Easy Thai (and Thai inspired) recipes you can make at home from pad Thai and tom kha soup to Thai beef salad, summer rolls, and more.
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Set your kitchen up for easy Thai cooking
If making Thai food feels out of your league, I’m here to tell you it’s completely doable. A few basic condiments, all easy to find at a regular grocery store, will get you surprisingly far.
I keep mine together in one section of the fridge door so I can grab what I need when the mood strikes. Add a few fresh ingredients on your way home, and an easy Thai-inspired dinner is well within reach.
Thai pantry essentials
Most of these condiments keep for months after opening, so once you have them on hand, an easy Thai-inspired dinner is never far away. You’ll find most if not all of them grouped together in the international aisle of a larger supermarket; an Asian market will give you even more options.
- Thai curry paste ~ start with red and green. These little jars are the base for quick curries, soups, sauces, and marinades.
- Chili paste ~ a concentrated red chile paste that adds heat and depth. There are lots of varieties, from smooth and fiery to sweet and garlicky.
- Tamarind paste ~ a thick, tangy fruit paste that gives dishes like pad Thai their distinctive sour note.
- Lemongrass paste ~ a handy substitute when fresh lemongrass is hard to find.
- Fish sauce ~ a salty, deeply flavorful sauce made from fermented fish and an essential ingredient in Thai cooking. For a vegetarian or vegan option, look for vegan fish sauce.
- Soy sauce ~ an everyday staple for stir-fries, noodles, marinades, and dipping sauces. I often use tamari, which is usually gluten-free, but always check the label.
- Sweet chili sauce ~ sweet, tangy, garlicky, and gently spicy. I make my own, and it’s better than anything I’ve found in a bottle.
- Rice vinegar ~ lighter and less sharp than regular vinegar. Once you have it in the fridge, you’ll find yourself reaching for it all the time.
Spices & pantry staples for Thai cooking
Coconut milk ~ canned and unsweetened. I stockpile it.
Rice noodles ~ sold dried in cellophane packages in lots of shapes and sizes. Use them for noodle bowls, stir-fries, and soups.
Peanuts ~ raw or roasted. Cashews are nice to keep around, too.
Peanut butter ~ I like Jif, and use it as the base for creamy sauces and dressings.
Jasmine rice ~ beautifully aromatic and my everyday rice, even when I’m not cooking Thai food.
Tofu ~ keep a package in the fridge for easy vegetarian meals.
Spices ~ ground coriander, cumin, cinnamon, and cloves.
Fresh herbs & produce for Thai cooking
These are the fresh ingredients that bring Thai recipes to life.
- Fresh limes ~ essential for that bright, tangy flavor.
- Mango ~ use ripe mango in salads, desserts, and drinks.
- Basil ~ Thai basil is traditional, but regular basil works in a pinch.
- Cilantro ~ use the tender stems along with the leaves.
- Mint ~ especially good in fresh salads and summer rolls.
- Garlic & Ginger
- Fresh chiles ~ Thai chiles are small and very hot. Fresno, serrano, or jalapeño peppers are easier-to-find substitutes.
My favorite Thai recipes
Thai Coconut Soup (tom kha)
This soup is characterized by simple yet strong flavors and a light, refreshing consistency. Coconut milk was first introduced to Thailand by Indian traders, and it quickly became a staple ingredient in Thai cuisine, I love the light creamy consistency it brings to this soup.
Thai Salad
If you’re used to picking up your salads in plastic bags at the supermarket there’s something incredibly exotic about a recipe like this. Thai salads are typically made with a combination of sweet, sour, spicy, and salty flavors, which is a common flavor profile in Thai cuisine overall and very different from what we in the West expect in our salads.
Spicy Thai Spaghetti Salad
This recipe is not by any means authentic, but the wonderful summer leaning Thai flavors are there. We’re taking inspiration from Thai rice noodle salads, but using what we’ve got in the pantry.
Thai Peanut Sauce
Everybody’s favorite Thai peanut sauce couldn’t be easier to whip up at home. Use it for dips and dressings all summer long.
