Whether it's because Thai food is so adaptable, or it was just born for vegetarians: the point is it just works. Even better, it works on so many levels. There are dishes that are typically served with meat, but it can simply be left out or replaced with a soy product, and it doesn't make a difference. There are vegetable dishes that already have so many good veggies that skipping the meat tastes fine for vegetarians and meat eaters.
Vegans you're in luck too. Keep reading to see some dish guidelines.
First let's talk about two major substitutions for meat in Thai food, because they deserve their own section, Tofu and Protein Kaset. They're both soy products but have different consistencies which can really affect the eating experience. Most people would probably tend to just choose one of these for everything, but that would be a mistake. Tofu is soft, even a bit mushy, but it has its place. In general, I would put Tofu (along with bean curd) in the soup category. It really isn't a great meat substitute in a plated dish. That's where Protein Kaset comes in (let's start calling it PK).
PK is a more meat-like soy product that actually shares many characteristics with meat in its consistency. It can be chopped, sliced, diced, you name it; pretty much whatever you do with meat PK can do also, and it holds together unlike Tofu.
So, without further ado, let's talk about some dishes. I almost made a list here about a mile long, but then realized there's a much simpler way.
In general, when ordering Thai food with vegan or vegetarian in mind there's a good rule of thumb to follow: Soups work well with Tofu or all vegetables, and stir-fried dishes work well with PK or all vegetables.
*Vegans, you probably know fish sauce is made with fermented fish. It's absolutely delicious, and it takes care of a dish's salt needs as well, but if you don't want it just get in the habit of requesting no fish sauce, because it's in practically everything. You can ask that soy sauce is used instead or just plain, old salt.
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| Tom Yum Soup |
Here are some things to note:
Khao Pad (Fried Rice), Pad Thai, and Pad See Ew (Wide Noodles w/soy sauce) are all served with egg. A vegan can ask to simply have the egg left out. Even though these are stir-fried, they're also noodle dishes, and it doesn't really seem to matter with these if you decide to have Tofu, PK, or all veg.
Pad Pak (stir-fried mixed vegetables) and Stir-fried Morning Glory both work fine as pure vegetable dishes or with PK.
Pad Kra Pao (Fried Chili Basil Leaf), Shu Shee Goong (Curry Shrimp), Panang (Curry w/a meat of choice), and Pad Ped Moo Krob (Stir-fried Curry w/Crispy Pork) have no vegetables to speak of, so go with only PK.
Thai salads: this is a funny one, because the word "salad" puts a specific image in most people's minds. In Thai food just dismiss it and let the cuisine redefine it for you a bit. There are meat salads, vegetable salads, and mixed salads (meat & veg.). For our purposes here let's look at the meat salads that have almost no vegetables: Nam Tok, Laab, Moo Manao, Yam Gai Yang, and Yam Neua Yang. I would like to say that you could substitute PK into any of these, but I have to recommend what tastes good, and unfortunately these Thai meat salads are delicious and off the menu for Vegans and Vegetarians. They simply can't have soy products substituted with any hope of tasting good, sorry folks.
Well, that about wraps this one up. Thai food is extremely varied with hundreds of dishes to choose from. All you "V" people just keep the rule of thumb in mind, and you'll usually have something good.
Until next time...
Nid's Kitchen
Koh Tao, Thailand.
Follow @NidsKitchenKTao
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