TOP 10: Gift Ideas for Thai-Food Lovers

With the holiday season upon us, gift ideas have been dominating my thoughts.  As such, I thought it'd be fun to put together a list of my TOP 10 gift ideas for people who love Thai food. These Thai gifts are sure to please anyone interested in Thai food!

It was somewhat challenging to limit myself to just 10 Thai gifts, as there are so many great possibilities out there. But these are the top 10 items that I feel would be well received by people who are interested in Thai food, but don't cook it all the time. They aren't particularly fancy or expensive. Rather they're meant to be simple Thai gifts that would bring a smile to the face of a Thai food fan.  So, if you're like me and have some Thai food aficionados on your list of gift recipients, read on!

Gift ideas for people who love Thai food:

1. Sticky Rice Steamer

A sticky rice steamer is an essential kitchen tool for the Thai home chef. It is used to make sticky rice that accompanies so many Northeastern Thai (Issan) dishes, as well as grilled meats like Gai Yang and Moo Ping that are eaten throughout the country. This steamer is also used to make sticky rice for everyone's favorite Thai dessert, Mango Sticky Rice. I love that this set includes the cheesecloth for steaming the rice as well as the steamer and basket. You could even add a bag of Thai sticky rice, a can of coconut milk, and a recipe card for Mango Sticky Rice for an all-in-one gift basket.

2. Sticky Rice Serving Basket

How beautiful are these Thai sticky rice serving baskets? In addition to being gorgeous, they serve the important purpose of keeping sticky rice warm on the table while you're eating. There are several different colors and patterns to choose from. You could gift a set of these baskets separately, or one or two in combination with the sticky rice steamer set above.

3. Thai Tea Mix

Everyone loves Thai tea, so this cool-looking canister of Thai tea mix from one of the most popular Thai tea brands is a sure winner. You could include a Tea Sock Filter and Recipe Card so that the recipient has all of the tools they need to make a delicious glass of Thai iced tea. If you'd like to go even further, you could give a set of Thai tea and Thai coffee to your friends who crave caffeine. Or, for your boba-loving friends, you could give a pre-made kit for Thai boba tea.

4. Seeds for Thai Basil, Holy Basil, and Lemon Basil

Thai basil, holy basil, and lemon basil are indispensable in Thai cooking. Thai basil is an essential ingredient in various curries, holy basil is the star of Pad Kra Pao, and dishes like Khanom Jeen Nam Ya and Gang Liang just aren't the same without lemon basil. This set of basil seeds includes these three essential basils for Thai cooking as well as a few others. Instead of a basil-specific set of seeds, you could alternatively put together your own set of seeds for herbs used in Thai cooking including the three basils, bird's eye chilis, lemongrass, and cilantro.  Depending on where your gift recipient lives and what they can grow, you could consider seeds for less commonly found vegetables like Thai eggplant, pea eggplant, and wing beans as well.

5. Makrut (Kaffir) Lime Tree

Makrut lime leaves are another essential ingredient for making many Thai dishes, including various curries, stir fries, and soups such as tom kha and tom yum. They can sometimes be hard to find, so growing your own tree is a great option for an endless supply of these distinctive Thai leaves. The seedling linked here is quite small and easily transportable / giftable; however, it will likely take a while to produce enough leaves for picking. You may be able to find a larger, more mature tree at a local nursery if you don't need to ship it to your intended recipient.

6. Thai Mortar and Pestle

For those who are serious about Thai cooking, a mortar and pestle is a must. This clay mortar with wooden pestle is typically used to make Green Papaya Salad (som tam). A heavier stone mortar and pestle is used to pound the ingredients for the various pastes and marinades used in so many different Thai foods (curry pastes, soup bases, meat marinades, etc).

7. Thai Seasoning Sauces

This set of Thai seasoning sauces includes four of the most commonly used sauces in Thai cuisine - fish sauce, thin soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sweet (dark) soy sauce. With these 4 different sauces, you will be able to make the vast majority of Thai foods that a beginning home cook would like to make. They are available in adorable small sized bottles for someone who's just dipping their toes into Thai cooking, or medium sized bottles for someone who's a bit more invested. You could also consider this set of three Thai dipping sauces including Chicken dipping sauce (Nam Jim Gai), Seafood dipping sauce (Nam Jim Talay), and the Issan Meat Dipping Sauce (Nam Jim Jaew).

8. Traditional Thai Serving Dishes

How gorgeous are these ceramic serving dishes painted in traditional Thai pattern? I have a set at home, and they are perfect for serving small snacks like Thai-spiced cashews. They would also be great for holding accompaniments to meals, such as the pickled mustard greens, shallots, and lime wedges that go with Khao Soi. You could also consider gifting other Thai dinnerware such as Thai Celadon or the exquisite Benjarong Thai porcelain.

9. Thai Food Cookbook

Thai Food by David Thompson is considered to be the most comprehensive and authoritative book written about Thai cuisine. As such I think it would be a welcome gift for any lover of Thai food. It contains many hundred recipes, as well as extremely thorough guides to ingredients, food preparation methods, meal categories, and regional Thai cuisines. You could also consider any number of other Thai cookbooks, such as Pok Pok by Andy Ricker, Simple Thai Food by Leela Punyaratabandhu, or 101 Thai Dishes by Jet Tila.

10. Thai Snack Box

And lastly, how about a box filled with Thai snacks? This Smile Snack box contains some neat, newer Thai snacks that would be fun to sample. Or you could try this Thai snack mystery variety pack with 8 different food products from Thailand. Alternatively, you could pack your own Thai food box with samples of all of your favorite Thai products to share with your Thai food fan gift recipients!

So there you have it: my top 10 gift ideas for Thai food lovers. Did any of these Thai gifts speak to you? What are some of your favorite Thai gifts for the holidays?