Pork... and More Pork

A major cultural difference between Thailand and home is food. I've tried many foods since first arriving, and I have a lot of thoughts. I'm not sure what I was expecting the food here to be like. If you look on social media accounts of people who have been to Thailand, you'll see pictures of coconuts, colorful fruits, and ice cream. Ha! There's more to it than that. I was told by many people that I was going to love the food here. There are some foods here that I have really enjoyed, but I would be lying if I said I love, or even like, all the food I eat on a daily basis.

Pork
Perhaps the biggest food shock I've experienced here is the amount of pork they eat. There are pork meatballs, pork and rice, pork and noodles, pork on a stick, pork rinds, fried pork, roasted pork, pork threads. I've got pork coming out of my ears! I have a good mind to forgo all meats for a month straight when I return home. I'm about two meals away from turning into a pig.


Breakfast
The food served at breakfast is something I "struggle" with every now and then. I used quotation marks because it isn't so much a struggle as it is just not preferable. I'm used to eating a light meal for breakfast like a fruit smoothie or maybe eggs and toast. Breakfast here may as well be dinner; they eat the same foods. They don't seem to have designated breakfast foods like we do. For example, breakfast today was rice, bean sprouts with broccoli, bamboo shoots, soup, friend corn cakes, and let's not forget PORK (on a stick). Sounds like dinner, doesn't it? My host mom informed me that the Thais have always eaten big, heavy meals for breakfast as people worked in the fields or on farms. They needed sustenance to get through the day, and the tradition has continued on today. I can't complain too much, because food is food. However, my stomach is not accustomed to eating such a heavy meal first thing in the morning, especially as I have a weak stomach, but I manage by eating small portions.


Plaa= Fish

This fishy entree was first placed before me when I was staying with a family in Lampang. Looks delicious, doesn't it? Below is the conversation that took place at the dinner table between me and PP, a 12-year-old boy who spoke the most English in the family.
PP: It is fish!
Me: Yes, I can see that.
*silence*
Me: How do I eat it?
PP: You put in mouth, and chew chew chew!
PP: *laughs hysterically*

There you have it! It doesn't matter where in the world you go; all 12-year-old kids are smart alecks.

P.S. The fish was actually pretty good!


Street Food
Thailand is a foodie's fantasy. There is food EVERYWHERE. The streets are littered with food carts selling everything from coconut water, to omelettes, to fruit, to sweets, to pork. There are a lot of mixed reviews about eating food from a street cart here, so I was more than paranoid in the beginning. I quickly got over it though, when on my first day here, someone handed me a drink and snack they purchased from a food cart. All I can advise is that you practice common sense when eating. If it doesn't look or smell very good, you should probably pass. If there are no locals in line, run for the hills.


Kaomark
I'm giving this "tasty" little treat a heading of it's own. It is the only food I have tried so far that I had to spit right back out. It was that horrible. I came downstairs for breakfast with my host family like any other day, and there before my seating place, was a perfectly wrapped leaf concoction. I was informed that it was bought especially for me to try. Everyone was staring at me with wide, goofy grins. I took one little bite and immediately spit it back out. My host family was quite amused, by which I mean they were rolling on the floor laughing. I'm glad some positivity came out of my unpleasant experience.



Kaomark, or Khao Mak, literally translates to the word 'yeast.' It's aptly named as the dish only consists of rice that is made with yeast and sugar. If it's left to ferment, it becomes alcohol. I was told that it's supposed to be a sweet, comfort food for adults that is served cold. I, however, will be sticking to cookies or ice cream should I want some comfort food in the future.




My Favorites
By far, my two favorite foods* have been noodles and mango with sticky rice. Both of these dishes are pretty simple, but that's what I like about them. They normally give you coconut milk to drizzle over the mango and sticky rice, which tastes heavenly. I'd eat it every day if I could.

 

Fun fact: That bowl of noodles was the first meal I successfully ate with chopsticks. For those of you wondering, the giant blob on the left is a pork meatball. I could honestly have done without it. I just want all the noodles!

*I have not yet tried fresh coconut ice cream, but I'm willing to bet I'll add it to my list of favorites when I do.