least 1 soup and a fried/stir fried, then we order salad for the next thing; that’s a combination of Thai meal. Every plate we ordered, we shared them and we eat it with rice. We cannot just order green curry alone; rice is the main dish and we eat curry with rice.
You can grow Thai Basil at home in the spring. Just get some seeds and put a pot in the light. Keep trying. Basil grows really easily here in MN and we have awful winters. You can freeze it or dry it... the taste is very similar to fresh... and you can eat it fresh in the fall. I have tons of basil here and have to get it picked before the FROST DATE which already passed OCT 10 but it's going to get here soon.
I also consider this when ordering meals. When eating alone I would have 1 single dish with or without 1 small soup. For family meals I would consider 1 each of meat/seeafood dish, veggie dish, and soup to be complete set 😊
What a feast, thank you for explaining everything. I will order Thai food with new eyes now. I'm wondering if that roselle drink is similar to jamaica "hibiscus".
I'm Canadian. Long time back, I visited Bangkok. I didn't even know what I've ordered at random but It happened the food was too spicy, I didn't proceed eating. Later, I just learned that there are less spicy food and tasted good for my palate. I remember the soup. Coriander was so strong. The food you've ordered looked so delicious. You presented them very well. Thanks for this video Pai.
Filipino here, believe it or not we have the same concept when we order food.. especially the variety of protein... happy to see Palm in this vid, last I've seen them they were still single probably during their royal cuisine restaurant which we've tried and was really an awesome experience.. and now they are mommies!! just lovely 😊
Love your cultural videos a lot. Thank you! Just FYI: in Western food culture, sour leaves would come from sorrel plant - really acidic. Also, you can get holy basil seeds online and plant them at home. I'm ordering holy basil seeds today - never tried holy basil before, but definitely would love to.
The only sour leafy veggie/herb that comes to mind in western food is sorrel, which I love. I've had tamarind fruit before, will have to try to get my hands on leaves!!
I’ve always felt that meals should be shared between the family. I do not like the idea of one individual meal for each person. Unless you are having steak and potatoes but… this style of eating a little bit of everything is my way it’s beautiful
Hi, I did visit Thailand about 12 times for 3 to 5 weeks for work. We did work in Bang-Na but as the hotels there are mostly payed per hour, we did stay in Sukhumvit Soi 11. Highlight for me was the Friday. Then traffic downtown is horrible so we would stay with the Thai colleagues from the factory in one of the local restaurants. Plastic Chairs and tables in areas where you expect nothing but the food was the best I ever had. Usually Every colleague would order something that Hi likes a lot and wanted me and my other Dutch colleague to try. Most of the food was matching beer very well and varied from dried fried meat to various shrimp dishes, snails, Crab and ???. I did learn there that anything that moves, have been moving or will ever move can be eaten. Due to my work, I was able to come at places where normal Falang do not come and I did really enjoy that. Maybe it is an idea to post some of the appetizers that Thay people have when they go to a bar, go bowling, go to a karaoke, go play pool......... One of my favourites is dried meat that is fried but I do not know how to make. maybe interesting?
I find this type of subject very interesting. Growing up Italian American, we had similar but more formal rules for structuring a meal, but the idea of balance is very relatable. On a side note, I had to laugh at the notion of deep fried salad. 🤣
Phenomenal explanations as always making it real and relatable. Thanks so much! Also, when you were eating, I had flashbacks of you and Mark Wiens sharing a meal together (from your prior video). Hopefully, that'll be another reunion in the works 😊.
Ohhh so excited to watch this one. I will be visiting Thailand over the end of the year - begining of next year and my main goal is to eat as much local / street foods as I can.
![[MV] A leap of faith...ความเชื่อใจครั้งสุดท้าย (From "Petrichor the series")](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/U1piZH2CNXA/mqdefault.jpg)
As a thai i’m so glad finally someone said it. I used to see a group of 5 friends come to a restaurant and ordered 5 big bowl of Tom Yum Kung for each individual. No rice that was super odd. They desperately needed help. The staff could have help them.
Going with my parents...they're from the Midwest. My mom used a knife and fork to eat spring rolls.
@@ClockemanAs a Thai i think that is still ok. It not that odd . If you’re in a restaurant and they served variety of international food. If one of the dish is happened to be spring roll then it’s not that difficult to use the fork and knife which you already have on hand.
@@Clockeman Spring roll with knife and fork make sense
If you buy in Thai it'll usually already cut into bite size before serve so you can eat it with fork and spoon
maybe is tom yam soup bee hoon, is individual order.
I've seen a group of 6 farangs all order Pad Thai lol
I am Thai and this is exactly what my family discussed when ordering a meal. And when I say 'exactly', it is EXACTLY....like every point.
We do this naturally...never thought this is a thing lol
Exactly! 🇹🇭
Yeah meat dish, soup dish, and veg dish, then anything anyone crave that day
I do all of this naturally too but I'm not Thai or very Thai influenced at all! :)
So do you ask for more bowls and plates? When I order tom yum soup they don’t bring extra bowls for everyone
Thai here. This is my mental checklist when ordering Thai food for sharing with friends and family.
