The juice released from the clams when combined with the smoky Nam Prik Pao becomes a delicious sauce that's greater than its individual components. With fresh Thai basil perfuming the whole thing, it's no wonder this dish is one of the most popular dishes at made-to-order food stalls. More

I'm convinced that Tom Yam should be one of the first, if not the first, recipes you start with when learning to cook Thai. In addition to being ridiculously easy to make, it's a dish that captures the essence of Thai flavors. More

Though it initially looks bland and white, Tom Kha Gai is a lively Thai soup featuring heaps of chiles, lemongrass, lime leaves, and a fragrant root called galangal. Some ingredients can be hard to track down, but everything else about the recipe is easy. More

Instead of layering on hard to find ingredients, this recipe is all about the basics. In fact, besides the sweet soy sauce, all of the ingredients can be found easily at most grocery stores. The only tricky part is the cooking process. More

You hear people say it all the time: I never knew I could love something as much as I love this. That's how I felt; it was love at first bite. Instead of adding heat to the dish by merely shaking hot red pepper flakes over the stir-fry like most places do, the folks at Dok Bua toss the fresh chow foon noodles with a chili paste that fuses roasted sweetness with heat that builds and burns steadily as you eat. More

Sweet beverage drinkers can be divided into two camps: those like bubble tea and those who don't. Fans relish a sweet slurp mixed with mildly flavored chewy orbs; detractors regard the innocent pearls as nuclear caviar that should never cross human lips. If you're in the second camp, maybe we can still be friends, but I've got nothing for you this week. If, on the other hand, you like your beverages on the chewy side, basil seed is just for you. More

Presumably, Irin and Sausuk Doangpratheep paper the walls of their restaurant S&I To Go with photos of various menu items to help less Thai food-savvy diners identify what they want to order, but I'm starting to think it's more a ploy to lure willpower-less customers like me into ordering more food. My most recent discovery: Crispy Duck Basil. More

Pok Pok opened in Portland, Oregon, in 2005 as a side-of-the-road shack selling a few Thai street food-inspired items, but it didn't stay a secret for very long. In just a year, chef Andy Ricker's to-go window and rotisserie with just a few outdoor benches transformed into a full restaurant in his adjacent home on Division Street. And this was before anyone had ever tasted the Vietnamese fish sauce wings, now a cultish dish. More

Note: It's time for another edition of Street Food Profiles. This week we scoot to Portland, Oregon, a sidewalk cuisine mecca where this one-item menu finds inspiration from Bangkok vendors. [Photographs: Nong's Khao Man Gai] Name: Nong's Khao Man Gai (pronounced cow-mon-guy) Vendor: Narumol "Nong" Poonsukwattana Location and hours? SW 10th Avenue and Alder Street (map) across the street from Jake's Grill in Portland, Oregon. What do you sell? Khao Man Gai ($6), or poached chicken served on jasmine rice with cucumber slices and cilantro. And don't forget that little tub of sauce—it's made with fresh ginger, garlic, sugar, fermented soy beans, and chile, and meant to be poured all over the meal. The Piset (pee-set), or "special" in Thai,... More

If you like Thai food, you've probably had Tom Yum before, the nourishing hot and sour soup with lemongrass that's one of the staples of Thai cuisine. Tigerfish has a simple but great recipe for Tom Yum Fried Rice, a one-dish meal that can serve four or make for delicious leftovers.... More