Meaningful Thai Desserts

Enjoying Thai life is all about experiencing local customs, which includes local food, hospitality, etc.
When it comes to food, Asian cuisine has always been a step ahead when compared to the fast-food
cuisines that we take for granted on a daily basis.

Food is something that interests the entire humanity. No food course is complete unless there
is a dessert. The same goes for Thai food. The most famous Thai dessert should be sticky rice with
mango and coconut milk; and the reason for its popularity is simply the availability of this dessert in
every nook and corner of almost all the streets in Thailand. For those who have tasted this unique
dessert, you will remember the sweetness from mango mixing with slight saltiness, added to the
richness of coconut milk, which will then blend really well with the sticky rice. Sticky rice is not the
usual rice that you can find with their staple meals, but it is a tastier variant.

Thai Dessert has a long history. Back in the olden days, Thai desserts have been known to
grace numerous 'merit making' ceremonies for people of Thailand, and is indeed a rich Thai life
tradition. They would be made only for 'merit making', and sometime, even made only once a year.
Cooking the dessert involves a lot of effort and involvement from different people, but enthusiasm is
the key. To make large quantities of this dessert, several people should work in tandem with each
other without fault. Having finally finished the dish, the dessert is then brought to holy places like
temples, where the monks do the honours of tasting the dessert firsthand. Once this ceremony is over,
the dessert is then shared among neighbours and relatives alike.

Thai desserts are normally sweet, as all desserts are, but the difference is that they also have
aromatic quality to it, which is achieved by using candlesticks. This will ensure that the food is not
only tasty, but also presentable as a gift for ceremonious occasions. Most Thai desserts have
meaningful names, which Thai people believe makes the giver and the receiver perform good deeds.

Some of the Thai Deserts with good will meanings include:

- Kanom Chan (ขนมชัน

้ )

It’s made from flour, sugar, and coconut milk. They come in various colours like
purple (the colour is achieved from butterfly pea) and green (from pandanus leaves).
This dessert usually symbolises progress.

- Kanom Luk Chup (ขนมลูกชุบ)

It’s a very much liked and appreciated Thai candy that is made from mung bean
paste, coconut milk, sugar, gelatine and natural food colours. Its unique characteristic
lies in the fact that its shape and colour imitates those of natural fruits and
 vegetables. This dessert stands for love, especially between relatives and different
generations.

- Kanom Tuay Fu (Thai Rice Flour Muffins or ขนมถ้วยฟู)

It’s made from rice flour and scented very gently with flower water and steamed
rather than baked. Gifting this dessert means wishing progress and development.

- Kanom Pui Fai or Fluffy Cup-Shaped Dessert

This is a Thai cupcake. It is a sweet and colourful dessert, which is usually served on
special occasions such as during a party to celebrate promotions at work. And it is
also one of the most popular and available dessert, which you can find in most
common street dessert shops and stands.

- Kanom Foi Thong

It is not strictly speaking a Thai dessert, as it was believed to have been introduced by
the Portuguese over 400 years ago. However, the Thai have made it as one of their
own now. It is made of egg yolk and resembles golden threads placed in hot syrup.
This sweet is usually made for wedding ceremonies and resembles love between
spouses and people in relationship.

- Kanom Salim (ขนมสลิม)

It is a Thai dessert that requires mung bean flour and it cannot be substituted with any
other flour. Khanom Salim is sweet in taste, and served with mung bean threads in
syrup, and adding coconut milk on top. This dessert is served cold. This one doesn’t
have any historical significance or meaning, but yes, it’s nice to have one on a hot
day.

Next time you run into a Thai dessert shop, try some of the above desserts. Who knows? You might
fall in love with Thai desserts the same way you fell in love with the entire Thai Foods and cuisine.