1. Something meaty
2. Something veggies
3. Something soupy.
But in overall when we order food, all the dishes somehow match Pailin’s checklist perfectly!
Please also be reminded that Thai Foods are supposed to eat with spoon and fork. It is also a Table Etiquette for Thai dining. Spoon is a dominant tool to scoop rice and food to your mouth (hold it in the right hand). Fork is supposed to help scooping rice and food into a spoon not a main dominant. Moreover, Pai has demonstrated many times through specific videos and throughout her channel. 😂😂
Yes. Like us Filipinos. We eat with spoon and fork or just use your hands. Love Thai food so much. ❤
Yep! That's in her How to Eat Thai Food video that she talked about and linked to in this one.
Yes. She also has a separate video explain how to use spoon and fork for thai food.
I can’t eat with a fork anymore! 😬😂a spoon makes so much sense!
Yes, don’t ever bring western etiquette eating rice with fork to the Thai table, it’s disturbing.
Another way to order Thai food is Tom (Soup), Pad (Stir fried), Gang (Curry), Tod (Deep fried) and sometime Yum (Salad).This combination would make the meal full of favours, different food textures and looks. Additionally, Thais would tend to order more food than less. The full table meal!. It is a must to leave the meal full and satisfied. :P
หอมอร่อยในพริบตา คู่ครัวรสดี
woah! total of 5 items. i do want to try this but honestly i can't my parents are seniors and they can't eat much. I can't eat much too :( we are only 3 in the family so no one will help me to finish all the food
@@User3494-s5i 😂 lol came to say this!
@@densetsughem1 Just Tom or gang (soup or curry), pad (stir fry) and yum (salad) is okay too. Thai people love to balance the flavors! Like if you have something spicy, the soup should be bland or light flavor and salad should be something that refresh your taste bud (personally, I prefer something sour)
As a Thai, i never realized this until now. This is the exact logic in my head when ordering food. So you’re right, we do this intuitively 😆
I love how almost every Asian culture eats this way and it's truly the best way to enjoy a meal because of the social aspect. In Singapore, we call it 'zi char' which literally just means 'cook and stir fry'. Every restaurant or stall has their own menu with classics and chef's specials. We will always order a variety of dishes with a variety of textures, flavours, and proteins, usually to be enjoyed with plain Jasmine rice. For example, we would rarely order two chicken dishes in the same meal. It would be preferably to go one chicken and one beef or pork. A typical order would be one or two vegetable dishes, several meat dishes (one each of chicken, pork and beef), a tofu dish, a seafood dish, and an egg dish. Soups are generally ordered at more expensive places and for special occasions because we like broths made with good ingredients over a long, slow fire.
ข้าวหอมมะลิอะนะ?
@@User3494-s5i yes
It would make me so nervous to not be able to order my own dish.
Pai, I suspect the restaurant owners will consider this video a blessing and a curse, so informative and delicious people will come in droves and overwhelm the kitchen. Lol
Your brother does an amazing job capturing your Thailand adventures. Bravo!
Already bookmarked it ;-)
Her favorite spot will be packed. That’s the curse of filming there.
@@DemonFox369 Stop overeacting. Also I just pitched up my tent next door and will be there everyday until they kick me out or it shuts down.
The place is actually already well-known among Thais.
It's not the most accessible location for a "tourist"/non-local as it would require a car/taxi to get there.
พอดูคลิปนี้แล้วเพิ่งรู้ตัวเลยค่ะว่าคนไทยสั่งอาหารภาพรวมแบบอัตโนมัติจริงๆ เราต้องมีกับข้าวที่เป็น ต้ม ผัด แกง ทอด มีจืด มีเผ็ด และรสอื่นๆ มีเนื้อสัตว์ มีผัก ในมื้อ 1 ครบ แล้วต่อด้วยขนมหวาน โดยที่เราไม่ได้คิดอะไรเป้นขั้นเป็นตอนแบบตั้งใจด้วย เป็นไปเอง
การสั่งอาหารจะสนุกกว่านี้ ถ้ามีเพื่อนหลายศาสนากินด้วยกัน
This was a eye opener for me. Thank you for teaching us. I live in Europe and we always have soup as a starter. It makes so much sense how you do it. I am born Thai but adopted when baby. I am very curious about my Thai roots....learning to make thaifood and this is great to know. I am so hungre now...😂
Yes please a recipe for the doughnut like dessert.
Hi Adam here and hot-thai-kitchen.com/pa-tong-go/ :) Cheers!
That’s how we Bengalis order too! Bengalis, Thai and Asians in general are collective in nature, so similarly, our meals are meant to be shared among a huge group of people. There is no ‘this is my order, this is yours.’ Which is whenever we are in Thailand, which is at least once a year, we love ordering!
We order a main ‘filler’ dish like rice or noodles and side dishes which, based on the number of people sharing, usually has one chicken dish and/or one beef dish, a couple of seafood dish (one whole fish and the other with shrimps and other seafood) and one vegetable. We also like to balance it out with dry and curried dishes!
