EAT IN ASIA / Food destinations / Thailand - thai food
Although the name might mislead you, Thai suki is very different from the original Japanese style sukiyaki. There are some slight resemblances between two of them, but still, they are very different. So, if you think about a classic Japanese hot pot, this Thai dish is rather not the one you are looking for.
Here, in Thailand, fried sukiyaki, known as suki, has much more variations, more ingredients and can adopt different forms. Sometimes it is a dish that is a Chinese style hot pot. Sometimes it is more like a soup with meat and glass noodles. Finally, sometimes glass noodles are fried with meat, leafy greens, mushrooms and are served in a dark, slightly sweet soya sauce.
And although its name does not reflect the general Japanese meaning, this Thai dish is definitively worth trying. Not only because it includes many local ingredients but also because it is a nice alternative to all other rice dishes. It is also a good option to try something else.
As I mentioned before, Thai style pork sukiyaki might come in different forms. It can either be a soup, or a hot pot, or that might be a dish of fried glass noodles with meat. However, whichever you choose none of them will be the same as it is in Japan.
The most common way of serving the Thai style sukiyaki is a hot pot with a lot of small bowls with different ingredients. Depending on the place, it can highly vary. You can have seafood, tofu, pork, chicken, vegetables, and duck. Hardly ever you will get beef.
Apart from that, the serving will consist of fresh herbs and vegetables that should be consumed raw as a snack and as a side dish. More or less, these herbs and vegetables should be eaten like a salad but not mixed in a bowl. Here you will find sprouts, julienned cabbage, lettuce, cucumber and sometimes radish. Finally, you will get fresh coriander and basil leaves.
Finally, comes the sauce - suki Thai sauce.
This sauce is served aside and every person dips cooked food in it. It is spicy, includes chili peppers and is slightly sour. Main ingredients in that sauce include chilis, lime and coriander leaves.
If you decide to have a sukiyaki soup, then all ingredients will be already put into the bowl. That means that meat, leafy vegetables, glass noodles, some root vegetables and the egg will already be there. The soup will be probably garnished with fresh coriander.
Finally comes the broth-less dish – fried meat with glass noodles in a spicy sukiyaki sauce. It is something between a classical soup and fried noodles. That said, the dish is prepared in a wok and is served with a spicy chili and lime sauce – suki Thai sauce.
Glass noodles are fried with a little amount of soya sauce. The meat – here usually it is either pork or seafood; is fried separately. At the end it is mixed with noodles and with leafy green vegetables like cabbage and morning glory. Finally, all ingredients are fried for a moment again.
The cooking sauce has a slightly sweet note and pairs very well with the salty soy sauce. Both of them ideally mix with glass noodles that easily absorb all flavors.
Thai style sukiyaki is something unique in it is form and is a great way of sharing a meal with other people. It is also a great fun to enjoy cooking together and to pick ingredients according to once taste. If you want to try it in some other forms, check our post on Thai and Chinese food in Hungary.
Author: Beti – A passionate traveler and lover of Asian cuisine, especially Thai and Japanese dishes, Bernadeta brings her culinary and cultural experiences to life in her writing. Beyond her travels, she’s an avid technology enthusiast with a deep interest in data processing, merging her love for exploration with analytical insights.
Photographer: Adalbert – An aficionado of computers and photography, Adalbert captures the essence of diverse cuisines with a discerning eye. A connoisseur of rich flavors and particularly fond of meat-based dishes, he combines his technical skills with his passion for the culinary arts in every shot.