Thai Mango Salad
I can pretty much guarantee that Thai mango salad will be one of the more unusual dishes to come out of your kitchen this summer, and also one of the most delicious. The colors are gorgeous, the textures range from crunchy veggies and toasted cashews to silky mango, and the flavors will knock your socks off, promise.
How to Make Summer Rolls
Summer rolls are Vietnamese rather than Thai, but they belong here because they share so many of the fresh herbs, crisp vegetables, rice noodles, and bright flavors I love in Thai cooking. Also called fresh spring rolls or salad rolls, they’re light, naturally gluten-free, and especially refreshing in warm weather.
Sweet Chili Sauce
This irresistible sweet/hot sauce is the universal Thai dipping sauce, but it also doubles as a glaze, a stir fry sauce, and a marinade!
Thai Pineapple Fried Rice
Nutty toasted cashews, golden raisins, warm spices, fresh pineapple, and colorful veggies all come together in a dish that is sure to brighten up a tired meal plan. You can add chicken or shrimp if you like.
Shrimp Pad Thai
This gluten free noodle bowl is made with rice noodles, and is just as delicious hot as it is cold from the fridge. Pad Thai is a beloved dish in Thailand and is a great example of classic Thai food.
Steak Pad Thai Salad
Another example of how Thai food is some of the most refreshing on the planet ~ my pad Thai/steak salad mash-up is pure delicious genius on a hot night.
Our Favorite Salmon Coconut Curry
A 30 minute Thai inspired curry bowl recipe that doesn’t disappoint with plenty of cilantro, lime, and ginger to balance out that buttery sweet salmon. While salmon may not be a traditional ingredient in Thai cuisine, it’s become increasingly popular in modern Thai cooking
Thai Beef Salad
The very first time I had this salad in a Thai restaurant I knew I had to recreate this wonderful dish with with ribbons of rare steak, tons of fresh herbs like basil, mint, and cilantro, feathery slices of red onion, crunchy cukes, hot peppers, and a tangy garlic ginger dressing ~ and I did!
Thai Chicken Salad
This is an epic chicken salad, Thai style! It doesn’t miss a beat, down to that peanut dressing we all crave.
How to Make Coconut Rice “khao man gai”
Why make plain rice when you can make coconut rice? This moist fragrant rice is just as easy to make, and adds so much to curries and stir fries.
Thai Curry Chicken Salad
You’ll need a rotisserie chicken, a head of Napa cabbage (or your favorite greens for the base,) some roasted peanuts, golden raisins, spring onions, bell pepper, and, of course, Thai basil. The Thai curry dressing, below, brings a host of classic Thai flavors to the dish.
Thai Chicken Satay Bowls with Peanut Sauce
The MOST irresistible peanut sauce-drenched chicken threaded on skewers and layered into the summer dinner bowl of your dreams! This modern take on a classic Thai street food is one of my favorite meals.
I am so happy to discover your site. Every dish I have made has been wonderful! Great narratives as well. I will be happily following you. Thx
Thanks Patty, Welcome in!
Thank you very much for including an estimate of the nutrition facts for your recipes. I am curious about the fat content of this one. If it contains 1 gm saturated fat, 1 gm of polyunsaturated fat and 1 gm of monounsaturated fat wouldn’t the fat content be at least 3 gm?
Hi Bev, I went in and re-ran the nutrition facts and now it does say 3 grams. It’s an automatic calculator, so I guess the first time it was run it was off for some reason. Thanks for spotting that!
Fish Sauce
Cooks Illustrated has a recipe for mushroom based replacement for fish sauce.
Thank you for the suggestion about fish sauce. I am not vegan but deathly allergic to mollusks. Hve been wondering how to substitute oyster sauce etc. in myThai reipes.
Fish sauce is so unique it’s a tough one to find a substitute for. I just listened to a podcast about a new mushroom based ‘fish’ sauce, keep an eye out for it.
Sue, it’s a good thing I haven’t shopped yet this week, just feeling lazy. But you’ve tempted my taste buds and will soon be making a new shopping list. Will let you know which one I try first. You are always an adventure.