I've been watching your channel for years now, and i have to say you're one of my biggest inspirations for food and cooking. My parents have dreams of travelling around asia after they retire (from owning a restaurant 😊) and one of my big dreams is to go to Thailand with them. We're white midwesterners, but we eat and make SO much asian food, and you've truly helped to bring Thailand right into our kitchen. I make your green curry, pad gaprao, maple/fish sauce brussel sprouts, and many more weekly, and im finally going to dive into Thai desserts (just got a big pack of frozen pandam leaves).
I just really wanted to share my thanks and gratitude for bringing so much joy through food to my family ❤ love from Minnesota
Awww so glad to hear!!! Thank you, I hope you make it to Thailand soon!
It's interesting to see this thought process played out into a video form. Growing up in a Thai household, this is something we automatically do every meal we share family style, whether it's Thai or not.
Coming from a Chinese family its so intuitive to order based on variety. Example- always order several meat dishes, a chicken/pork/beef/seafood dish, then you must order a vegetable or vegetable/tofu/mixed dish, sometimes soup. We also like variety in terms of how its cooked and the flavor profile. Like one dish can be deep fried, but the others might be stir-fry, steamed, saucy, etc. So interesting that Thai food is similar but with the extra spice factor.
This was super informative and educational! What a fascinating and beautiful array of dishes! Honestly, it made me miss my Dad, who has passed on, and who was raised in rural Mexico. He had the most adventurous palate. He loved foods of all cultures, especially spicy foods and he was not afraid to try anything once. He would have relished a meal like this. Thank you for sharing this experience. If I'm ever lucky enough to visit Thailand, I would happily order everything you did here and enjoy it in honor of the memory of my father! ❤
I miss Bangkok!! I was there 1967 to 1970 and although I was young- 11-13, I learned to love not just the people, but the food.
Did you attend the international school of Bangkok ?
@@gigisnyder I was at Bangsu Campus.
@@gigisnyderI was going to ask the same question!
Visit to Thailand again! Welcome kaaa❤
Fascinating. Mexicans also drink that tea (aka Hibiscus flower) and they call it Jamaica. You can get the dried flowers in your local Latin markets. Search for recipes for Jamaica aguas frescas.
Those Thai dishes look so amazing and perfect.
The Jamaicans boil it with ginger and i think sometimes a cinnamon stick
I loved this! I’m watching right now in Chiang Mai. Have lived here for 10 years but never had anyone tell me how to eat Thai food correctly!!!!😅😊
Pailin someone contacted me today wanting information from me through Telegram app in regards to a giveaway you are doing. Was that you? Or as I suspect a hacker?
The template my parents taught me when ordering at a Thai restaurant for friends and family is:
1 protein heavy dish
1 seafood
1 curry/soup
1 veggie dish
1 carb heavy dish, ie. fried rice, pad thai, pad see ew, etc.
Of these dishes I'll order at least 1 of them non-spicy, everything else spicy
I love that their entire menu has pictures of what everything is. As someone who has trouble remembering the names of things, especially if I was served something ordered by someone else, this is so helpful in being able to find a specific dish.
OMG! I love when Pailin goes AWOL from the studio. I love the real life videos. Please eat more Thai food. It's wonderful. One of life's great joys.
Roselle is Hibiscus :)
Delicious when making it into a hot or cold tea. But you can also find it candied or fried as a vegan alternative to meat.
Love your channel !
Hibiscus (flor de Jamaica) is used extensively in my area of South Texas.
It's a type of Hibiscus, but be careful. There are many types of Hibiscus, and in most places if you just say hibiscus you'll be talking about the large red (or sometimes white) flowers. (commonly seen in subtropics of Asia or famously Hawaii). Roselle removes all doubt. I like to soak them in syrup and use in fancy drinks. (Roselle, not the hibiscus flower!)
Oh, thank you for this comment; I was thinking it might be hibiscus. I absolutely love it!
That color did look very familiar. Hibiscus is very common in drinks in Mexico.
You can eat the leaves too. A dish we eat many times per week in Myanmar is stir fried roselle with bamboo.
I'm not Thai but I always intuitively ordered thai food like this! Re: naturally sour greens, in Telugu cuisine (my family's culture), we cook a green called gongura, which is actually the leaves of the roselle/hibiscus plant your drink is made from, and it has a natural acidity to it that is incomparable. Hard to find in the states, but it's soooo delicious.
Know exactly what you mean about the Holy Basil, we have to use regular basil too. You can sometimes source Holy Basil here in the UK but it's very expensive and the quality is poor. So ga prow is definitely one of the first dishes we have when arriving in Thailand.
Thank you very much for these cultural insights. I started to get interested in southeast asian food when I had a green thai curry and a creamy coconut cookie dessert with panadan leaf juice and sweet basil ice cream (garnished with flambé fruits with mirror). Then, it became a highlight each time when having meals on foodcourt markets in southeast Asia. It was all: smell, flavour, appearrance, colour, taste... Kind Regards from Germany.
Ok, fine - sounds good. What is it?
@@renekaminski2818 Hi Adam here and didn't realize this was a question :) What was it you were asking? If you're referring to the green curry and desert I try hot-thai-kitchen.com/#growMeSearch=green%20curry and hot-thai-kitchen.com/#growMeSearch=pandan ? Cheers! Adam
For me, there is no better food than Thai food, and thanks to you and your excellent recipes, I am able to eat Thai meals at home regularly that are usually tastier than what I can get at a restaurant in Portland, Oregon, a place known for outstanding food. Balance in all things - you teach it well. I’ve learned so much from you and am very grateful. I can get holy basil year round from the markets in Portland, and I have grown my own. It’s one of my favorite flavors. How sad that in not too many miles north holy basil is absent. I visited Thailand 21 years ago. It’s time to return and spend more time eating.
