52 minutes ago, fredwiggy said:

It's Pad Krapow. You can use chicken, beef, or pork, minced or in pieces. My girlfriend cooks it a variety of ways, as do I, and the restaurant right next to where she lives makes it, and it looks exactly like the picture.

Where's the chili? shouldn't there be little red pieces in it? slices of garlic?

 

Some folks omit the onion / shallot .. Im not a lover of adding onions, but don't you have it with sliced long bean? Perhaps its a regional thing, coming from the Deep South, it's not Krakow if it doesn't have long beans.

 

 

2 minutes ago, recom273 said:

Where's the chili? shouldn't there be little red pieces in it? slices of garlic?

 

Some folks omit the onion / shallot .. Im not a lover of adding onions, but don't you have it with sliced long bean? Perhaps its a regional thing, coming from the Deep South, it's not Krakow if it doesn't have long beans.

 

 

It's one of my favorite dishes, and I've had it many ways before i came here and while here. Long beans, onions, chili and no chili, basil and krapow seasonings.

21 hours ago, HighPriority said:

Definitely not.

and it's hard to believe it's so popular !!! 

20 hours ago, Gecko123 said:

I'm almost positive those aren't bai grapao leaves in the picture. Looks more like baby collards, possibly some other green.

Yeah... probably not grapao.  The leaves in the OP's picture could be holopah, but they do look a little too wide.

 

I married my Thai wife in USA and lived there with her for 21 years.  Bai grapao was very hard to find so my wife used regular sweet basil for this dish. It was a pretty reasonable substitute, in fact better than regular Thai basil. As is normal for her, she trimmed off most of the fat from the chicken and or pork she used.  She also cut back on the added sugar.  The basil and chilli's came from our back yard usually just minutes before cooking.

 

Pud grapao is still one of my favorites but I like it made with ½ pork and ½ chicken and with normal Thai level of heat.  Some times with 2cm pieces of long beans added.  

17 minutes ago, miss_evelin said:

Of course! It's like getting a front-row seat to a flavour concert when you try Phat Kaphrao. It's more than simply a dish; it's an epicurean experience that will wow your taste buds. Take a bite and your palate may give you a standing ovation! 🌶

Fairly simple ingredients, easy to make at home. I just tone down the chilli

18 minutes ago, miss_evelin said:

Of course! It's like getting a front-row seat to a flavour concert when you try Phat Kaphrao. It's more than simply a dish; it's an epicurean experience that will wow your taste buds. Take a bite and your palate may give you a standing ovation! 🌶

A while back now, I do remember making it from scratch using a recipe online, and it turned out fine, using pork and the usual ingredients, including some chili because I like chili infused food.

 

So a couple of weeks ago I was meandering around Big C and decided to buy one of the packets of pad kraphao mix and all the ingredients and have it for dinner that evening.

 

As I said I like spicy food but the spice level in this packet of ingredients, although I only used half of it, was overpowering (chili -wise) so I decided against buying any more like that and if I want it I'll make it from scratch.

On 9/19/2023 at 12:04 PM, jvs said:

I can agree with that,i like the taste if cooked well but in general it is too spicy for me.

In general it is a favorite dish for many Thai people.

My favourite Thai dish too, with the fried egg ("kai dow")  - I generally order it "Pet" (spicy) and let the waiter laugh at me while I sweat over my lunch!  

On 9/19/2023 at 7:15 PM, Gecko123 said:

Flavor comes from fragrance of bai grapow leaves, sautéed with red prik kii nu peppers, garlic, ginger

I know.... an old thread but there are always new members that should learn about grapow.

 

The classic recipe for this dish does not include ginger.  I've eaten it hundreds of times, mostly cooked by my wife of 25 years.  I've also had the dish many dozens of times from others.  I'm pretty sure not once did it include ginger.  I love ginger also... just not in grapow.  Perhaps when an less common protein source is prepared with grapow leaves they add ginger.  I enjoy both pork and chicken... but my favorite is a 50-50 blend of both.

