I think one of the first phrases I learned when I arrived in Thailand was “gin khao reu yung?” This is a phrase that asks if you have eaten yet but is really more of a greeting than an inquiry. They are not really interested in when you had your last meal. If you dissect that phrase a bit more you will find a clue to as what is the main component of their meals. In Thai, “khao” means “rice”. So, what they are really asking is, “have you eaten rice yet?”
A second thing I noticed was that Thai people seem to eat all the time and they don’t really have the regular mealtimes like we do in the West. I would go as far as saying that for many people, eating is like a hobby. They have a phrase which says “gin len” or “play eating”. This is a bit like our snacking. I see some people eat all the time and they never seem to get fat. However, some do and I will talk more about that another time.
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Wherever you go in the streets you will always find food stalls. From dawn to dusk and in some areas, all night. By far the majority are mobile. At the end of their day they wheel their carts back home. Some are pushed and others have bicycles or motorcycles attached. However, an increasing number just leave their cart on the sidewalk and maybe just pull a sheet over it.
Around the corner from where we live there must be at least a dozen of these stalls. For breakfast you can go and eat jok which is a kind of rice porridge with bits of pork and an egg. There are also little rice and coconut puddings called khanom krok. More substantial meals include pad thai (lightly fried noodles), ba mee (egg noodle soup), kao mun gai (Chinese chicken), hoi tod (oyster omlette), som tam (papaya salad) and many more. Then there are the snacks on a stick. Both seafood and meat.
One of my favourites is the fried chicken cooked by the Muslim guy (a.k.a. the “chicken man”). His secret recipe is so much better, and of course cheaper, than KFC. I don’t think his sales were affected much by the bird flu scare. In fact, everyone I know were a bit upset when he disappeared for a week or so. We later found out it was the Muslim new year so I guess he deserved a holiday. The “chicken man” starts the ball rolling mid-afternoon and then his wife takes over late afternoon. By about 7 p.m. all of the best pieces of chicken have long gone.
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With all of this abundance of cheap food on every street corner it is not surprising many Thai people either eat out or get “take-away” on their way home from work. A basic meal costs from 20 baht and 5 baht more will give you an extra helping. Just ask for “piset” which means “special”. It is not that difficult to order and all of the vendors around here are very friendly. I obviously have my favourite meals but I don’t want to let any of the vendors think that I am avoiding them intentionally. So, I have this rotation worked out.
Although I do like eating Thai food, it is also nice to have Western food. Since moving into my own house and rediscovering the kitchen I often cook at home. Most of these meals are Western (like meat and three veg) though I do experiment with Thai ingredients sometimes. I think that if I want to eat Western food then I should cook myself. There are some restaurants around Paknam that have Western menus but it can work out very expensive.
Most of the Thai people I know don’t really like Western meals. They are not so keen on steak and they would rather not have extra cheese on the pizza. If they eat a hamburger they would much prefer to eat the meat and then just peck at the bread. They do have milk but it is mainly seen as a children’s drink. So, they wouldn’t have cereals. They like bacon but again it is not traditional to have egg and bacon like we do.
For myself, I prefer a good breakfast of egg and bacon on toast or some cereals with a cup of coffee. Go to a restaurant and that kind of meal would set you back 100 baht at least. On the other hand, Thai people would have a jok rice porridge for just 20 baht or so. Other Thai people I know would eat food left over from the meal the night before. Although I like curries very much, I just cannot bring myself to eating anything hot and spicy so early in the morning!
I will talk more about mealtimes tomorrow.
Hi Richard
I am from Malaysia and Malaysian like to go to Thailand for holiday and we usually go to the town like Hatyai, Bentung and Sg. Golok.
The food here are similar to the one you mention and I agree with you that the fried chicken(Gai tud)by muslim sellers are very nice to eat. I usually eat one piece for each trip. Do you know that they fried the chicken 2 times before you buy them. I saw they fried the chicken again before giving to you and I do not know the reason. Maybe this will make the taste better.
I love thai food and hope you can put up more thai foods artical and thanks
For sure I will be writing more about food. I will also be writing about recipes and trips to the market to buy the ingredients. And then, of course, my experiences in cooking Thai food.
The “chicken man” here does the exact same thing. The ones on display look already cooked. When you tell him which pieces you want to eat, he then deep fries them again for a few minutes. It looked to me that the first time it wasn’t fully cooked. When he chopped them up I could see a bit of blood. Another advantage of frying again is that it is then served hot and still crispy.
