So, what's thai food like?

[Felon]

Never tried thai cuisine. Been thinking about giving it a try. Thing is, I hate having onions mixed into my food, and the first thing that springs to mind when I think of thai food is curry. Can this hated vegetable be avoided? And in general, what's the cuisine like?

 

[freyar]

Interesting question. The food varies quite a bit, as it's not always curries (though I find it hard to beat a good green curry ). It's also a good choice for vegetarians like me. In any event, it's generally "spicy" and sometimes also sweet. Probably the best comparisons are to Szechuan and Indian cuisine. Some typical tastes include coconut milk (in the curries), a somewhat spicy peanut sauce (sort of like a Kung Pao Chinese dish), and a basil-like "mint" in a number of dishes. It's hard to be specific w/o knowing what you might like or if there's a dish you've heard about. As far as onions go, the amount probably varies quite a bit from restaurant to restaurant and certainly from dish to dish. The drier dishes probably have fewer.

My recommendations for first things to try: a curry (any variety, really) or Pad Thai.

 

[jaerdaph]

I love Thai food. I recommend trying the chicken or shrimp Pad Thai (a rice noodle dish that isn't spicy) to anyone trying it for the first time. For appetizers, go with the spring rolls, the chicken or beef satay (skewers of grilled chicken breast or beef with a nice peanut dipping sauce), and the curry puffs if they have them. Curry puffs are delicious.

If you like it and go again, I recommend anything sauted in coconut milk.

I also like Thai iced tea, which is a red tea served with milk and sugar by default, so be sure to ask for no milk or no sugar or a sugar substitute if that's your preference.

 

[IcyCool]

Thai food usually incorporates green onions, if it incorporates onions at all. Thankfully, these are easily spotted and removed. But generally, Thai food generally boils down into one of two flavors, "Spicy or sweet".

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Its good.

 

[Wycen]

I recommmend this soup: Tom yum (insert goong or whatever else they might append to Tom yum). I like going thai just for this taste.

 

[Huw]

I can recommend pad thai as well, and both green and red curry. The restaurants I know (Disclaimer: My brother-in-law runs one) also do pretty good starters. Try crab sausages dipped in honey if you can.

 

[Olaf the Stout]

Thai food rocks! I really only first started eating it about 4-5 years ago but it is definitely one of my favourite styles of food now. I think of Thai food as being very clean. By that I mean that you don't feel sick and greasy after eating it like you can after eating Chinese food. It tends to be spicy, although you can easily get a made milder if that's what you prefer.

Compared to Indian food, Thai food tend to be a 'hot' hot, while Indian tends to be a 'sour' hot. It sounds quite weird but I find that I can deal with even the really hot Thai spices. They chilli tend to be hot and spicy from the start (which I like) but at worst it just make my nose run and my mouth numb. Indian spices on the other hand seem to build as you eat the meal. The don't really seem that hot when you are eating a mouthful, but I eventually get to a stage where the heat from the spices makes me not want to eat any more. It's quite hard to explain but that's the best I can describe how it feels.

I personally love having my Thai dishes with rice but a lot of people like the noodle dishes (like Pad Thai). I love eating the rice after it has soaked up all the lovely juices of the dish. The rice also helps to take a bit of the edge of the spiciness.

In Australia, I have found that Thai food has red onion in it, rather than the more common white or brown onion. I don't know if this is just a regional thing of if Thai food normally has red onion in it. Spring onion is also common though (usually in addition to the red onion). If you are having Thai food in a restaurant, you can generally just ask for it not to be included in your dish. Of course it may depend on the restaurant, but the place I go to isn't by any means upmarket and it will still leave out or include specific ingredients on request.

Olaf the Stout

 

[JDJblatherings]

thai food varies wildly from wha i can tell, for years i avoided it because my initla exposure was not unlike eatign at a dumpster fire. Friends however enjoyed the food and got me to try soem dishes and sure enough the curries are good and I enjoy the soups as well. ther eis a little restaurmat not too far from me that makes rather good duck soup (don't know how traditonal it is but it is great and sorry Felon it's got onions).

 

[Angel Tarragon]

The first time I had thai food was in a restaurant called Thaifoon. It was deliciously good. I can't wait to go back!