Dear Pai. I'm a big fan of yours in many many years. And when I see videos from Thailand I really can not comprehend why would you ever choose to live in cold and dark Kanada over sunny and beautiful Thailand. I just cannot. Best wishes from Norway I hope one day to leave for ever in favour of a more sunny place on Earth.
Hahaha, thailand is great but I am here for many reasons. That's a whole topic for a video!
As a non Asian who lived with Asians at uni, I order Asian food this way all the time- but I also tend to consider what meats are in things- so I try not to get 2 pork or 2 chicken etc- obviously depending on how many people are there!🤷♀️👍🏻
At least try and get a variety of meats and cooking styles plus rice and at least 1 veggie dish!👍🏻🥰
Edit: Welp!- I should have waited and trusted Pailin- she mentions the protein choices also!😂👍🏻🥰
This is such a dream: eating alone and ordering a perfectly balanced meal where everything is exactly what I want 🤗
As an Aussie, I LOVE rosella- in my family we tend to buy the flowers in jars, with a syrup, and add a flower too sparkling wine or champagne!- it’s delicious!
Your editing is so smooth, Pailin! Everything transitioned seamlessly and I loved learning about the ways each dish complimented each other.
You might try growing holy basil (also called tulsi) in your garden. Even if it's not a perennial in BC just let it go to seed in the fall and it should regrow in the spring. ❤ I remember a Thai coworker laughing at me when I asked where she bought her lemon grass...here in California you grow it once and it never dies, you just have to cut it back to stop it from garden domination. 😄
I've had luck here in the Midwest (Missouri) in two different cities at Farmer's Markets. A lot of farmers grow a variety of basil, and I've been pretty fortunate to find holy and Thai basil for sale for pretty cheap ($3 for a decent sized bag).
@aaronwhite1786 yes a few farmers markets around the country now sell holy and thai basil. As some people have now invested in farms to supply the restaurants as well.
I’ve grown holy basil from seed in the Vancouver area. I’ve gifted the plants to very appreciative South Asian acquaintances who consider it sacred. Thanks to your vlogs I’m going to try cooking with it.
@@leesonmadrona9753 it’s actually quite extensively used in the preparation of ayurvedic medicine. Put a few leaves in your tea and voila your cough is gone!
The holy basil which they use in cooking is called as karum Tulasi in Tamil. It's leaf will be darker and larger than the normal ones which we use for puja.
Love all the delicious food in Thailand! Will be taking my nieces and their friends to Thailand this winter. Their minds are going to be blown!
Thai food is some of the most complex and satisfying foods of the world. An explosion of flavors and textures.
Pai I’ve been learning Thai cooking from you for a long time. I never realized we Asians do this naturally when we order food family style at a restaurant. When done with all contrasting elements, the sum of each of the dishes is definitely greater than its parts. Thanks for sharing this wisdom to the greater public. P. S. I looked up this restaurant in Bangkok and it’s soo far, but I’ll definitely make a visit next time because the dishes look unique and out of this world. Next series on seafood eating experience please. We Southeast Asians have a special category for seafood that’s different from general restaurants. Now I’m wondering what you think about Khin Lom Com Saphan 😇
In Thailand, not just sour taste in the leaf like tamarind, but there is the leaf that gives the salty taste by it self as well, it’s a Bai Shakram. 😊 🍃
Informative and useful video. I don't know what to say when I see some of my Western friends eat tom yum soup on its own without the rice or when they order many curries in one meal. Thai food is about mixing and balancing flavours and textuals even on our own plate.
What a fun episode! I watched a Mark Wiens video awhile back. The theme was; we all know which Thai dishes are favorites in America. But what are Thai people’s favorites? At the top of the list? Pad Gra Prao!
As a matter of fact, he said when Thai people come home after being away for awhile, the first dish they want is Pad Gra Prao! LOL!
I don't think I've ever had stronger meal envy than I do after watching this 😂. Still, I found it very informative and I agree that it is actually intuitive, because it makes perfect sense. The quick reference guide of dry/wet/fresh/spicy really helps, though, and explains - for me at least - why my favourite combo is Pad Krapow and Papaya Salad 😋
My inlaws ordered soo much when we were in Thailand.
My favorite was fried crab with fresh green pepper and lots of basil.
So nostalgic seeing all these thai dishes. Pad Kaprao, Som Tam and Khao Man Gai are my go to dish that I eat first whenever I visit thailand. Freshly grilled River prawns with sea food sauce are so good and one of few crustaceans I'm not allergic to.
What a wonderful restaurant to teach us how to eat Thai, and you Pailin are such an excellent teacher. Yes it made me hungry,lol, it also made me wish I was there! Thank you Pailin for taking us along for a mini class in Thai cuisine, hope you have a wonderful visit.
