Thai Language Lesson - Food Words

Pailin Chongchitnant • September 11, 2018

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NOTE: I know I said the words only once cuz there are many to get through, but you can press the back arrow to replay the last 5 seconds to hear them again! Or on mobile, tap the left side of the screen twice to replay the last 10 seconds.

How do you say "vegetarian" in Thai? What about "I'm allergic to peanuts." Or "Not spicy" or just "Can I have some ice/coffee/beer"?

Thai food terms will help you not only in Thailand, but also when you read a Thai menu in Thai restaurants! Knowing these words will allow you to know about the dish based simply on the name.

Make sure you check out PART 1 of this series so you know the basics of Thai language before you dive into this one, it will help you with pronunciation and understanding. Also check out PART 2 where I teach you phrases for using in a restaurant , or when buying food from a street vendor.

Please see my   Thai Language Basics video  first and it'll make this lesson make more sense!

MEATS:

Chicken      gai       ไก่
Pork      moo          หมู
Beef      neua         เนื้อ
Duck      bped        เป็ด
Eggs      kai            ไข่

SEAFOOD:

Shrimp      goong, gung, kung      กุ้ง
 Fish       pla, bpla      ปลา
 Seafood      ahaan talay     อาหารทะเล  (when used as a noun, as in "I want some seafood");
talay       ทะเล       (when used as an adjective, as in "seafood soup")
 Squid       pla meuk      ปลาหมึก
 Bivalve shellfish       hoi      หอย
 (This is a general term for things like mussels, clams, oysters, scallops and cockles)

PLANTS:

Tofu         taohu         เต้าหู้
Vegetables        pak         ผัก
Nuts      tua        ถั่ว
(can also refer to all legumes such as beans)
Peanuts        tualisong       ถั่วลิสง
Cashews         med mamuang himapan   เ ม็ดมะม่วงหิมพานต์  (or just med mamuang for short)
Vegetarian         mangsawirat        มังสวิรัติ
(general term, some people who eat mangsawirat eat eggs, some eat dairy, some are basically vegan, so the term itself isn't specific, but there will definitely be no meat if you get something that is mangsawirat)
Vegan        Jay       เจ
(this doesn't actually mean vegan, it's a specific way of eating that means no animal products and also pungent herbs like garlic, onion or chives. But if you're very concerned and want to make sure there is absolutely nothing in there that might be animal based, this might be a good term to use.)

COOKING METHODS (TYPES OF DISH):

Stir-Fry       Pad       ผัด
 Soup      Tom       ต้ม
 Curry       G aeng       แกง
 Steamed       Neung        นึ่ง
 Deep fried        Tod        ทอด
 Grilled (big pieces of meat)    Yang       ย่าง
 Grilled (skewers or smaller things like bananas)       Ping        ปิ้ง 

SPICY TERMS:

Chilies       prik       พริก
 Spicy        ped        เผ็ด
 Very spicy      ped ped    เผ็ดๆ     or      ped mak      เผ็ดมาก
A little bit spicy      ped nid noi       เผ็ดนิดหน่อย
 Not spicy     mai ped       ไม่เผ็ด

DRINKS:

Water        nam plao       นำ้เปล่า
Ice        nam kang        นำ้แข็ง
Coffee       gafae         กาแฟ
Tea        Cha/nam cha        ชา / นำ้ชา
Iced drinks      Y en       เย็น
(so gafae yen is iced coffee)
Hot         Ron       ร้อน
Beer         Bia        เบียร์

OTHER USEFUL TERMS:

To ask for something        Kaw        ขอ
Sentence structure: Kaw [the thing you're asking for] [polite suffix]
E.g.  Kaw nam plao ka  (can I have a water please); or add an amount  Kaw nam kang 3 krub (3 glasses of ice please)
 You can also use the same word to request your dish to be made in a specific way
E.g. Kaw ped ped ka (make it very spicy please)

Please don’t add        Mai sai        ไม่ใส่
Sentence structure: Mai sai [the thing you don't want] [polite suffix]
E.g. Mai sai kai krub (no eggs please), mai sai prik ka (no chilies please)

Allergic        pae       แพ้

I am allergic to ...
 chun pae       ฉันแพ้ ...  (female speaker)
pom pae        ผมแพ้ ...  (male speaker)

**If you want a Thai writing that says "I'm allergic to _____" so you can show people in Thailand, feel free to copy/paste the above "I'm allergic to" followed by any of the food items listed here.

I'm allergic to nuts
 Chun pae tua           ฉันแพ้ถั่ว   (female)
Pom pae tua            ผมแพ้ถั่ว   (male)

I'm allergic to shrimp
 Chun pae goong      ฉันแพ้กุ้ง
Pom pae goong      ผมแพ้กุ้ง

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