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Soup season · Chiang Mai, Thailand
The best bowl in Chiang Mai: Khao soi
Northern Thailand's curry noodle soup: egg noodles in a coconut curry broth with chicken or beef, topped with crisp fried noodles, pickled mustard greens and shallots.
Khao soi is the dish of Chiang Mai and almost nowhere else in Thailand does it as well. One small morning shop is the one people line up for.
Khao Soi Mae Sai
29/1 Ratchaphuek Rd, Chang Phueak, Chiang Mai
Get: Khao soi with chicken drumstick, with lime, shallots and pickled greens to add
ขอข้าวซอยไก่ ค่ะ/ครับA chicken khao soi, please.
A tiny morning shop with a Michelin Bib Gourmand, cooking a deep, slightly sweet curry broth from a recipe the family brought from Mae Sai.
Opens at 8am and closes when it sells out, often early afternoon.
Make it at home
Khao soi gai (Chiang Mai curry noodles)
A quick homemade paste of dried chilies, shallots, garlic, ginger and turmeric makes the broth taste like the north. Fry half the noodles crisp for the top.
You need
- For the paste: 6 dried guajillo or large Thai dried chilies, seeded and soaked 15 minutes in hot water
- 4 shallots, 5 garlic cloves and a 1-inch (2.5 cm) piece each of ginger and fresh turmeric (or 1 tsp ground)
- 2 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp curry powder, 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tsp shrimp paste (optional)
- 2 cans (13.5 oz / 400 ml each) coconut milk, not shaken
- 6 bone-in chicken drumsticks or thighs (about 2 lb / 900 g)
- 2 cups (480 ml) chicken stock
- 2 1/2 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp palm or brown sugar, 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 14 oz (400 g) fresh flat egg noodles
- 2 cups (480 ml) neutral oil, for frying a handful of noodles
- To serve: pickled mustard greens (chopped), sliced shallots, lime wedges, chili oil, cilantro
How to make it
- Make the paste: blend the drained chilies, shallots, garlic, ginger, turmeric, coriander, curry powder, cardamom and shrimp paste with 2 tbsp of soaking water to a smooth paste.
- Spoon the thick cream from the top of one can of coconut milk into a large pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until it bubbles and the oil starts to separate, 5 minutes.
- Add the paste and fry, stirring constantly, 4 to 5 minutes until dark, fragrant and oily.
- Add the chicken and turn to coat in the paste, 2 minutes. Add the rest of the coconut milk, the stock, fish sauce, sugar and soy. Bring to a simmer and cook gently, partly covered, 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is tender at the bone.
- While it simmers, heat the frying oil in a small pot to 350F (175C). Fry one loose handful of the noodles (about 2 oz / 55 g), separated into strands, for 1 minute until golden and crisp. Drain on paper towels and salt lightly.
- Cook the remaining noodles in boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes until just tender, drain and rinse briefly.
- Taste the broth: it should be rich, a little sweet and salty. Adjust with fish sauce or sugar.
- Divide the boiled noodles among deep bowls, add a piece of chicken to each and ladle over plenty of broth. Pile the crispy noodles on top. Serve with pickled greens, shallots, lime and chili oil so everyone seasons their own.
Pans and tools
- Blender or mortar and pestle
- Large heavy pot
- Small pot and thermometer for frying
- Large pot for the noodles
Chef's tips
- Squeeze in lime at the table: it brightens the rich curry dramatically.
- Pickled mustard greens (pak gad dong) come in cans or packs at Asian markets.
- The broth is even better the next day; cook the noodles fresh.
Four more bowls in Chiang Mai
Rice porridge
Smooth rice porridge with pork balls, ginger and a soft egg, eaten for breakfast or late at night.
Jok Somphet · Somphet Market area, Mueang Chiang Mai
Get: Jok moo sai khai (pork with egg)
Jok moo sai khai, khrap/kha.Rice porridge with pork and egg, please.
A local jok shop by Somphet Market that Chiang Mai street food guides list among the city's best stalls.
Early morning and late night.
Make it at home: Thai jok with pork balls
Broken jasmine rice cooks down fastest; whizzing regular rice in a blender for a few seconds works too.
You need
- 1 cup (200 g) broken jasmine rice (or jasmine rice pulsed in a blender)
- 8 cups (1.9 l) chicken or pork stock
- 1/2 lb (225 g) ground pork mixed with 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp white pepper and 1 minced garlic clove
- 4 eggs
- 1 in (2.5 cm) ginger, in fine matchsticks
- Fish sauce and white pepper
- Green onion, cilantro, fried garlic, a few drops of soy or Maggi
How to make it
- Rinse the rice and simmer it in the stock 40 minutes, stirring often, until it breaks down into a smooth porridge.
- Roll the pork into small balls and drop them in; simmer 5 minutes.
- Season with fish sauce and white pepper.
- Ladle into bowls and crack an egg into each; the hot jok will half-cook it. Stir it in.
- Top with ginger, green onion, cilantro and fried garlic.
Chef's tips
- Add a splash of water if it's too thick; it should pour.
Northern pork rib and tomato noodle curry
Fermented rice noodles in a tangy tomato and pork rib broth with blood cubes and dried kapok flowers.