จัดเต็มเลยนะครับคลิปนี้
อธิบายเรื่องการสั่งอาหารได้ดีมากครับ มันเป็นเรื่องที่คนไทยทำด้วยเซนส์แบบอัตโนมัติจริงๆ
Truly mouth watering explanation of the logic behind thoughtful Thai food ordering. Now, the challenge is to find a true Thai restaurant that offers the variety necessary to satisfy the desire for great Thai food.
ปาท่องโก๋ + โจ๊ก is my absolute favorite breakfast combination (followed closely by moo ping). As for my "wet" component, I always look for หมูชะมวง whenever I'm in Rayong and Chanthaburi!!!
This restaurant is in 5 minutes from my home but I've never been there😮 tomorrow will order delivery, thanks for recommendation , dear PiPailin🙏❤️
This was great - I learned so much! I subscribed to your channel ages ago, but you got lost in the mix of all of the cooking shows I watch - Glad to see your channel again.
I am a diabetic, so when you eat, I am calculating how I can fit all of the yummy Thai dishes into my low carb diet - I can only eat rice in strict moderation.
Best of luck to you!
Palin, Thai is just a different kind of beautiful! I think if we had the means travel the world,and sample their food we could make that statement about all cultures. I've never had any of the items served,except the donuts (Vietnamese version),no dipping sauce provided. Loved the video, thank you!😊
Thank you for the guide, loved Thai food all my life; but your guidance both for home cooks and diners really give me next level experiences.
Thanks for the explanation! I’ve watched my Thai mom and aunts order over the years and could not make heads or tails out of what they were doing. We’ll sit down and they will start to order a minimum of five dishes and I had no idea what they were doing. It didn’t make any sense to me. Thanks for clearing things up!
I miss ordering food like this so much even I’m Thai living in Bangkok. Because I’ve lived alone I can only order an Alacart. Or If I wanna go fancy, i will go with a Tomyum soup which I’ll take the leftover home later since I can’t finish a whole bowl myself. I have so many friends that want a bf just for sharing กับข้าว. Such a Thai thing to say but makes so much sense 😂
I live in southern New Jersey, and our local garden center sells both Thai basil and holy basil. I have a nice plant that I’m hoping will set seeds before the first frost comes. Otherwise I will just flash freeze it and use it in recipes until next spring.❤❤
It's 10:30 pm in where I live and seeing your video makes me feel so hungry lol! I have just tried Ajarn Malika in a trip back to Bangkok last couple months. By far, I think it is the best Thai food I have had after having been away from the homeland for almost three years. Looking forward to coming back there again.
I'm Thai and yes this is what Thai people order.
1. ทอด/ย่าง Fried or grilled food e.g. Fried Fish, Fried omlet with mint pork/shrimp, Grilled meat, Grilled pork neck.
2. ยำ Salad or Yum e.g. Salted egg salad, Salted fish salad, Salmon salad.
3. ต้ม Soup e.g. Tom yum koong, Tom Kha Kai, Tom Klong, Egg tofu with sea weed soup.
4. ผัดผัก Stir fried veg. e.g. Stir fried morning glory, Stir fried water mimosa, Stir fried Cabbage with fish sauce.
This was so interesting. Thank you for all the tips. I live opposite a Thai restaurant here in Aotearoa New Zealand and the food is good but, has been anglicised, of course. ALL of the dishes are spicy as well, and it wasn't until l had a Thai housemate that, l learned that's not the case in Thailand. Thank you so much for adding links to the recipies too as, so much of what you showed l could only dream about but, I love to cook and really enjoy cooking dishes from all around the world. It's spring here so almost time to start making 2 of my favourite Thai summer dishes, larb moo ลาบหมู and Thai Green Papaya Salad som tum ส้มตำไทย. Green papaya is impossibly expensive here so, l have to substitute. Usually with green apple but l have heard swede (rutabaga?) is ok too. I'm trying that next and I'm sure it's wildly different but hope it still tastes good. There are a lot of different cultures here so, luckily, it's quite easy to get most ingredients even Thai basil or holy basil. 😊
such an interesting way of ordering...makes so much sense. BTW, Roselle is much more commonly known in the west as Hibiscus, and in Spanish speaking places, "Jamaica"
You are so good at breaking it down for a novice Pai! You are The Best!
I stir fry cabbage or other greens as a side for Beef Rendang (not Thai but rich and heavy) so a great recommendation as a side. Pailin is spot on in her recommendations.
Wow, my sister and I did this intuitively when we went out to a Chinese restaurant. We both really wanted to try their sweet and sour pork (I wanted to see if it was the real deal, the Sichuanese version, and I do believe it was close enough). The rest of the meal just sort of fell together on its own. I had rice (my sister just wanted to focus on the pork lol). We wanted to balance the bright sweet and sour flavours and the rich pork, so we went with some sautéed snow pea leaves with king oyster mushrooms in a simple Chinese white sauce; we also ordered some crab and corn soup, for variety. And I think there might have been some spicy, deep fried tofu. Honestly, it was one of the best meals we both ever had, and we kept going back again and again!
