Thailand is a popular tourist destination for many reasons, one of them being the country’s exquisite cuisine. Its popularity has also meant Thai dishes have made their way to the West too, with plenty of restaurants and takeaways specialising in the cuisine. There are also Thai supermarkets, such as Oriental Mart, which also allows lovers of the food to cook stuff up at home.

You might also want to try some delicious Thai snacks too, making them yourself or buying them. Read on to see our top suggestions for the best snacks to try.

Moo Satay

Though this is not a dish exclusive to Thailand, as there variations in a few other Asian countries. Moo satay is essentially marinated meat smothered in a curried sauce, usually peanut-based. The meat tends to be chicken, beef or pork. Like many other Thai dishes, moo satay has several ingredients made up of herbs, spices and vegetables, and can take a long time to make due to the time the meat needs to marinate for. However, the result is worth the wait because to the amazing taste.

Thung Thong

Thung Thongs are something between a spring roll and dumpling. Depending on who makes them and the area of Thailand, Thung Thongs follow a different recipe. However, the core ingredients usually include ground pork or chicken, mushrooms, fish sauce, shrimp, chillies, water chestnuts, onion and garlic. The ingredients are rolled together into a ball and wrapped in wonton or spring roll pastry, tied with chives and deep-fried.

Gluay Charb

A simple snack, the simplicity of gluay charb is what makes it so popular. To make the snack, bananas are sliced lengthways and fried in oil, making them crispy, then dusted with sugar to make them sweet. Gluay charb can be easily made at home, and also kept in airtight containers for weeks, so you can enjoy the sweet treat for a long time.

Hoi Joh

Hoi Joh is classic Thai street food. They can be described as a seafood meatball, made up of crabmeat, shrimp, minced pork and fermented bean curd. They may also have a few other additions such as mushrooms and herbs. The balls are deep-fried and wrapped in tofu sheets, and served with fresh salad. Hoi Joh is best enjoyed with a dipping sauce. The small snack is cheap and has a rich flavour.

Med Ma Muang Zong Kruang

You may have come across some version of this dish at a Thai restaurant. The cooked cashew nuts, dressed with chilli and spring onions is a popular dish. The creaminess of cashew nuts is complemented by the sharper flavours of the chilli and spring onion and is often eaten as an energy-boosting food. You may also want to mix it with noodles, rice or chicken to make into a bigger meal.

Roti Gluay

Another banana snack, roti gluay is a type of crepe and one of the most famous street food deserts in Thailand. Using just flour, eggs, bananas and condensed milk, roti gluay is cooked on a griddle pan until it is crispy on the outside and soft inside. The banana and egg filling has a custard-like consistency and can be topped with chocolate sauce, mango or peanut butter.

Miang Kham

Miang Kham is a traditional snack in Thailand and translates to “one bite wrap”. The snack consists of fresh dark green leaves filled with a variety of diced ingredients such as raw ginger, raw garlic, chillies, peanuts, coconut shreds, lemongrass, lime, shallot and shrimp. The one-bite snack has a powerful flavour and perfectly represents Thai snacks. You can eat Miang Kham on skewers, dipped into a sauce. It is important not to unwrap them, eating them whole.

Have you ever tried these favourite Thai snacks? If not, but want to try making some at home, take a look at the Thai products we have online, and you will soon be impressing friends and family with your authentic dishes. Why not also take a look at our blog for recipes, recommendations and guides to oriental cuisines.Image credit: Tourism Thailand, Little Siam Restaurant, Yoko Matsuura, Yum Tummy / Instagram