A Thai full meal typically consists of either a single dish or rice khao with many complementary dishes served concurrently instead of a multiple main course with side food found in Western cuisine.
Rice is a staple component of Thai food, as it is of most Asian recipes. The highly prized, sweet-smelling jasmine rice is native to Thailand. This naturally aromatic long-grained rice grows in abundance in the verdant patchwork of paddy fields which blanket Thailand’s central plains. Highly aromatic curries, stir-frys and other dishes, incorporating sometimes large quantities of chillies, lime juice and lemon grass accompanies steamed rice. Curries, stir-frys and others can be poured onto the rice creating a single recipe called khao rad gang, a popular meal when time is limited. Sticky rice (khao neow,) is a unique variety of rice that contains an unusual balance of the starches present in all rice, causing it to cook up to a sticky texture. It is the daily bread of Laos and substitutes ordinary rice in rural Northern and Northeastern Thai food, where Lao cultural influence is strong.
