Khao soi


Khao soi or khao soy is a dish served in Laos and northern Thailand. The dish is believed to have evolved from Chin Haw Muslim traders who plied the spice route when what is now modern-day northern Thailand was controlled by the Burmese. A comparable dish, ohn no khao swè, is widely served in Myanmar. In Myanmar, it is known as "khao swè", an adaptation of the original name. Traditionally, the dough for the wheat noodles is spread out on a cloth stretched over boiling water. After steaming, the sheet noodles are rolled and cut with scissors.

Versions

There are several common versions of khao soi:• Northern Thai khao soi or khao soi Islam is closer to the present-day Burmese ohn no khao swè, being a soup-like dish made with a mix of deep-fried crispy egg noodles and boiled egg noodles, pickled mustard greens, shallots, lime, ground chillies fried in oil, and meat in a curry-like sauce containing coconut milk. The curry is somewhat similar to that of yellow or massaman curry but of a thinner consistency. It is popular as a street dish eaten by Thai people in northern Thailand, though not as frequently served as in Thai restaurants abroad. The Northern Thai khao soi's predecessor was likely a noodle dish that made its way to the region from Myanmar, via the Chin Haw, a group of Thai Chinese Muslims from Yunnan, who traded along caravan routes through Shan State in Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand from the 18th to early 20th centuries. Due to the dish’s Muslim origins, the noodle soup was originally halal, and therefore commonly served with chicken or beef, not pork. Different variants of khao soi that are made without any coconut milk and with rice noodles instead of egg noodles are mainly eaten in the eastern half of northern Thailand.
  • Lao khao soi is completely different from and has no relation to the better-known Muslim-influenced khao soi, a rich coconut curry and egg rice noodle soup of northern Thailand and Burma. Lao khao soi is a hand-sliced rice noodle soup with clear chicken, beef or pork broth topped with a tomato meat sauce made of minced pork, tomatoes, garlic, and fermented bean paste. The dish is always served with fresh herbs. Lao khao soi noodles are made with steamed rectangular sheets of rice flour batter. The steamed rice flour sheets are then rolled and sliced into wide rice noodle ribbons. The northern Lao provinces of Luang Namtha and Luang Prabang are said to be the birthplace of the Lao khao soi, and some vendors in this region still hand-slice their noodles. Northern Laotians have a special way of preparing this dish; different versions of it can be found at Lao restaurants.
  • Shan khao soi is featured in the cuisine of the Shan people who primarily live in Burma. The dish consists of hand-sliced rice noodles topped with a tomato and meat sauce. This version of khao soi, as well as the version in Chiang Rai Province, can contain pieces of curdled blood.