dont stop, dont slow down; Teach us who really is behind some of the best foods, and best stories of the country.

Commenting as an executive chef/f&b mgr/consultant, who has lived and worked in Thailand since 1992, i find it to be culinary sacrilege to substitute ANYHTING for fresh Bai Kaprao. It is a singular unique taste that cannot be replicated with substitutes IMPO. sure, you will have a dish of good tasting food, but it is not Pad Krapao, not even close.

When it comes to the Chicken and Rice dish, Khao = rice, Mun = fat, Gai = chicken. So this is "Fat Rice Chicken" or, in other words, boiled chicken with rice cooked in chicken fat. The fat in the rice is what gives it the distinct silky, not greasy, texture and aroma. I do not see or hear mention of this. With chicken fat being a main ingredient why leave it out?

There are so many other Thai dishes that have easily sourced ingredients, why not showcase those rather than a dish that is hard to find ingredients for? Clams in Roasted Chili Sauce หอยลายผัดพริกเผา Hoy Lai Pad Prik Pao is a great example, and it can also be made with other protiens. Hoy Lai Pad Prik Pao uses Bai Holapha (Thai Basil) which is not difficult to find, and roasted chili paste which is also a no brainier and can be sourced in any decent sized Asian market or purchased on line.

I will say that you do specify Thai condiments/sauces to be used, which is a great note, as they are distinctly different than Chinese (or other Asian variety) condiments/sauces.

😔 Pad Gra Prow shouldn't be known for its sweetness. Lots of vendors make it sweet nowadays, but the main flavor (as in sweet, sour, spicy, bitter, not the including the aroma) should be the saltiness from the fish sauce not the sweetness from some black/sweet soy sauce, aside from the spiciness. Purists would add just the fish sauce. I'm not against all sweetness, black soy sauce or oyster sauce makes it pretty, but you must make clear what is traditional and what is not to preserve history. (And to make good food, frankly. Traditional is not always better but almost always they are better than food made by people who don't know how to make the food they are making.)

Lots of vendors making all kinds of food you find on the streets will add sugar to everything 🙁 Just because the person making it is Thai, doesn't make it traditional and/or authentic. Just because someone cooks doesn't mean they know how to. If an Italian made carbonara with cream would that be authentic?

The only sweet Thai things are palm sugar and coconut cream. And yes, what we call black soy sauce, but those are probably Chinese in origin. And should be use in dishes stemming from the Chinese diaspora. Aside from of course Thai confectionaries, many of which is actually western in origin as well. Sweetness from anything else is probably not authentic.

I'm a bit defensive of our food because while it is a very successful export, the real recipes are getting lost because people here don't sell food because they are passionate about it but because it is a job that they can do. I'm not sure what the view towards restaurants abroad are, but here, restaurants don't make better food. Only good restaurants make better food than home cooking. Could be different for Chinese ones (their cuisines have many techniques that are hard to do at home). Could just be my imagination but restaurants aren't traditional in Thailand. I think cooks were either in the palace or servants at your home or the woman at your home. But I'm not a history expert so don't quote me on this.

Actually that probably checks out. Thai curries and Thai stir-fries and salads; you can make them all at home. Thai noodles, Chinese in origin, you need to go to a restaurant. Hainanese chicken rice (Thai version) you also need to go to a restaurant. It's mostly Chinese cuisine that is better at restaurants.