Perhaps Richard would prefer to live in Isarn as ‘Khai Krata’ is becoming a very popular dish there. (French/Laotian influence) Do u know it? It consists of a couple of fried eggs, a sausage etc.. served on a hot plate with a roll (sometimes) and a coffee. One of the delights of Isarn, setting u back just 25 baht appx.
Oh, the chicken man! Just mentioning it makes my stomach growl!
I don’t know how he does it, but those chickens are fabulous. I used to eat many times there. Such a meal could only be better if it was eaten with kao nieow, but I couldn’t find any nearby, so I just bought some regular rice at Pornsiri Kitchen, which also used to be one of my favorite eating places there.
Maybe they are saving the space for some more ketchup.
Yep. Sizzlers was my restaurant of choice when I had to satiate the oocasional craving for Western food, but such an outing always made my wallet much lighter. Over here in Chiang Mai I just discovered a nice western restaurant where Italian and German food is also served besides the ubiquitous steak and fries. I don’t know about the Italian food, but a Bratwurst mit Sauerkraut actually tastes like it does in Europe. And the prices are comparatively lower than those of Sizzler.
Looking forward to more blog entries about Thai food.
Oh, I forgot to ask:
Richard, did the man say anything when he noticed that you are taking a pic?
I haven’t heard of ‘Khai Krata’ so that was interesting to read. I have always imagined Laos to me more “civilizied” in that respect. One of these days I will try to get over there. Still haven’t worked out where to go on my road trip this summer holidays. I have been thinking about heading to the deep south to visit a student I am sponsoring. Otherwise I might explore a bit more of Isaan.
Seeker, the people at Pornsiri Kitchen were asking about you the other week. They didn’t realise you had gone! You didn’t say goodbye to them!
The bottom two pictures were taken by Gor. The top two are mine. I’ll try and get some pictures of the “chicken man” to make your mouth water!
Yes, they know how to marinate the chiken with Thai and Indian both red and yellow spicy power and leave the chiken in the fridge over night. Next day, you leave the marinated chiken at room temperature for a few hours, then fry them. Coconut oil is an ideal, if you could find it.
Another outstanding style of fried chiken can be found on Susawas Rd., (around 3-4 kms from Phra Samut Chedi). Ask the locals near by the Chedi or motobike taxi drivers.
Regular local clients often ring the owner a day or two before they want to wat the chiken. The owner stops selling around lunchtime.
Which direction is that? Towards Bangkok or towards the fort?
Richard:
Which direction is that? Towards BKK, please and before Soi Khoo Sraang. I miss it now, but have to wait for next visit in Dec 2005
Yeah, I don’t like teary goodbyes…
But Tai sent me an email the other day.
Ouch, that sounded a bit… bad. :p But I know what you mean. How about taking some pics of the delicious chicken instead?
Yes, I did mean there would be some chicken in the picture somewhere! It won’t be an exclusive “chicken man” pin-up poster!
I have just been on holiday in thailand and i myself was very interested in the thai eating habits. My comment was that there is so much food on the street that yeah you would think they must just snack all day, but all the meals we were served in restaurants etc were massive, and from looking at those you would think they must just eat a few large meals a day and no snacks! Unfortunately my travelling companion did not share the same interest and said who cares, I suppose i noticed and wondered these things because i am a nutrition student.
Hi Muhammad:
Let me answer that for you. It is illegal in Thailand to be officially married to two women at the same time.
That does not mean however, that you could not get married to a second bride according to Muslim tradition.
This Muslim tradition of polygamy is not recognized by Thai law, and your official wife would have the power, to sue in court, your second wife.
Should you care to take a second wife, i am sure that the local Muslim community could arrange that for you, however there is nothing biding under Thai law.
As the Thais would say ‘if she is willing then it is up to her’
Good Luck
My dear Richard:
recently i have visited thailand, and fallen in love with a thai lady, impressed by my generosity she revealed that she was a ‘divorcee’ and had a 3-year old daughter looked after by per parents. She asked me whether i can marry her, i told her that i am a muslim and already married with 2-children, she said she needs love.
Upon returning back to my country i told everything to my wife, my wife is agreed to give me a written permission for a second marriage provided i keep my thai lady in a different place, according to our religion we can do ‘polygamy’ if we help a poor, needy or a ‘divorcee’ by giving them food, shelter and moreover love.
Please help me by supporting that under these circumstances whether i can perform second marriage in thailand, and does thai law allow such type of marriages, if i also take permission from my concerned embassy in bkk.
with best regards,
yours truly,
muhammad ali