Lessons in Street Food

I am beginning to wonder if Thai homes have kitchens. Street food is so plentiful and cheap (and good), it comes close to rendering “home cooking” irrelevant.

I say this boldly now, but I wasn’t always brave when it came ordering dinner from a vendor’s cart. Fortunately, we were given a seminar in street food from Nomadic Matt, traveler, blogger, teacher.

I’ll let Matt tell his own story, but I’ll tell you this: He’s a late twenty-something with an MBA who decided he didn’t want to live his life behind a desk. So he created a new life for himself, on the road, exploring new places and cultures.

Given what’s happened over the last decade, I think we can agree we’d all be better off if more MBAs had taken to the road instead of Wall Street.

Matt was kind enough to give us a lot of his time while we were in Bangkok, showing us the ropes.

Walking down the street in Bangkok and checking out the vendor carts provides a history lesson in migration patterns across Asia.

Indian, Chinese, Burmese, Vietnamese and Malay influences have worked their way into the Thai cuisine in the form of various noodles, curries, soups and stir-frys.

Fresh fruit – including some types I’ve never seen – is readily available, cut before your eyes, and served in a clear plastic bag.

The cost continues to surprise me. All four of us can eat dinner for less than four U.S. dollars. And I’m happy to report that so far (knock on wood) none of us has had any “intestinal issues.”

I’ll pass along one of the more important pieces of advice Nomadic Matt shared regarding street food: Understand your tolerance for hot food and consider asking for Farang spicy. The uninitiated rarely can take the full heat of authentic Thai dishes.

Be sure to check out Nomadic Matt’s Travel Site.