We also did this at the Korean restaurant we frequented, which gave out little dishes of banchan. We would just intuit which things to eat; a bite of rice, some spicy pork bulgogi, a little pickled mu, a sip of kalbitang broth, etc… we both grew up eating Western food, but I think it was watching all those K-dramas that sort of changed our perspective subtly without realizing. Haha
I love this style of eating, and I can’t wait to try it at a real Thai restaurant one day. Man… I wish you could be my tour guide through Thailand… we’d eat so many things… lol
i love this menu ... ALL RESTAURANTS SHOULD HAVE PICTURES !!!
I just came back from Bangkok (my 16th visit to Thailand!) and had been there since Saturday. Wish I’d seen this video earlier, I would’ve tried the restaurant. Will definitely go there on my next visit.
You probably don't need another "project", but, I grow Holy Basil from seeds. I have a small grow tent + LED grow lights. I'm sure you can also grow other herbs that are difficult to find fresh.
Basically. I will order 3 or 4 favors as following my grandma s foods. 1. salty favor ( ex. Fried Salty fish ) 2. Sweet favor ( sweet shrimp or pork - moo wan) 3. Sour ( Tomyam soup’ or Tomka soup or yellow spicy fish curry) 4. Can be any deep fried dish - fish cake. They will make a perfect Thai meal for a family.
Roselle beverage is also ubiquitous in Mexico and the Caribbean made from a sour hibiscus flower. It is very easy to get in the USA if you know where to look.
I was thinking it looked a lot like jamaica drink! Thanks for the additional info!
@spencerkieft6021…. In Mexican supermarkets…🙏🏻
@@MrWordcat I should have mentioned that.
OMG! You're in Thailand. All the videos I watched before this one were filmed in Vancouver, including the long one at the supermarket. I'm enjoying your videos and you've motivated me to try some of your recipes! Thanks Pailin!
Hi! Yes she popped over for a quick trip and is now back in Vancouver :) Cheers! Adam
Pailin, you're killin' me! Canadian farang here who's spent the past 18 winters in Thailand, primarily Chiang Mai. My salivary glands kick into overdrive when I watch your shows. Can't wait to get back and truth be told I feel more at home in Thailand now than I do in Ottawa. Arggh, why is the LOS so far and airfare now so expensive??
Cheers!
Me and my friend actually do this already, we just thought it was logical and a natural thing to do to vary tastes and textures and it certainly enhances the experience! We always get a curry dish, we vary the meat in each dish, and often get a "dry" fish dish. We then get a veggie stir-fry or veggie noodle dish for the vegetables. One of us ALWAYS get Tom Kha! I'm glad we've been doing it right. Unfortunately, there is only the two of us, as when it's a larger group of my friends, we have vegan people, veggie people, people who only eat fish and people who don't like fish, and then someone is allergic to coconut! It's not always as easy as it appears. As well, my husband is a picky eater and only likes a couple of Thai dishes.
I went out for lunch on my birthday on my own (which I loved) and ordered about 4 dishes to vary the experience, and then ate some of each and took the rest home!
I LOVE Tom Kha, and that one you had in the restaurant looked amazing with the dried fish.
I'm surprised you can't get holy basil in Canada, we can get it in the UK, but admittedly it is hard to find and you have to go to specialist shops, but most decent Thai restaurants have it and you can tell the distinct smell, texture and taste of it.
Thanks, this was a great video to watch.
One of my favorite channels on YT! Always learning!
1) Great idea for a video, fun and informative and inspirational
2) I want that menu just to flip through, it is a thing of beauty
Hi Pailin! We were at A. Mallika last week and with the guidance of your video, we had a very enjoyable lunch! The coconut pancakes topped with spring onions and the ones that came in those adorable little ceramic bowls were the perfect finish. We’re still raving about the grilled eggplant salad and the tom kha gai. We were primarily after the krathong tong (spelling?) but left in an almost enlightened (!) state. Thank you. We are now back in Vancouver and planning our next visit to Bangkok (and maybe visit Chiang Mai again and stay a bit longer).
As a Thai person, I still remember when I craved for Pad Krapao so much after being in Japan for 2 weeks.
Nothing beats the flavorful of Thai food if you grew up with it.
At the 17:06 I believe that is similar to ‘Ka Moo’ but they used pork ribs instead of pork legs, and the stew looks thicker than usual, and looks so appetizing, too. I don’t think I ever come across any Thai restaurants in Sydney would have one to offer this dish.
There's a huge difference between Thai restaurant in other countries and Thai restaurant in Thailand. Outside the country your restaurant can do just fine if you can serve a dish with normal Thai market level but for restaurant in Thailand the dish has to be more elevate than that and the ingredients must be the best to get money out of Thai people's wallet. And the most elaborate dish of all Thai recipes is the royal recipe used to serve the king himself which is hardest to find and cook.
it's really sad how bland and generic the vast majority of american "thai" restaurants are - it's hard to find the few that are actually good; it seems that a lot of westernized 'chinese' restaurants add 'thai' themed dishes to the menu but have no clue how to make decent thai food... (not to suggest their 'chinese' food is all that authentic either)
โหยยยย ดูจนจบน้ำลายไหลแล้วไหลอีก มีแต่ของอร่อยๆ besides visiting my loved ones whenever im back home is food omg lots of thai food I most look forward to 🤤🤤
When cooking Thai food at home, I will often make 3 dishes consisting of a noodle dish, a soup/curry, and a stir fry. I will also try to incorporate different types of meat in each dish. I also like to include lots of veggies in one or all of these dishes. For example, one of my favorite combination is Chicken/shrimp Pad Thai, Chicken Green Curry and Holy Basil with Pork.
