From Choo Chee to Jungle Curry: 4 Unique Thai Dishes You’ve Probably Never Heard Of

Thai cuisine is beloved around the world for its complex balance of sweet, sour, spicy and salty flavors. While pad Thai and tom yum soup have become global hits, Thailand has a vast culinary repertoire that extends far beyond its greatest hits. As you travel around Thailand’s diverse regions, you’ll discover delightful local specialties that offer new and exciting twists on Thai food.

Let’s explore four less well known Thai cuisine options available out there. Then you can try them to treat your tastebuds to something new.

Choo Chee Curry – Central Thailand

Choo chee curry is a mild, coconut milk-enriched curry from the central plains around Bangkok and Ayutthaya. Choo chee pastes vary between sweet and savory, creating a complex, bittersweet profile when simmered with protein and vegetables.

This curry starts with a base of red curry paste sautéed with chicken, beef or seafood. Pineapple chunks and tomato wedges lend sweet and tart counterpoints. The choo chee curry paste goes in next – this mix of dried chilies, spices and thickened coconut cream creates the curry’s hallmark velvety texture. Once the choo chee flavors meld, this mild curry is finished with basil and a squeeze of lime.

Choo chee is the ultimate Central Thai comfort food. Its lush coconut milk base and gentle spicing make it an approachable intro to Thai curries.

Gaeng Om – Northeastern Thailand

While Thailand’s northeast (Isaan) region is known for larb (spicy minced meat salads) and som tam (green papaya salad), gaeng om is a hearty Isaan soup that deserves more fame abroad. Sour, spicy, bitter and savory, this curry riced soup encapsulates the rustic countryside flavors of Isaan.

To make gaeng om, cooks start with a base of water simmered with pork bones or shrimp shells. This creates a milky bone broth spotlighting umami flavors. Next come the key ingredients – rice and sour tamarind – plus mushrooms, tomatoes, chilies, garlic, cilantro and bitter melon. The dish is seasoned with fish sauce for a savory punch.

Once the soup base bubbles away, eggs and meat like pork, chicken or fish go in, cooking just until done. The finished gaeng om is salty, sour and irresistibly comforting, with nice textural contrasts from the rice and vegetables.

Hang Lay Curry – Northern Thailand

Venture up to mountainous northern Thailand near Chiang Mai and you’ll find hang lay curry, an eye-catching specialty made with pork belly and tomatoes. What sets hang lay apart is its striking red color from the marriage of pork blood and Dao hung lay chili paste.

To make hang lay, triangular slices of pork belly and pig’s blood are combined with the homemade chili paste, which gets its hue from Dao hung lay chilies, garlic, shallots, and shrimp paste. Hang lay simmers in this vivid sauce until the pork becomes fork-tender. Finally, it’s finished with chunks of green tomato, for wonderful color contrast and tart balance against the rich belly meat.

From its scarlet sauce to the strips of cherry-red pork, hang lay is a beautiful and intensely flavored northern delicacy. The pig’s blood enriches the sauce while melting into the fatty pork for an unctuous, finger-licking curry unique to northern Thailand.

Jungle Curry – Southern Thailand

The south of Thailand blends Thai cuisine with Malaysian and Indonesian influences for unique fusion flavors. Jungle curry encapsulates the pungent, turmeric-tinted curries particular to this region, which forgo coconut milk in favor of spice and herb pastes.

Uniquely, jungle curry gets its yellow-orange color from ground mixed spices rather than typical red chilies and curry paste. Cook dry-roast and grind whole spices like coriander seeds, lemongrass, kaffir lime peel, shallots, garlic and shrimp or fish paste to form the base. This complex homemade paste simmers with your choice of protein and veggies like long beans, bamboo shoots, eggplant and sweet peppers until intensely aromatic.

Without the mellowing effect of coconut milk, the flavors of the spices and herbs take center stage, lingering hot on the tongue. The many vegetables make jungle curry a one-pot vegetarian meal, while the southern-style dry yellow curry sauce provides an exciting new flavor for fans of Thai food.

A Cuisine with Depth

Part of what makes Thai food so exciting is its incredible regional diversity – even with a single dish like curry, cooking techniques and ingredients shift drastically between north, south, east and west. Venture beyond Thailand’s greatest hits on your next visit to uncover vibrant local specialties that offer deliciously new perspectives on this amazing cuisine. Whether it’s rich, central region choo chee, sour Isaan jungle soup, blood-red northern pork curry or spice-packed southern jungle curry, so many tasty surprises await outside the well-beaten path.