Developing the Story of Thai Curry as an Icon of the ‘Thai Way of Life’

Abstract

Thai curry is more than just food because it is a profound reflection of the Thai way of life, encompassing warmth, sharing, and creative local wisdom passing down for many generations.

In this article, the researchers conserve and promote Thai curry with the focus on the distribution through the identity of the cultural heritage of Thai food, an important “soft power” of the country. It is world-renowned at a national and international level. Currently, Thai curry is facing a crisis from the speedy mixed cultural streams as well as a changing consumption behavior. Thai curry therefore has changed its original formula to become a modern fusion menu. However, such change may bring both “challenges” and “opportunities” in raising the level of Thai curry to be at an international level through the design of “culinary tourist experiences”, creating a cultural identity together with a sustainable tourism economy.

This article presents the historical background of the Thai curry culture from the past to the present in order to be used as an instrument to promote such culture in an efficient manner. The recommendations from the study are that the focus should be on systematic documentation and research in order to develop a database for the original and contemporary Thai curry recipes together with guidelines for a creative inheritance in the future.