Staying overnight in Ayutthaya gave us the chance to explore the parts of the city which are often overlooked on a day trip. For example, after checking into our bungalow and settling down after a long, tired, busy week, we decided to take a walk to hunt down some dinner at the nearby Ayutthaya Night Market, which opened up every night at 4:30pm along Naresuan Road.
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| the Ayutthaya Night Market |
We picked up small portions of lots of different things to snack on, so that we could try all the flavors of Ayutthaya!
We started with some old-style Thai rice crackers. The rice is boiled in watermelon juice, then fried in oil to make it crispy. This gives it a natural sweet flavor. After that, it's drizzled with some palm sugar on top.
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| rice crackers |
We also had some deep-fried crispy mixed vegetables - it's a great snack and pretty healthy (well, except for the fried part).
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| crispy deep-fried vegetables |
For just 40 baht, you can get a bag of whichever veggies you want (or a mix)!
Unlike Japanese tempura, which uses a thick batter to fully coat the vegetables, the Thai crispy vegetables are only very lightly battered before being submerged in hot oil to be quickly deep fried. The result is more veggie than breading, and every bite is super light and crispy. It was served with a little bag of Thai sweet chili sauce (not spicy!) to dip the veggies in.
Next up... durian!
But not just any durian. This was durian and sticky rice!
Khao niaow durian is a uniquely Thai dessert. Like it's more famous cousin, mango sticky rice, durian and sticky rice consists of fresh pieces of fruit served over a small portion of sweetened sticky rice. The sticky rice, or glutinous rice, itself is cooked with coconut milk, and has an inherent sweetness, and the entire dish is topped with a light drizzle of sweet and aromatic coconut cream.
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| durian and sticky rice |
After you've had durian a few times, it really does grow on you. I promise!
The main course was hoy tod, or a Thai oyster omelet. Cooked over a griddle, this dish, made with eggs, flour, and of course lots of fresh oysters, is usually served on a bed of bean sprouts and drizzled with sweet chili sauce.
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| hoy tod |
It's actually one of my favorite Thai dishes, although I don't get to have it very often. A crispy omelet of egg, batter and sweet juicy oysters is fried up in a cast-iron pan and arrives sizzling and steaming hot and fresh in front of you. Hoy tod is often served at pad Thai restaurants, and is a classic dish from Bangkok / central Thai cuisine.
It's also fun to watch it being made!
I truly believe that Thai fried chicken is the best in the world!
Thai chicken is prepared in a marinade of fish sauce, coriander root, garlic, and palm sugar (as well as each shops individual secret ingredients). It's the fish sauce that gives the chicken its signature salty and umami flavor. The chicken is very lightly battered, then deep fried in oil until the skin is crunchy and crispy. It is always served with a packet of Thai sticky rice to offset some of the rich oiliness of the chicken, and is usually topped with optional crispy fried shallots, which contribute an important element to the overall taste of the chicken.
https://www.theworldofstreetfood.com/2022/06/what-makes-thai-fried-chicken-best-in.html
After all that food, we still wanted something sweet. Dessert (well, besides the small portion of durian and sticky rice) was fruit! Specifically, passionfruit - a sweet, sour, and tart fruit served with an optional chili sugar sprinkle (I passed on this, as I thought the fresh passionfruit was delicious as-is).
All in all, a wonderful feast.
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| Thai fried chicken |
After all that food, we still wanted something sweet. Dessert (well, besides the small portion of durian and sticky rice) was fruit! Specifically, passionfruit - a sweet, sour, and tart fruit served with an optional chili sugar sprinkle (I passed on this, as I thought the fresh passionfruit was delicious as-is).
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| fresh passionfruit |
All in all, a wonderful feast.
After all, eating well is one of my favorite things to do while traveling. It never gets old trying the amazing local cuisine in Thailand and around the world!
Read more: https://www.theworldofstreetfood.com/
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