On 9/19/2023 at 5:53 PM, KC1980 said:

Is Phat Kaphrao worth a try? - Let me know in the comments ????

 

Yes, be sure to ask for peat mak

On 9/19/2023 at 6:43 PM, Denim said:

Absolutely. Ask any Thai if any of their deceased relatives ever ate Phat Graprao.

 

The answers will shock you !! Eat it and one day you will die like them.

Well check out the life expectancies between the US and Thai or other countries and you will see that they two sex is about the same but female Thais live about the same as US women but US men die much earlier than Thai males...

 https://www.worldometers.info/life_expectancy/#google_vignette

On 9/19/2023 at 6:43 PM, Denim said:

Absolutely. Ask any Thai if any of their deceased relatives ever ate Phat Graprao.

 

The answers will shock you !! Eat it and one day you will die like them.

Well check out the life expectancies between the US and Thai or other countries and you will see that they two sex is about the same but female Thais live about the same as US women but US men die much earlier than Thai males...

 https://www.worldometers.info/life_expectancy/#google_vignette

It's a very common dish, nothing special, definitely worth trying for someone who spends time in Thailand. 

Don't be a dumba**, of course it's good. My local food stall would serve it with a fried egg on top, red chilies from the scooper nearby mandatory. Tasty.

It shouldn't  cost more (or much more) than 50 baht from a soi vendor so get stuck in and give it a go. Pay the extra for a fried egg.  And tell them not very  spicey.

Fortunately for those of us living in the chosen city Chiang Mai, hence our name "the chosen people", we are able to enjoy pad krapao that is a cut above those common pad krapao the rest of you plebs are forced to buy for 50 Baht.

 

Kra Pao Neua Neua prepares Pad krapao with Wagyu beef and to a level you might find in 5 star restaurants.

 

Undoubtedly the best Pad Krapao in Thailand.

On 9/19/2023 at 6:43 PM, Denim said:

Absolutely. Ask any Thai if any of their deceased relatives ever ate Phat Graprao.

 

The answers will shock you !! Eat it and one day you will die like them.

Phat Kaphrao is a pretty healthy dish, especially if it's chicken or lean beef and not pork, which here tends to be fatty in shops. Oil, onion, meat, spices, fish sauce, beans, msg, holy basil,other vegetables. The reason many die here is eating the raw fish in Somtam and Lao Khao. 

On 7/10/2025 at 6:59 AM, Cameroni said:

Kra Pao Neua Neua prepares Pad krapao with Wagyu beef and to a level you might find in 5 star restaurants.

 

From the context it sounds like Kra Pao Neua Neua is a restaurant in Chiang Mai. Can you provide more details? Searches on Google Maps and Grok came up empty. 

13 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

  On 9/19/2023 at 4:43 AM, Denim said:

Absolutely. Ask any Thai if any of their deceased relatives ever ate Phat Graprao.

 

The answers will shock you !! Eat it and one day you will die like them.

 

It's even worse - one day you are guaranteed to die.

 

The jury is still out whether the immediate cause of death was the serving of Pad Kra Pao consumed a few years earlier, or excessive alcohol consumption. 

54 minutes ago, Equatorial said:

 

From the context it sounds like Kra Pao Neua Neua is a restaurant in Chiang Mai. Can you provide more details? Searches on Google Maps and Grok came up empty. 

 

Of course, it is one of the first 'discoveries' you make in Thailand.

1 hour ago, Briggsy said:

Of course, it is one of the first 'discoveries' you make in Thailand.

Not sure about first discoveries, but it is one menu item, most vendors don't screw up.   Just need to know how to order your spiciness level.   Better vendors won't use ground meat 👍

 

 

The best for me is my wife's version, believe me it all depends on the chef some times can be a oily, spicy I like, but no fried egg, we grow our own Krapao out the back I can always smell, as a tip, Mosquitoes dont like it,

I prefer the version with crispy pork belly, pad krapao moo grop

 

 

 

27 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

I prefer the version with crispy pork belly, pad krapao moo grop

Even better with Mama noodles instead of rice ...

