Thailand's 'kitchen of the world' defrosts slowly in Milan

Thailand’s equivalent is som tam, the ubiquitous spicy salad with an endless array of flavours depending on the ingredients used. The fiery dish is often the first thing that Thais turn to after returning from a trip abroad. No matter how tasty the food overseas, the memories are quickly wiped out by the unique flavours of som tam.

Comparatively, pad thai is more famous among foreigners. Sadly, there is no data to show how much money Thailand is reaping from that fame. In contrast, data from the Italian Association of Confectionery and Pasta Industries shows that Italy earns nearly 2 billion euros (Bt74.5 billion) per annum from the export of over 1 million tonnes of pasta.

Neither pad thai nor som tam found their way into the Thailand Pavilion at the Milan Expo 2015. Perhaps Thai curators thought they didn’t fit the expo’s theme, “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life”. Personally, I think they do. All the ingredients for the two dishes can be found in Thailand, fitting the “slow food” theme, which promotes the use of locally sourced materials that reduce the energy used in transportation.

Are they “too local”, then? Maybe: While it’s true that pad thai can be found on the menu at five-star hotels, som tam is still mainly confined to local eateries catering to Thai tastes. The same goes for nam prik – the myriad delicious dips eaten with fresh vegetables and rice. And though gaeng keow waan (green curry) is famous around the world, Thailand still keeps a lid on its many other flavoursome curries.

Perhaps all that competition is another reason why pad thai and som tam weren’t singled out for attention in the pavilion.

In terms of technology, however, the Thai pavilion is second to none among the 145 national showcases. 

The first of its three rooms employs interesting video-conferencing technology to leave visitors in no doubt as to Thailand’s geographical location.

Entering the second they find themselves inside a big pot, whose sides serve as a 360-degree video screen. The designer must have had a headache deciding which ingredients should go into the pot, which is supposed to demonstrate Thailand’s desire to be a “kitchen of the world”. As it turns out the visitor experiences a menu of video and photos featuring chicken farms and piggeries, plus frozen foodstuffs and international awards won by Thai food products. To my dismay, I didn’t see a pad thai or a som tam among them. And I knew I wouldn’t find them in the third room either, which was dedicated to His Majesty’s royal projects.

The Agriculture Ministry has spent over Bt800 million on the pavilion and expects about 2 million visitors during the six months’ duration of the expo. 

That seems a high number given that the expo organisers’ forecast is 20 million visitors in total.

Olarn Pitak, director-general of the Department of Agricultural Extension, expressed satisfaction at the Thai showcase, declaring it was second to none and would remind visitors every moment of what they could find in Thailand.

“They will love Thailand and gain confidence in our products. It will be a success if it encourages them to buy Thai products. Yet success can’t be judged in terms of figures alone, but also by sustainability.”

Perhaps Olarn’s words help to explain why visitors are led through a store full of frozen Thai food before they leave. Here they can buy a variety of frosty delicacies, as well as instant noodles – the pour-on-hot-water version of an authentic Thai dish that requires much more time to prepare.

Indeed, the pavilion’s concept is good and its design distinctive – shaped as a ngob, or Thai farmer’s hat. The store sums up the story that Thailand is great at producing rice-based staples and transforming them into a ready-to-eat format. That may be the reason why we neglected to tell the world that we are the globe’s biggest exporter of several agricultural products – something that small countries like Morocco are keen to do.

With no restaurant, the Thai pavilion is not a place where visitors linger. By contrast, the dazzling restaurants at the South Korean, Japanese and German showcases mean they are always busy. With appetites whetted by a stimulating presentation on kimchi, visitors to the Korean pavilion are eager to taste the real thing. They think nothing of queuing up and paying 15 euros for a bowl of rice and vegetables, 20 euros for grilled beef, one euro for a side of kimchi and another 4 euros for a cup of green tea. Lunch can be had for 15 euros nearby, but why pass over the opportunity for authentic, hot and tasty exotic fare? 

Meanwhile, over at the Thai pavilion, visitors hungry for authentic Siamese flavours can buy a frozen dish, take it home and stuff it in the microwave.