Thai Culture Guide >> Chinese Food Articles >> Thai Food
Of course not. But, for better or worse, Thai Cuisine cannot
lose its
association with that hot and spicy taste of chilies. People tend to overlook
the many other herbs and spices that combine to give Thai food its range of
delicacy. It is the very delicate interplay of herbs and spices that makes Thai
food so well-loved among all peoples of the world.
The single most outstanding character of Thai culinary may be the harmonious
blend of the three S's of flavor - spicy, salty and sour. This is achieved
fundamentally by the three key ingredients.
Chili - Spicy
Despite the paramount importance of chili or "prik" in Thai cooking, it is
believed that Thai people only acquired the love for the spicy taste of chili in
the 16th century. It is not clear whether the Portuguese or the Spanish
merchants were responsible for introducing this chili pepper to the old Siam. In
any case, Thai people have since mastered the use of this spice in their cooking
blending it with other herbs and flavorings.
The green or red "prik kee noo", literally "mouse dropping chili" is the tiniest
but packs a memorable wallop. Don't ever eat it one whole or you can burn your
tongue instantly.
Fish Sauce - Salty
"Nam pla" in Thai, the second most important ingredient of Thai food. It is
derived from brewing fish or shrimp mixed with salt and decanting the fermented
result into bottles. Don't mistake this with Chinese or Japanese soy sauce. Its
aroma of fermented fish can be annoying but when blended into other ingredients
it becomes more subtle and unbelievably tasty.
Lime - Sour
"Manao" (lime) and sometimes "magrood" (kaffir lime) are used at every
opportunity in a variety of Thai dishes. Its main role is to suppress the salty
taste and strong aroma of fish sauce.
One very simple use of the 3 main ingredients of Thai cooking is a "prik nampla"
sauce where chili is added to fish sauce with some lime and garlic. Add a few
drops of this to any Thai dish like "gai yang" (grilled chicken), "khai jeow"
(fried egg) or even plain white rice and you can enjoy the punch of spicy, salty
and sour Thai flavor. This is what most Thai people cannot do without. And a
Thaiphile cannot go about talking Thai food without ever trying "prik nampla"
himself!
About the Author:
Witit Sujjapong is the web master of
http://www.thaiphile.com, a website specialized in things Thai