Larb Moo Thord

Think of Thai food and the first images that come to mind are fragrant herbs and aromatics — lemongrass, ginger, kaffir lime leaves — tropical fruits, creamy curries, stir-fried noodles and jasmine rice.

While these are all typical Thai ingredients and dishes, visitors to the Land of Smiles might be surprised to find that there’s another common ingredient found in everything from noodle soup and phad grapao to simply grilled on a stick — pork.

In the northern part of the country, pork plays a particularly prominent role with local sausages like naem, a fermented sour sausage, and sai oua, stuffed full of chillies and herbs, eaten both in dishes and on their own. 

While pork may not be quite as prevalent in the rest of Thailand, specifically in the deep south where seafood and beef reign supreme, many Thai dishes show influences of traditional Chinese flavours and cooking techniques which regularly include the succulent meat.

At 5-star hotels across the country, talented chefs are raising the humble ingredient up to new levels and, with the Year of the Pig just around the corner in 2019, what better time to take a peek at some thoroughly indulgent pork dishes. 

To bring out the flavours even more, the dish below highlights a pairing recommendation made by Bart Duykers of Andaman Wine Club from each restaurant’s wine list.   andaman-wine-club.com; [email protected]

x2 Chiang Mai Riverside Resort

Headed by not one but two Michelin-starred chefs, the deconstructed dishes at x2 Chiang Mai Riverside Resort’s refined Oxygen Dining Room never fail to impress. Case in point: 2018 Iron Chef Thailand winner, Executive Chef Alexandre Demard’s inventive Larb Moo Thord. At first glance, you’d never recognise the striking dish as the ordinary minced pork and herb larb, but one bite and the familiar, herbal flavours shine through. Minced pork, shallots, spring onions, fish sauce, chilli, mint and lime juice are hiding in these delicious, deep-fried bites.

Wine companion: I love a sparkling wine with spicy dishes like this, and here is a good opportunity to try a wine from Thailand. The Monsoon Valley sparkling extra dry rosé uses the same production method as Champagne. It starts with the aroma of red berries and leaves a long finish in the palate.

x2resorts.com/resorts/chiang-mai-riverside