1. THAILAND

2.  Slightly more than two of Wyoming  Southeast Asia  Mountains  Khorat Plateau

3.  Tropical & Humid  Rainy & Warm Southwest  Monsoon  Hot and Humid South WEATHER

4.  Chicken  Pigs  Dairy Cattle  Eggs LIVESTOCK

5.  Buddhism  All Buddha images considered very sacred  Dress appropriately  Shoes are allowed when walking around, but must be removed in chapel  In mosque, men wear hats while women should be covered in long sleeves and a scarf covering her head.  Visitors are unwelcomed when it comes to religious gatherings. RELIGION

6.  Do not shake hands but have the Wai greeting  Can be used to say sorry, thank you, or pay respect  Rude to point with your feet, especially at people  The head is the most important part of the body  Many younger children go to  great lengths to keep their  head lower than elders to show  respect  You should not have PDA or lose your temper in public CUSTOMS

7.  Makha Bucha  Celebrating Buddha’s teachings  Chakri Day  Celebrates the Chakri Dynasty, the current monarch  Songran festival  Thai’s traditional New Year  Visakha Bucha  Celebrates the birth, enlightenment and entry of Buddha  Loy Krathrong  Offering to the spirit of the water to wash away sins HOLIDAYS

8.  No traditional taboo foods but celebrate banquets with food  Popular food “golden threads”  Thin layer of egg or noodles wrapped around small pieces of food  Thought to bring good luck and wealth TABOOS AND BANQUETS

9.  Focus on five flavors: spicy, sour, sweet, salty, and bitter  Each dish tries to combine at least 3 flavors  Dishes take time to prepare  Large families make cooking meals a family activity  Four regions of Thailand influence flavors  Central: most popular for herbs and sugar with dishes using coconut milk  Northern: light flavors, little spices, not salty and little sugar  North Eastern: very spicy using chilies, salt, herbs, and spices  Southern: spicy herbs, coconut milk, vegetables are main ingredient HISTORY OF FOOD AND COOKING

11.  Stir-Frying (pad)  with a wok or a large skillet  Stewing (toon)  large pan, covered placed over low heat  Steaming (neung)  ingredients are cooked by the vapor that rises from the boiling liquid below  Deep Frying (tod)  food is cooked in a large amount of oil  Grilling (yang)  food is above or below a heat source  Boiling (tom)  soups and curry  Salads (yum)  always specially dressed in Thailand COOKING METHODS

12.  Shrimp, Tuna, Other canned fish, Frozen fish, cuttlefish  Rice  Chicken (prepared, preserved)  Pineapple (canned, preserved) pineapple juice, mango  Sweet corn (canned), Baby corn (fresh, canned)  Sugar, non-alcoholic beverages, seasoning, palm oil, tapioca, feed AVAILABLE FOODS

13.  In Thailand, there is no such thing as an appetizer or starter; neither is there any dish that belongs to only one person.  Thai diners order the same number of dishes as people present; all dishes are shared and enjoyed together.  There are no leftovers or bad luck will occur  Thai food presentation is among the most exquisite in the world  Serving platters are decorated with all variety of carved vegetables and fruits into flowers and other pieces of beauty  No one eats until the rice arrives. It is the heart of the meal FAMILY STYLE SERVING

14.  Thai noodle- Kuay Tiew (soup), Tom Kha Gai (most popular soup)  Thai stir fry  Thai rice- Kao Phad  Thai curry- Massaman Curry  Thai chicken- Som Tam, Gai Med Ma Moung  Thai pork  Thai beef  Thai fish- Tom Yam Goong  Thai seafood  Pad Thai – tofu, bean sprouts, onions, grounded peanuts, noodles Popular snacks include: spring rolls, chicken or beef satay, raw vegetables with a spicy dip, soups, salads, and sweets MEALS

15. THAILAND’S FOOD GUIDE 2013

16.  World leading exporter in rice  Major exporter of shrimp  One of the largest exporters of broiler meat and pork  Other crops that it exports are:  Coconuts  Corn  Rubber  Soybean  Sugarcane  Tapioca EXPORTS

17.  Animal Feed  Soybeans  Frozen Fish  Concentrated Milk & Cream  Alcoholic Beverages  Food Preparations  Dishwashing & Packing Materials  Refrigerators & Freezers  Wheat  Food & Drink Preparation Machines  Carrots  Apples & Pears  Prepared Fruit  Bread, Pastry, & Cakes  Whey & Milk Products  Agricultural & Poultry Equipment  Onions  Extracts of Coffee  Chocolate  Grapes  Mushrooms  Cocoa  Candy IMPORTS

18.  Four essential Thai tastes  Salty, sour, spicy, sweet  Thai Pastes  Shallots, garlic, green or red chilies  Can add coriander, Thai chili powder, galangal, green peppercorns, lemongrass, and turmeric  Fish and Shrimp BASIS OF THAI FOOD

19.  Dried Spices  Pepper (prig thai)  Kaffir Lime (bai magrood)  Cumin Seeds (yira)  Nutmeg (loog junn)  Cardamom (grawan)  Bay Leaf (bai grawan)  Clove (garn plu)  Cinnamon (ob choei)  Curry Powder (pong kari)  Dried Chilies (prig haeng)  Sesame seeds (nga)  Saffron (ya faran)  Fresh Plant  Lemongrass (tha krai)  Root  Ginger (khing)  Coconut (maprao)  Chilies FLAVORS OF THAI

20.  http://www.phuket.com/cuisine/toptenfood.htm  http://www.nfi.or.th/th/  http://www.boi.go.th/index.php?page=opp_food  http://oldwayspt.org/resources/heritage-pyramids/asian-diet- pyramid  http://gain.fas.usda.gov/Recent%20GAIN%20Publications/Anim al%20Feed%20Import%20Regulation_Bangkok_Thailand_2-27- 2013.pdf  http://thaifood.about.com/od/thaicookingessentials/a/herbspic e.html  http://www.chiangmai-chiangrai.com/thai_flavors.html  http://countries.bridgat.com/Top_Products_Imported_by_Thailan d.html#.UUEQ2hnK6U8  http://www.thaicongenvancouver.org/cms/index.php?option=con tent&task=view&id=136  http://www.onlychaam.com/thailand-holidays.php WORKS CITED