The way you say “food” or “to eat” or “meal” in Thai is “Gin Kao”, which plainly means “eat rice”. Certainly people eat lots of rice here, as they do in other Asian countries. That does not mean, though, that Thai food is monotonous. There is a large diversity of flavors and ingredients (many more than what is offered in in Thai restaurants abroad) which vary according to the region.
Khun
Han, being a producer, does not have a large variety of foods compared to the cities
that receive food from different areas, like Bangkok or Chiang Mai. Here people
eat mostly what is available locally plus some packaged stuff.
When
I was in Pattaya I was becoming addicted to mangos. Mangos in tropical Asia are
extremely sweet and juicy. For some reason, though, Thais eat mangos when they
are still unripe, crunchy and tart. The ripe ones are consumed by the tourists
only. Therefore, since I am undeniably not in a touristic spot I am having a
mango withdrawal time (I tried buying unripe ones and waiting… But I am not a
very patient person).
However
not mangos, I am eating lots of fruit. Apart from the legendary bananas, my
fruits of choice are:
·
Mangosteens: they are the size of a clementine,
with a thick purple skin. The fruit inside looks like a head of garlic. They
are very sweet, of a mangoish-grape flavor.
·
Rambutans: the size of a peach with red skin and
red quills. In the inside they look like a big grape, although the flavor is
less sweet and the meat is tougher.
·
Dragon fruits: My favorite! They are beautiful
on the outside, with hot pink skin and green leaves that make it look like… a
dragon? The inside is usually white (although some randomly come in purple) of
a very soft meat with lots of little black seeds. Their taste is similar to the
kiwis, but less tart.
There
are still a few fruits that I have not tried and one that I will not try: the
infamous durian. Durians were imported from Indonesia to other South East Asian
countries and somehow became very popular. I suspect that the sense of smell of
Asian people is very different from Westerns’. This fruit is supposed to be
very rich in vitamins and of a delicious flavor but the smell is so repugnant
that makes me want to vomit. Even while walking through the market my stomach
revolts when I pass by a fruit stand that sells it. Unfortunately for me, this
area is a big producer of the devil fruit and it is sold everywhere.
Most
people buy their food at the market. There you can get a large selection of
green veggies, mushrooms, chilies, eggplants (which are round and small in
Thailand), fruits, boiled peanuts, steamed corn, tiny omelets, waffles, grilled
pork meatballs, grilled chicken, grilled fish, salads, noodles with their
corresponding meat sauces, sticky rice and pork stuffed inside banana leaves,
live fish, whole uncooked chickens, chunks of raw pork (including the heads),
cakes, deserts made with sticky rice or custard, and ingredients for cooking
(oil, soy sauce, fish sauce, curry, MSG...) Additionally, there are animal
feed, clothing, cooking ware, and a home decorations stands flanking the food
stands.
Packaged
foods, toiletries and cleaning products are sold at the 7Elevens. The last week
the third 7Eleven store opened in town. Also, a Tesco Lotus supermarket opened
the last week. Everyone is very excited about this because the closest one used
to be in the next town, Kantaralak. Now people will be able to shop locally and
avoid having to drive 25 kilometers each way.
The
selection of casual restaurants is very extensive, which denotes the lack of
willingness of people to cook. However, there are no fancy restaurants. They
are not considered places to hang out and they all close very early. My latest
discovery is a coffee shop which will probably turn into my new Tryst. It is
very tiny (3 tables) and the selection of things they sell is small (coffee,
cappuccino, iced coffee and iced tea), but it has a cool ambiance and the owner
speaks English rather fluently.
I am
looking forward to visiting Phuket (the beach!) this weekend and eating some fresh seafood!
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