I think Thailand is somewhere that most keen foodies will have on their must-visit list of holiday destinations. Famous for its delicious street food, the country is home to some particularly hot dishes that fans of spicy fare will find impossible to resist. If you’re currently planning your trip to Thailand, make sure you read my guide to some of the spiciest cuisine before you go.
A quick note on Thai food
Before we get started, I thought it’d be good to take a quick look at the use of spice in general in Thai food. The use of fresh herbs and spices can be counted on in virtually every savoury snack and main meal, while Thai chili paste – which is known locally as nam prik – is a fairly standard base for all sorts of dishes.
What exactly it contains varies from region to region (and it’s worth remembering that Thai cuisine as a whole also differs from one area to the next, with the north particularly known for its spicy food), but you can generally expect a mix of chillies, garlic, lime and shrimp paste. From time to time, you’ll also see it served as a dip for meat or raw vegetables.
- Khao phat nam prik narok; I love the name of this dish – it means ‘rice fried with chili paste from hell’! As you have no doubt guessed, it’s seriously spicy and it’s made by frying rice with a particularly spicy blend of Thai chili paste. Typically, this includes grilled onion and garlic, sugar, fried catfish and fish sauce, alongside chillies.
- Tom yam boran; Next up we have a noodle dish – tom yam boran. This is served in a thick sauce which has both spicy and sour notes, and it’s made with a mixture of crushed chillies, vegetables and chopped peanuts.
- Kaeng phet; Also known as red curry, kaeng phet contains a mix of coconut milk and fiery red chillies, making it relatively creamy while still packing a punch. There are lots of different versions of red curry, since it can be made with vegetables, tofu or seafood, while variations extras can be added, like Thai basil.
- Kaeng khae; Popular in the north of Thailand, this spicy curry doesn’t contain coconut milk, which I think makes the heat even more intense. It can be made with pork, chicken, water buffalo or even frog, and it contains cha-om leaves, which come from a kind of acacia tree.
- Neua pad prik; Also known as Thai pepper steak, neua pad prik is seriously hot. It uses oodles of famously hot bird’s eye chili to cover a simple mix of fried beef and shallots, garlic and basil – and the result is an eye-wateringly hot meal that’s famous across Thailand and Indonesia and, thanks to its intense heat, much of the rest of the world!
These are just a handful of Thailand’s spicy and flavoursome dishes. No matter how much Thai food you’ve had here in the UK, there’s nothing like tasting it in the country itself. If you do fancy giving some of the spiciest food a try, I’d recommend leaving it until you’re at least a few days into your trip; that way, you’ll have a bit of time to adjust to the local cooking before diving in!