Filipinos order the same way...We always aim to have a good balance of meat, veggies, savory and sweet.
Thank you for this video! I have a few etiquette/logistics questions that I wonder if you (or someone in the comments!) could answer.
1. You mentioned that all of the food is supposed to be eaten be eaten with rice. Does the rice generally come with the food in Thailand? Or do you have to order it? And either way, if you finish the rice, can you get additional rice? Does that cost more?
2. In American family-style meals, we generally serve ourselves a bit of everything, eat what's on our plate, and then serve more as desired. It looked like you generally served yourself in-bite size portions, though. Is that typical when eating with a large group as well? And, if so, is there any etiquette that goes along with that? For instance, would it be poor form to pick up a piece of meat from a shared plate with your fork/spoon instead of the serving fork/spoon? And, if you're in a big group, how do you balance your bites if the things you want to eat are far away from you? While I 'm sure you could always ask someone to pass a dish over, it seems a little excessive to do that between each bite. Am I missing some cultural knowledge here?
3. Lastly, I'm always unsure what to do for the bill when I'm eating at restaurants from different cultures. In Thailand, is there a typical etiquette to how to pay for your food? Do you go to the front? Do you ask the waiter for a check? Do you normally have to waive down a waiter, or do they come and check on you frequently?
I'd love any thoughts on these questions that people have!
1) we need to order the rice. And most places don't offer all you can eat rice.
2) it depends. What I usually do is just take what I need once, but others do it for every bite. As for using your own spoon, it depends on the settings. Might be bad etiquette for large gatherings or fancy restaurant, but within close friends group or family I just use my own utensils (this is also bad hygiene). To get food further away, you can ask for a bowl to take some and put on your side of the table, or ask them to bring it over and take what you need before they take it back.
3) in a typical Thai restaurant, we call for the waiter and pay at the table. For some new places you pay at the front. As for the latter, that depends on how you want to present yourself, a lot of people shout and I hate it. Personally, I just put my hand up and call them only after they notice me.
@@thastayapongsak4422 Thank you so much for your reply! This is very helpful. :)
My go to order (w/ family):
Cold, fresh, spicy: papaya salad w/ shrimp or blue crab ~or~ pomelo salad
Warming and rich: massaman w/ beef or panang w/ duck
Spicy-ish dry and/or sweet: laab ~or~ hat yai fried chicken ~or~ a moo ping ~or~ a fried rice dish (bonus if has holy basil)
Large format fish (only if celebrating something like a birthday, holiday, promotion, or graduation): 3 flavors ~or~ fried fish w/ mango salad
Soup: tom yum (crowd pleaser)
Noodle: pad see ew (crowd pleaser too) ~or~ spicy oxtail in lime noodles
Vegetable: gai lan--others need not apply (you can tell i like pad see ew)
Dessert (raised in a family with killer sweet teeth): mango sticky rice AND a pandan based dessert. If restaurant doesnt have both we are going to a bakery/sweet shop/che place
I *wish* we had soup at every meal! Thailand is really living the dream.
I wish I could fly to this place right now . I do believe they are as delicious as you show us. Enjoy your stay in Thailand with your family and friends. Awesome show as usual 😊
Great video, very informative. I live in Texas (DFW area) but I love going to Thai restaurants, so this will help when I bring my family along (usually unwillingly 😂). Thai food is always so fresh and delicately prepared, just love it!
Mouthwatering! So many unusual dishes I've never seen before, and all of them look SO delicious! I can't wait for my next trip to Bangkok - trying these dishes will definitely be on my list of things to do (especially that tamarind leaf soup, the tapioca balls and the cha-om!). And will put my new-found knowledge about how to order a harmonious combination of dishes (dry, wet, fresh and spicy) to good use! Thanks so much for another stellar video Pai! 😍
I’m Thai and I’m watching this in Japan and I missed Thai food so much. When you live alone you can’t really cook 3-4 plates to eat in a meal. I wish thai food could have a lot of side dishes 😅
Wait I thought thai food has side dishes lol? Maybe its different from regions.
@@niallahorana3377 I mean you could have a lot of food and dip but compared to Korean or Japanese we don’t really have kimchi, veggies on the side
@@ong2547 I'm Northern Thai Chinese but we do have vegetable on the side and stuff. Maybe it's a Central region but I know a lot of my Northern relatives have tons of side dishes like vegetables. Even my Chinese relatives have tons of side dishes to eat for themselves or just sharing. I'm not familiar with the central Thai tradition.
@@niallahorana3377 I'm from the northern Thai too, but I'm not familiar with small portion side dishes maybe like ขันโตก where there are different type of vegetable and dips to eat with sticky rice that could count as side dishes but there isn't really a main dish right? people just eat the side dishes with sticky rice straight.