 

48 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Even better with Mama noodles instead of rice ...

 

 

Them be your arteries...

58 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Even better with Mama noodles instead of rice ...

 

You must have superior genes being able to withstand this sort of meal after an episode of whiffing a plastic burn. 

7 minutes ago, novacova said:

You must have superior genes being able to withstand this sort of meal after an episode of whiffing a plastic burn. 

I nor anyone whiffs the plastic burning, as done well after nightfall, along with no neighbors within nose range.

 

Try to get some some sleep ... 

 

43 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

 

Them be your arteries...

Arteries & veins (BP) are just fine thank you.   Don't eat crispy pork for breakie everyday.   Actually the Mama noodles are probably worse for me, and eat them very sparingly.  Only at the one local restaurant, and haven't in a long time.

 

 

I mostly do my Crispy Pork Belly at home, meatier, although, haven't don that in a while either, as Makro stopped selling locally with the skin on.

 

 

On 9/20/2023 at 2:04 PM, fredwiggy said:

It always deadens the tastes of food if you use more than a chili or two. They are so used to adding more here that they lose the true flavors, and subtle tastes of other condiments that are added. Too much chili will also hurt your stomach, as it has for not only me, but many here I've talked to, including my ex's family and now girlfriend. She can't stop adding it, even though it hurts her insides, and diarrhea is rampant here, from all the chili added. This is but one of many links that tells more.........https://www.eatthis.com/news-ugly-dangers-spicy-foods/

 

Chilis have a lot more flavors than just hot. I like to use de-seeded chilis. Not so it won’t be hot, but because I want to use more chilis for the other flavors as well. 

 

The idea that hot food will hurt you is a myth. You can find a website that will agree with pretty much anything you can think of. 

 

Pad krapao without chilis is not padgrapao. I do think you could use finely diced and crushed sweet red or yellow bell pepper, (capsicum). What Thai people called “giant” (yahg) peppers. I think that would never occur to a Thai chef though to make it that way for a foreigner, because they seem to have decided that foreigners don’t just want not spicy food, they want BLAND food, which is why they make it for you like that. It’s a shame that it forces one to conclude that Thai food is bland apart from chilis. It’s a rich cuisine, in fact, with many chefs who refuse to make it properly for foreigners because of request or reputation. 

1 hour ago, Everyman said:

 

Chilis have a lot more flavors than just hot. I like to use de-seeded chilis. Not so it won’t be hot, but because I want to use more chilis for the other flavors as well. 

 

The idea that hot food will hurt you is a myth. You can find a website that will agree with pretty much anything you can think of. 

 

Pad krapao without chilis is not padgrapao. I do think you could use finely diced and crushed sweet red or yellow bell pepper, (capsicum). What Thai people called “giant” (yahg) peppers. I think that would never occur to a Thai chef though to make it that way for a foreigner, because they seem to have decided that foreigners don’t just want not spicy food, they want BLAND food, which is why they make it for you like that. It’s a shame that it forces one to conclude that Thai food is bland apart from chilis. It’s a rich cuisine, in fact, with many chefs who refuse to make it properly for foreigners because of request or reputation. 

A little Chili is fine, for me as well, but too much takes the taste away from the food, where all you taste is the hot. A person that eats less chili can more taste the finer nuances of the food itself, as all food in my life hasn't been bland. Food can be bland, but there is the taste of the food itself, and also there are so many other herbs and spices you can add that bring out the flavor, and also give it that extra to make it taste better. You can definitely eat too much chili, as it isn't a myth. I have seen people here with many stomach problems that were lessened or stopped by cutting out the chili. Yes, padgrapao has always been made with chili, but that is only because one person started it, and others joined in, liking that heat. The problem is that some don't know when to stop, which makes it just hot and not a little spicy. I love Thai food, and my girlfriend makes it very well, and much of it doesn't involve chili, or at least only a little. ...............https://health.clevelandclinic.org/health-risks-of-spicy-food