Kanomjeen Sanpakoi · Thongkham Market, Wat Ket, Mueang Chiang Mai
Get: Nam ngiao with pork ribs, and the help-yourself greens
Khanom jeen nam ngiao, khrap/kha.Rice noodles with nam ngiao, please.
A morning counter in a local market, cheap and packed with a weekday crowd of locals; guides name it first for nam ngiao.
Mornings only.
Make it at home: Khanom jeen nam ngiao
Northern Thailand's tomato and pork rib noodle soup. Dried kapok flowers and fermented soybean are traditional; leave them out if you can't find them.
You need
- For the paste: 8 dried chiles (soaked), 5 shallots, 6 garlic cloves, 1 tbsp shrimp paste, 1 tbsp thua nao (fermented soybean) or miso, 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1/2 lb (225 g) ground pork
- 1 1/2 lb (680 g) pork ribs, cut short
- 2 quarts (1.9 l) water
- 1 lb (450 g) cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 tbsp dried kapok flowers (dok ngiao), soaked, optional
- 2 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tsp sugar
- 1 lb (450 g) khanom jeen (fresh rice vermicelli) or thin rice noodles
- Bean sprouts, pickled mustard greens, lime, cilantro, crispy fried chiles
How to make it
- Pound or blend the paste ingredients smooth.
- Simmer the ribs in the water 1 hour, skimming.
- Fry the paste in the oil 3 minutes, add the ground pork and cook until it loses its color.
- Add the pork mixture, tomatoes and kapok flowers to the ribs and simmer 20 minutes. Season with fish sauce and sugar.
- Put noodles in bowls, ladle over the broth with ribs, and serve with the greens, lime and chiles.
Chef's tips
- Pork blood cubes are the market way; add them with the tomatoes.
Northern vegetable curry soup
A brothy, herbal northern curry with no coconut milk, full of forest greens, eggplant and chicken.
Huen Phen · 112 Ratchamankha Rd, Phra Sing, Mueang Chiang Mai 50200
Get: Gaeng khae, khao soi and the northern sausage (sai ua)
Gaeng khae, khrap/kha.Gaeng khae, please.
An Old City restaurant cooking northern Thai food since the 1970s, a Michelin Bib Gourmand pick.
Make it at home: Gaeng khae with chicken
A jungle-style curry: lots of vegetables, a light broth, and the peppery cha plu leaf. Use whatever greens your market has.
You need
- For the paste: 6 dried chiles (soaked), 4 shallots, 4 garlic cloves, 2 stalks lemongrass, 1 tbsp galangal, 1 tsp shrimp paste, 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 lb (450 g) chicken thighs, in pieces
- 4 cups (950 ml) water
- 2 cups mixed vegetables: Thai eggplant, long beans, pumpkin, baby corn, mushrooms
- 2 handfuls greens: cha plu (wild betel), acacia (cha om), ivy gourd, or spinach and basil
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- Rice, to serve
How to make it
- Pound or blend the paste ingredients.
- Fry the paste in the oil 2 minutes, add the chicken and stir until coated.
- Add the water and pumpkin and simmer 10 minutes.
- Add the eggplant, beans, corn and mushrooms and simmer 6 minutes.
- Add the greens, cook 2 minutes, season with fish sauce and serve with rice.
Chef's tips
- It should be thin and brothy, not thick like a coconut curry.
Boat noodles
Small bowls of dark, spiced pork or beef noodle soup, eaten several at a time.
The boat noodle shops around Chiang Mai's moat
Get: Three small bowls, one of each meat
Kuay teow reua, sam cham.Boat noodles, three bowls.
Bangkok's small-bowl noodle soup has spread across the north; look for the shops with stacks of empty bowls.
Lunch.
Make it at home: Boat noodles
A rich, spiced, slightly sweet broth. Pig's blood is traditional; it can be left out (the broth is thinner without it).
You need
- 2 lb (900 g) beef bones or pork bones
- 1 lb (450 g) beef brisket or pork shoulder
- 3 quarts (2.8 l) water
- 3 star anise, 1 cinnamon stick, 4 cloves, 1 tsp coriander seeds, 2 pandan leaves, 3 slices galangal
- 3 tbsp dark soy sauce, 3 tbsp light soy sauce, 2 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp palm sugar, 1 tbsp fermented bean curd (red) with its liquid
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) pig's or beef blood, optional
- 1 lb (450 g) thin rice noodles
- Morning glory or bean sprouts, Thai basil, fried garlic, pork cracklings, chile vinegar
How to make it
- Simmer the bones and meat with the spices, pandan and galangal in the water 1 1/2 hours. Slice the meat and strain the broth.
- Season with both soy sauces, fish sauce, palm sugar and the mashed bean curd.
- If using blood, whisk a ladle of hot (not boiling) broth into it, then stir back into the pot; keep below a boil.
- Blanch the noodles and greens in small portions and put into small bowls with slices of meat.
- Ladle over the broth and top with basil, fried garlic, cracklings and chile vinegar.
Chef's tips
- Serve in small bowls; it's meant to be eaten fast and often.
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No. 1 checked October 28, 2026; the other four picked the same day from local guides and menus. Places change; if one has, tell us at hello@chefamazing.com.
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