I must say that this might have been the most misperception about Thai food. Somehow, for most people, they think that ALL of Thai food is hot and spicy and it is not comfort food!!
For those who love Thai food may know what I am talking about. When you asked your friends, who never had Thai food before, to have a lunch or a dinner at Phuket, you may have been asked “Is it spicy? I can’t eat spicy food.” How many times that you have to change your mind and go somewhere else because Thai food, in your friend’s opinion, is too exotic and too SPICY!
In fact, 80% of our dishes on menu are not spicy at all. In Thai cuisine, each dish usually has more than one flavor, not just spicy. Thai food is mainly comprised of four different flavors: sweet, salty, spicy, and sour. Each dish will allow one leading flavor and have other flavors followed. It does not have to have all four flavors. It could be just two or three. But it always has at least two.
For example, our spring rolls sauce, sweet is the leading flavor, followed by spicy and sour. Larb Chicken, you will feel it salty, spicy, and sour. Any dish, you name it. It never has only one flavor.
Larb Chicken
Next time when you eat at Phuket, order any food either appetizer or entrée. Put the first bite in your mouth and let your tasting buds feel the flavors of the food. You’ll know exactly what I mean!!
Also, when you eat Thai food, you should not really eat the food by itself. Thai people always eat food with steamed rice. Rice will help to tone down the flavors of the food. With a little sweetness of the rice, it actually makes your food taste better. It fills you up too.
In Thai language, we call the food that you eat in regular meals “Gub Kao”. Literally, it means “With Rice”. Because you never eat food by itself, you always eat with rice.
I remember one of my American friends asked me “Don’t you get bored that you eat rice every day?” At first, I thought it’s a trick question. I looked at her and knew that she was not joking. I told her that we won’t get bored eating rice because we change our food that we eat with rice every day. I almost asked her back “Don’t you get bored that you eat burgers every day?” I’m sure her answer would be “No, today I eat chicken burger. Tomorrow I’ll eat Fish burger.”
It’s the same concept, right? Just switch bun to rice!!