I also live alone and have the same problem but, what l do is freeze portions. I make a meal and put 1 or 2 portions in the freezer. That way when you have a couple of different dishes in the freezer you can have a feast and most things heat really well in the microwave. I know not all dishes can be frozen but you could freeze some of your cooked meals and make a salad to go with it. Larb and most Thai curries freeze well and green papaya salad lasts in the fridge for a few days. I also cook and freeze portions of rice. 😊
The dessert with the coconut milk, rice powder, and chives.... the taste is so much better when it's grilled over charcoal vs propane. The smoke of the coals gets infused in the dessert and brings the taste to another level. Can't get that with propane.
As a Thai, when I going to have a meal in a restaurant, I usually order food as N+1. It’s number of people joining that meal then we add up 1 more and that’s how many plate we order. In that meal it has to be at least 1 soup and a fried/stir fried, then we order salad for the next thing; that’s a combination of Thai meal.
Every plate we ordered, we shared them and we eat it with rice. We cannot just order green curry alone; rice is the main dish and we eat curry with rice.
You can grow Thai Basil at home in the spring. Just get some seeds and put a pot in the light. Keep trying. Basil grows really easily here in MN and we have awful winters. You can freeze it or dry it... the taste is very similar to fresh... and you can eat it fresh in the fall. I have tons of basil here and have to get it picked before the FROST DATE which already passed OCT 10 but it's going to get here soon.
She says she can get Thai basil. Holy basil is something else.
She wants holy basil, not Thai basil. Thai basil is usually very easy to get in the west, but I've never seen holy basil here.
I also consider this when ordering meals. When eating alone I would have 1 single dish with or without 1 small soup. For family meals I would consider 1 each of meat/seeafood dish, veggie dish, and soup to be complete set 😊
What a feast, thank you for explaining everything. I will order Thai food with new eyes now. I'm wondering if that roselle drink is similar to jamaica "hibiscus".
It's the same thing.
I'm Canadian. Long time back, I visited Bangkok. I didn't even know what I've ordered at random but It happened the food was too spicy, I didn't proceed eating. Later, I just learned that there are less spicy food and tasted good for my palate. I remember the soup. Coriander was so strong. The food you've ordered looked so delicious. You presented them very well. Thanks for this video Pai.
Filipino here, believe it or not we have the same concept when we order food.. especially the variety of protein... happy to see Palm in this vid, last I've seen them they were still single probably during their royal cuisine restaurant which we've tried and was really an awesome experience.. and now they are mommies!! just lovely 😊
SAKU SAI MOO - is one of the heavenliest treats of Thailand ! OMG ! Sooooooo delicious. 😍
Absolutely loved the video. If I could make 1 request, it would be not to include IYKYK in a tutorial channel. Honestly though, love the video!
Love your cultural videos a lot. Thank you! Just FYI: in Western food culture, sour leaves would come from sorrel plant - really acidic. Also, you can get holy basil seeds online and plant them at home. I'm ordering holy basil seeds today - never tried holy basil before, but definitely would love to.
The only sour leafy veggie/herb that comes to mind in western food is sorrel, which I love. I've had tamarind fruit before, will have to try to get my hands on leaves!!
I’ve always felt that meals should be shared between the family. I do not like the idea of one individual meal for each person. Unless you are having steak and potatoes but… this style of eating a little bit of everything is my way it’s beautiful
ahhhh..... Mallika is my mother's middle name
that Sri Lankan and Thai connection
The food looks amazing!!!!
Hi, I did visit Thailand about 12 times for 3 to 5 weeks for work. We did work in Bang-Na but as the hotels there are mostly payed per hour, we did stay in Sukhumvit Soi 11. Highlight for me was the Friday. Then traffic downtown is horrible so we would stay with the Thai colleagues from the factory in one of the local restaurants. Plastic Chairs and tables in areas where you expect nothing but the food was the best I ever had.
Usually Every colleague would order something that Hi likes a lot and wanted me and my other Dutch colleague to try. Most of the food was matching beer very well and varied from dried fried meat to various shrimp dishes, snails, Crab and ???. I did learn there that anything that moves, have been moving or will ever move can be eaten.
Due to my work, I was able to come at places where normal Falang do not come and I did really enjoy that.
Maybe it is an idea to post some of the appetizers that Thay people have when they go to a bar, go bowling, go to a karaoke, go play pool......... One of my favourites is dried meat that is fried but I do not know how to make. maybe interesting?
I find this type of subject very interesting. Growing up Italian American, we had similar but more formal rules for structuring a meal, but the idea of balance is very relatable. On a side note, I had to laugh at the notion of deep fried salad. 🤣
Phenomenal explanations as always making it real and relatable. Thanks so much! Also, when you were eating, I had flashbacks of you and Mark Wiens sharing a meal together (from your prior video). Hopefully, that'll be another reunion in the works 😊.
Ohhh so excited to watch this one. I will be visiting Thailand over the end of the year - begining of next year and my main goal is to eat as much local / street foods as I can.
Welcome to Thailand in advance 😊
คุณไพลินมาเมืองไทยหรอคะ ยินดีต้อนรับกลับ Homeland ค่ะ ❤ ถ้ายังไม่กลับอยากให้ไปเที่ยวตลาดนัด อัพเดทเทรนสตรีทฟู้ดค่ะ😊😊😊