NB: the 1560 (2017) festival was toned down in comparison to previous years due to the extended mourning of Bhumibol Adulyadej, the late king of Thailand. I have been attending the vegetarian festival in Thailand since 2010, and in those years have learned much about the styles of food prepared…
Vegan Thai Food and Travel
Vegan Thai food and recipes, plus Thailand travel tips, recommendations, and anecdotes
I have spent the past 15 years travelling back and forth to Thailand, with the last ten dedicated to food research. I love to share my knowledge (and opinions, sometimes of which may read accurately like tantrums) about vegan Thai cuisine travel within the Kingdom. Contrary to popular belief Thailand and Thai cuisine can be very vegan accessible, with many naturally plant based foods and others that are easily adapted.
Thai Street Noodles: Basic Vegan Noodle Stock
This is part one of what I intend to make a multi-part series on Thai noodle soups. But first, the foundation. Lay the groundwork with a flavoursome, quality stock and you’ll be building top notch noodle bowls in no time! Noodle soup broths are typically bone based, but vegetarian vendors…
ขนมบ้าบิ่น Kanom Baa Bin: Thai Coconut Cake
Kanom is often a word used to prepend names of mainly sweet snacks in Thai language, hence we have kanom chan, kanom krok (the coconut half-globe pancakes that every tourist seems to discover), and many more. This isn’t a hard and fast rule, however. For instance one exception is the…
Vegan Pat Macaroni
Pat macaroni is a Thai dish of pasta sauced with various condiments that include sriracha, soy sauce (I use seasoning sauce) and ketchup. Yes, ketchup. This stir-fry (pat/pad = stir-fried) lacks a strong hit of chilies, unless you make it spicy by preference, so it’s a popular dish for children…
Kitchen Sink Vegan Khao Tom
First, hush, you people who know how to be smooth enough in real life to build relationships face to face. Second, this is the story of me meeting someone from the internet on another continent and the dinner they cooked for me. Third, it’s not really story because I will…
How to order vegan noodles in Thailand
In the face of a foreign culture people tend to simplify its cuisine, narrowing it down to an easy to navigate package of dishes we order again and again. Take Thailand’s vast noodle repertoire, for instance. Styles and varieties could compete with Italy, surely, yet when we consider Thai noodle…
Thai Vegan Apple and Corn Som Tum Salad
This Thai vegan apple and corn som tum salad is an alternative to the usual green papaya based som tum we all know and love. Variations in Thailand aren’t uncommon, especially with regards to fruit. I’ve enjoyed both corn and fruit adaptations of this ubiquitous Thai salad in past, so…
Vegan Kaeng Liang แกงเลียงมังสวิรัติ
I first tried kaeng liang at one of my favourite restaurants in Bangkok, and haven’t been able to shake the memory of the flavour since. After bemoaning the difficulties of sourcing lemon basil (bai maenglak, hairy basil, hoary basil) in England, the friend I was dining with flipped quickly through…
Vegetarian Thai Phrases and Tips on Ordering Vegan Food in Thailand
With little preparation and knowledge it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and unable to request or identify vegan options in Thailand beyond mango sticky rice and spring rolls. Fortunately Thais are well versed in the concept of veganism, and with patience and perseverance Thailand is an endlessly rewarding destination for food-loving…
Khanom Chan ขนมชั้น Thai Layered Dessert
Khanom chan is unlike any Western dessert you’re likely to come across, but if you like sticky and tacky East Asian sweets then this is most certainly a recipe worth your time and effort. Yes, it’s time consuming – once the dough is prepared, each of the many layers is…
Nam Som Prik Dong: Thai Chillies Pickled in Vinegar (น้ำส้มพริกดอง)
Found on each table at every noodle-hawking stall in Thailand is a caddy of condiments, seasonings to add flavour balance based on a diner’s personal tastes. Granulated sugar for sweetness, fish sauce (perhaps with chillies and lime) to add saltiness, roasted chilli powder for heat, and to impart sourness is…
Pad Gaprao, Vegan Style
After years of visiting Thailand, writing about its food and the annual vegetarian festival, I decided it was time to try to learn some of the language. So hello from Bangkok, where I am sitting in a small Asoke flat scattered with notes of how to say and write statements…
