Boat Noodles (guay teow reua)

Thailand is undoubtedly one of the most famous Asian destinations when it comes to the topic of delicious foods. Apart from being considered as the "Land of smiles" by most tourists and Thai citizens, did you know that Thailand was also considered, even though less officially, as the country that never sleeps?

This title is mainly due to the lively nightlife you can enjoy all around the country (but especially in the main cities).But, you know, I think the best advantage of my country is that you definitely can find food to eat at anytime you want to. Moreover, the variety of the foods we eat is just tremendous: think about all kinds of fruits, spices, fishes...that you can eat when you live in Thailand. It's amazing.

Today, I'm going to introduce you to a very famous Thai dish that belongs to the large family of Noodle dishes. We call it:  Guay Teow Rua (known as "Boat Noodles" in English). These Boat Noodles are one of the spiciest Thai noodles that exist. Let me tell you their very brief history. In former days, a large number of Thai people traveled and sold their goods directly on their boat and, as you might guess, those people mostly sold...noodles! That's it, you know the story!

Nowadays, the difference between Guay Teow Rua and other types of noodles lies in the recipe. Guay Teow Rua's uniqueness resides in its soup of black soy sauce, bean curd and spices. Moreover, Thai cooks add what they call some "Num tok", which is a black salty soup made of either cow or pig blood. I hope you don't think it's disgusting. It's actually very tasty. It's worth trying it. By the way, you can order two different meats; either pork or beef, that you can accompany with crackling chips, thyme and even some pepper, sugar ...It's definitely up to your taste.

Nowadays, Boat Noodles restaurants can be relatively easily found everywhere in Thailand but the most famous ones are situated at the Victory Monument (Bangkok), in Rangsit( Pathum Thani province) and  in Ayutthaya province. In Bangkok, The restaurant I'm talking about can hardly be seen but when you know where it is, you won't forget it!

So, today, I went to eat Boat Noodles at the Victory Monument. I ate three bowls of delicious guay teow rua, instead of my five regular ones, because I had planned to eat some more after that. The prices, there, are very affordable: 1 bowl costs 10 baht (about $0.30) but don't count on being full with only a bowl.

For you guys, count on over five bowls to start feeling full. Most people directly order ten bowls in a row... so you can easily imagine the pyramid of bowls that can make, can't you? I personally almost always order between three and five bowls to be assured to be full. The funny thing is that many people (including me) like to compete to know who the best eater is. Five bowls is just enough for me.

How about you? Wouldn't you like to try this kind of Thai food? I assure that you won't be disappointed.