I fully expected to love the food here in Thailand. Coming from Vietnam, where I couldn’t get enough of the local dishes, I was of a similar mindset when I entered this country. However, I have really struggled here. This is why I have not enjoyed Thai food as much as I expected to.
My Outlook
In my travels, I am attempting to experience countries as authentically as I can. While I will try the currently popular and touristy street foods of any given area, what I crave is to dine on the real deal. Thai people aren’t in these tourists markets buying Japanese pizza on a stick. Instead, find them at 7am, purchasing banana leaf wrapped snacks and bags of liquid concoctions from street vendors along the roadways. These they consume with rice during the day.
I see Thai people in local markets, purchasing chicken hearts on a stick and fried sausage. When a street cart rolls by, they will gather around and buy eats and treats from the happy vendors. This is what I am striving to try, these foods, these flavours. This food is also a fraction of the cost, if I can get it at the local price and not with added ‘tourist tax’.
Spice
Dang. I knew Thai food was supposed to be spicy but this food, the real authentic food, is next level. I am fair skinned and have a low tolerance for hot spice. A ‘mild’ dish is usually the hottest I can take. 😂🌶️
In Vietnam, I found that I could safely order most dishes. They supplied several containers and bowls at the table, this is where you would add your spice, your chillis, your pickled veg and flavourings from.
Here in Thailand, most dishes are pre-made, they are not making them fresh for you to consume in the moment. Perhaps cooked early that morning, they simmer away in huge pots at the roadside or in the restaurants.
Because they are pre-made, you cannot specify a spice level. The only thing I have found that is continually freshly made is Pad Thai. Good thing I love Pad Thai! 😁
When I stop at a street food cart, and inquire if anything is not spicy, I am invariably met with a head shake. 😟 When I first arrived, and was purchasing dishes, I had to toss many in the bin, and could only eat the rice. 😥 A waste of money and a difficult path to finding enough protein.
Deep Fry
Wow, so much of the Thai food is deep fried! Huge vats of dark oil are simmering away on the street shoulders and restaurants, filled with chicken, fish, donuts, vegetables, all sorts of goodies, both savoury and sweet. My belly just cannot handle that level of grease and oil. My brain cannot handle it either. I know it is not healthy for me.
Also, and this is a biggie for me. Many times, the food is not strained or drained for very long. Items are simply removed from the hot oil and placed on a piece of green banana leaf, and sold right then and there. Nothing is under the fried products to soak up and out the extra grease. When I bite into something, I can taste and feel the pool of oil in my mouth. I admit it turns my stomach.
The few times I have gotten the fried donuts for example (cause I simply cannot resist them with the pandan custard dip), I bring them home, gather paper towel, and I squeeze each doughnut, trying to get the grease out. Let me tell you, the brown soaked towels I am left with…are yuck. But, squeeze I must for I cannot face ingesting all of that grease.
Fat
Craving protein, and a meat lover, I know how important protein is in my diet, for my body and for my brain. I have really struggled here in Thailand cause most of the cooked meat I have purchased, has been full of fat! Ick!
Meat fat is a two-pronged animal for me. First the texture absolutely grosses me out. That squishy, gooey animal fat on my tongue, oh gosh, I cannot even write about it without feeling ill. And goodness gracious should I get a piece of gristle. 🤢
Secondly, I don’t need the calories! I would much rather eat a lean cut of meat and save those calories for something else. I know the fat adds flavour and keeps the meat juicy, and I can tolerate a little fat, but here, there is a lot left on the product.
Because of these three main factors, I have struggled to find local foods that I can consume and enjoy. I want to try everything (well just about) and I have tried a lot. Unfortunately, much of it has ended up in the bin. What have I been eating then? A lot of tropical fruit, vegetables that I make at home, eggs, and when I can find it, a good cut of meat from the store that I can cook up myself. Thailand is the first country I have visited, where I have struggled with the food. 🤷♀️
