The One Dish to Try (Five Different Ways) in Bangkok

Wall Street Journal

14 hours ago

Khao and gaeng are the Thai words for rice and curry, respectively. Put the two words together, however, and you get a dish that on the surface might sound simple—rice and curry—but contains a multitude of possibilities. Nowhere is that truer than in Thailand's capital, Bangkok, where tastes and traditions from across the country collide and commingle.
In Bangkok, you'll spot khao gaeng everywhere: at a stall that opens at 2 a.m., opposite the city's main wholesale food market; outside a mosque where worshipers congregate after they answer the call to prayer; along the buzzing streets, where the sound of spoons scratching plates adds to the city's cacophony. At each, you'll be confronted by a vast selection of pots, bowls and pans filled with fragrant curries alongside mountains of rice. To order, just point to the two or three saucy dishes you want ladled onto a mound of rice. Typically, you won't pay more than $2 for an ample meal.