Thai ethnic women are delicate and skillful in culinary preparation.

From simple, readily available ingredients from home gardens, fish ponds, fields and even forest products, through skillful hands and the meticulousness of reducing all kinds of spices, dishes are created that are attractive in both appearance and flavor. Ms. Lo Thi Thuong, Chieng An Ward, City, shared: Traditional dishes of the Thai people are passed down from generation to generation, preserving the processing methods, principles of choosing ingredients, spices... Although simple, the way to combine ingredients and spices in dishes is based on the rules of yin and yang and the five elements, with a harmony between hot and cold, enough sour, spicy, bitter, salty, sweet... harmonious in nutrition, good for the body and stimulating the taste buds to make the dish more attractive.

A tray of food with the taste of the mountains and forests

Coming to Son La, many tourists are impressed with the typical dishes of Thai ethnic cuisine. There are dishes that were previously simply products formed from the need to preserve food all year round of the people such as smoked meat, smoked meat or giang fish..., now have become specialties known to many people. Many production facilities that know how to grasp market demand have processed buffalo meat, smoked beef, smoked pork belly according to standards recognized as OCOP products, typical agricultural products of the province; build their own brands to sell to customers near and far, creating high income for many families.

The food is beautifully presented.

Thai ethnic cuisine restaurants are also popular destinations in Son La. With the desire to bring diners a complete experience of Thai culture, most Thai cuisine restaurants in Son La often maintain the traditional stilt house design, open space to connect the community, the menu is typical dishes of the Thai people. In which, traditional dishes are indispensable such as: dried meat, grilled fish, grilled meat wrapped in leaves, fish salad, bamboo rice, bon soup, vồn lá soup... Prioritize fresh and available ingredients to create a highlight for local culinary tourism.

Five-color sticky rice

Mr. La Van Phong, Director of Quynh Nhai Travel Joint Stock Company, said: Serving tourists to experience tourism in Quynh Nhai Lake, the Company provides catering services on Uy Phong Bay, Heart Island, with a menu of traditional local dishes, creative in preparation but still retaining the typical flavor of the Thai people, meeting the tastes of diverse customers. In particular, Da River fish cuisine is made from raw materials from aquatic products raised on the lake, ensuring freshness and attractiveness.

The traditional cuisine of the Thai people changes with the seasons. Especially dishes made from mountain and forest products such as bitter bamboo shoots, sweet bamboo shoots or flowers familiar to the highland life such as ban flowers, pip flowers and seasonal vegetables. Many dishes have simple ingredients from vegetables picked from home gardens and fields, processed into strange and attractive salads. Or soups cooked in different ways to cool down in the summer or warm the stomach in the winter, each with its own unique flavor.

Grilled fish and delicious dishes from rustic ingredients.

In particular, it is impossible not to mention the rich and unique spices of the Thai people. And perhaps, only the Thai people have the secret to using mac khen, garlic, chili, hot and spicy spices to harmonize the flavors of typical mountain dishes such as cham cheo, or to process simple ingredients into fish sauce, hen sauce... preserved all year round, helping meals become more flavorful. Thai women are not only very sophisticated in the way they prepare dishes but also skillful and creative in arranging the trays of food to please every diner at first sight. All of this has created the culinary culture of the Thai people, forming a unique product, attracting tourists to Son La.

Decorating the tray of offerings at the 2024 Van Ho District Ban Flower Festival.

Ms. Ha Thi Thanh Tram, a tourist from Ho Chi Minh City attending the 2024 Van Ho District Ban Flower Festival, excitedly said: I am particularly impressed with the cultural space of ethnic groups recreated within the framework of the festival, especially the display of traditional dishes. The dishes are elaborately prepared, beautifully presented, and have delicious and attractive flavors. I am truly surprised by the talent and ingenuity of the ethnic people when preparing the dishes.

Thai ethnic cuisine is formed from the needs of daily life, from the synthesis and distillation of the quintessence of a long historical development process and is preserved and passed down through generations. Along with creativity, keeping up with the demands of new life, Thai ethnic cuisine today is becoming an indispensable part to attract tourists when coming to Son La.

Thanh Dao

Thai ethnic cuisine - the attraction of Son La tourism (baosonla.org.vn)