Joanna James
This quirky little town in Thailand is one for the history books, with its Old City and temples. The cuisine here goes well with the ambiance – flavoursome and memorable.
If you try nothing else when in Chiang Mai, try Khao Soi. Khao Soi is a dish that made of soupy noodles. The soup is made of coconut milk and yellow curry. What sets this dish apart from all other soups is that it is topped with fried noodles. Many hotels in Chiang Mai will have only chicken or beef Khao Soi, as the dish is usually prepared to be consumed by everyone including the Muslim community. However, there are a few restaurants that will make you pork Khao Soi or even seafood if you request it.
Sai Oua is a grilled herb sausage that is a definite firecracker of a starter. It is quite spicy and is often termed a "fiery" dish. Sai oua has ground pork as its base and has dried chilli, shallots, garlic, and various herbs and spices added to it for flavour. It is cooked on a charcoal grill, which gives it added flavour. Although it looks like any average sausage, it tastes completely different due to the nature of the mix. If you are not a fan of spicy food you might have to skip this one unless you are dining at a high-end restaurant like the ones at Anantara Chiang Mai Resort where you can request the sausages to be less spicy.
Translating to Red/Green chilli dip, it is the best-known chilli dips that are made according to the northern cooking techniques. The green chilli dip is made of chilli spur peppers roasted and ground to a fine paste and will make your tongue burn after even the lightest touch of it. The red chilli dip is a little milder in comparison, as it has a rich tomato base to take off some of the heat. The dips are usually served with steamed vegetables and crispy pork skin.
This sweet curry made according to the Burmese cooking style is locally known as gaeng hanf lay. It has a tangy flavour as the soup is based off tamarind. There are chunks of pork, shallots, and shrimp paste incorporated into it for flavour. The interesting thing about this yellow curry is that it has no coconut cream in it. This makes the soup less creamy and more watery.
If you are looking for a fancy dish that will capture your eyes, kanom jeen nam ngeow is the dish you are looking for. The starch of the dish is a fine noodle that looks like spaghetti. It is served with a pork-soybean curry, fresh vegetables, dried chillies, and crispy pork skin. This soup, too, is light and watery as opposed to a thick creamy texture that is usually found in Thai soups. It is a winner of a dish that you must try whenever you feel like treating yourself to something fancy and exotic.
A true believer that the pen is a mighty weapon, ventures into reaching the minds of every reader with the earnest hope of leaving an indelible stream of thought.
A travel writer who has a passion for fashion and a deep interest in admiring new and exotic attractions around the world.
