Kitchen Thai

The Thai Kitchen has become very popular in the past few years all over the world. The most distinguished feature is the wide usage of plants and spices. That is why some of the thai dishes are very spicy. The thai food is mainly made of fresh products and no fats and thus is one of the healthiest foods in the world. It is also a tradition for thai people to eat together and it is almost impossible to see somebody having lunch or dinner alone. All dishes are served with a large spoon so that people can help themselves.
Thailand is blessed with plenty of plants, grass and spices that can provide a well ballanced diet. Tourists can enjoy not only traditional thai dishes, but diet dishes as well. They can also attend specialised courses in Bangkok or the resorts where they can discover the secrets of the traditional thai food.
Described below you can find the most popular plants and spices used in thai food.

Basil
Horapha, caphrao and maenglak are the different types of the sweet basil. Horapha is used for taste and you can chew its fresh leaves for refreshing your breath. Caphrao's leaves are more narrow and their green colour has some red tints. They release their aroma and taste only in cooked dishes that is why they are widely used in preparing fish, beef and chicken dishes.
Maengalak's leaves have light green colour.
Cinnamon
The cinnamon in Thailand is derived only from the so called kasia tree. It is used with meat and especially in curry massaman.
Chili
The smallest chili pepper among all the chili peppers, called phring khi nu suan, is the hottest. Chili peppers stimulate blood circulation and protects from cancer and some heart diseases.
Citrus
It is a round fruit with darkgreen color. Its rind is thick and very aromatic and it adds a special taste when used in dishes.
Clove
Cloves are dried buds from the blossoms of an evergreen tree that originates from Moluka Islands. They are as expensive as the shafran as they are difficult to gather. The butter extracted from this tree has antiseptic qualities. The cloves can also be chewed to ease toothache.
Caraway
The seeds are similar to those of kim, but have different taste and have to be boiled in order to release their aroma. Widely used in curry mixtures.
Galangal
This is a plant similar to the ginger and is a root with lightpink color and slightly sour taste. Used in chicken soup, fish soup and in curry blends. It can be replaced with ginger although the aroma is not the same.
Garlic
The garlic is one of the most popular spices used in Thailand. Garlic cloves, garlic paste or garlic butter is used almost in every dish.
Ginger
It can be used raw or cooked and is widely used in Asian food. Ginger sause with salt, black pepper and garlic is perfect for chicken and beef marinate. Ginger is good for digestion and also for colds and nausea.
Lime leaves
Lime leaves are very thick and have unique aroma. They can be cut in small pieces and added to salads, soups or curry sauses.
Lime
Lime is rich of Vitamin C and can be used with hot spices as well as for preparing special salads and desserts.
Lemon Grass
Fragile lemon stems can be cut in small pieces and to be eaten raw, while the thicker ones can be cut and brayed before added to dishes. It is very much used in the popular Top-yam soup, and the butter extracted from this plant is good for the stomach.
Mint
It is almost the same like the mint used in Europe and is used in thai food for achieving good taste..
Sesame
Sesame seeds are used for making oil and for a good taste. Those little seeds are very rich of proteins.
Shalot
Shalot is a kind of small red onion which is sweet and very aromatic. It is a major spice for many thai dishes because of its unique taste. It can be replaces with european shalot
Green onion
Used in soups and salads, raw and boiled.


Variety of dishes

Appetizers
They can be consumed separately or as a garnish. Traditional appetizers are dough balls, shashliks, fried noodles with sweat and sour sause and spring rolls.
Chili sauses
They are very often served with vegetables, meat or fish. These sauses can be also served as a main dish, garnish or can be added to fried rise or just as a decoration.

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