Kalaya's Southern Thai Kitchen

Bring the bold, spicy, beautiful world of Southern Thai cooking to your kitchen through recipes and stories from the James Beard Award–winning chef of Kalaya, in Philadelphia.

Growing up in the tropical region of Southern Thailand, Nok Suntaranon helped her mother pound the fresh curry pastes she would sell at their local market. But decades later, after making a life in the United States, she returned home and saw that the food had become watered-down—sweeter and more geared toward a tourist’s palate. Her life mission became clear: to preserve the flavors of Southern Thai food as she remembers them and to show American home cooks how delicious, intricately flavored, and doable Thai cooking is.

This is the cuisine of her homeland, both balanced and fiery, rustic or refined. From peppery fish sauce-garlic Hat Yai fried chicken to an extra-fresh, extra-herbal green curry to a celebratory turmeric sticky rice with savory coconut shrimp topping, this is Thai food as you’ve probably never seen it.

With easy-to-follow instructions, beginner-friendly tips, suggested recipe pairings, and stunning on-location photography, Kalaya’s Southern Thai Kitchen allows all cooks to bring a piece of Thailand into their kitchens.

Nok Suntaranon is the chef and owner of Kalaya, a celebrated Thai restaurant in Philadelphia. A former flight attendant, Nok reinvented herself at age fifty to become a James Beard Award–winning chef. Kalaya was named by Esquire magazine as its Best New Restaurant and has topped lists from The Philadelphia Inquirer and Eater Philly.

Natalie Jesionka is a journalist who writes about food, community, and social impact. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, Toronto Star, National Post, Canadian Press, and Forbes. She served as a Fulbright scholar in Northern Thailand and is a Paul and Daisy Soros fellow for New Americans.