Content provided by Time Out partner
As Thais, we might not feel amazed or excited for what we have eaten every day like rice but through the eyes of so many people around the world, Thai rice has never ceased to amaze them.
Through a project called “Think RICE, Think THAILAND” initiated by the Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce, the ministry has invited bloggers from around the world to have a first-hand experience with Thai rice to understand the entire ecosystem of rice, from the unique farming system and processing to the different uses of rice in everyday products.
Kevin Curry, a founder of Fit Men Cook, had a fun food adventure in Chiangmai as he mentioned “I’m wearing traditional Thai Lue clothing as I farm sticky rice, Kao Kab, one of my favorite types of rice. I only did this for 10 minutes and the heat was brutal. I have a new appreciation for the food I easily take for granted. Chances are if you’ve ever eaten rice, there’s a good chance it came from Thailand.”
Amanda, a famous Chinese food blogger with more than 2.6 million followers on her Amanda的小厨房 platforms, had the best time with Thai rice as she very much enjoyed every rice meal during the trip. She was amazed by the diversity of Thai rice as she suggested “You can’t miss the Thai curry noodle soup and Thai fried noodles. Dinner here is traditional Thai style. There are four kinds of rice – white rice, brown rice, black glutinous rice and glutinous rice. Each is very delicious. Curry is also very fragrant.”
For Xie Xiaoke, founder of Miss Wallflower in the kitchen, a Weibo account with focus on healthy food and lifestyle, she came all the way from China to have an amazing experience of joining rice field work. She said “This time, I experienced a Thai rice harvesting process in Thailand. I think they are good enough to get rice into various products! Not only a variety of staple foods, snacks, skin care products, soaps, but in the development of various possibilities of rice.”
Roger Wu, a blogger from Hong Kong who is familiar with Thailand, also joined the trip and be surprised by the fact that Thai rice, through technology and innovation, can be transformed into so many categories of products. He said “I would like to thank you Ministry of Commerce for the invitation to come here to Thailand again. It is really a big eye opening for me to learn that Thai rice can be made into so many kinds of products!”
Bee Yinn Low of Rasamalaysia, a Malaysian-born US-based food blogger who loved healthy and delicious meal, put it best about her amazing experience Thai rice. She said “I was so lucky to embark on one of the most enjoyable FAM trips of my life to Thailand, for the “Think Rice, Think Thailand” campaign. A group of us were on the trail of learning all about rice and understand the entire ecosystem of rice, from the unique farming system, processing to the different uses of rice in everyday products.” She also added that “I grew up with rice and I eat rice on a daily basis. I have always loved Thai rice, especially Thai Hom Mali rice. After this journey, it reaffirms to me that my choice has always been right. Thailand serves the best quality rice to the world and it was eye-opening to discover new rice-based products from this trip.”
Looking through the amazing experiences that these international bloggers just had, we feel pretty amazing too to have seen Thai rice being acknowledged and celebrated in the international community like this. And to say the least, that makes us feel more appreciated about our Thai rice that we want to encourage everyone to look closer to the diversity and innovative quality of Thai rice even more.
