Why is it rude?

[Temujin]

I took 5 days worth of cooking classes last trip and have been in high demand with my family for my Thai Food.

 

I was explaining to my teenage nephew about the Thai's habit of eating with a spoon their right hand and a fork in their left.

I explained that the Thai's considered it rude to put a fork in your mouth... and he asked Why?

 

I didn't have an answer and I've tried Googling and can't find an answer.

A little help here folks?

I must admit I'm curious as well...

[Mike Asia]

just tradition in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, etc. i guess and the same reason you don't lick the butter off of the knife at Christmas dinner.

 

Traditionally Thai people eat with their hands like in India, you still see it a bit in Issan

Edited March 30, 2011 by Mike Asia

[Temujin]

i guess and the same reason you don't lick the butter off of the knife at Christmas dinner.

 

I do that.

 

 

Traditionally Thai people eat with their hands like in India, you still see it a bit in Issan

 

Rose from DD taught me to eat rice Issan style... use your fingers to make a ball of rice and spoon it into your mouth... but I was curious if some-one could give me an answer.

[devee8]

I have never seen Thais eat with there fingers ie. like Indians

[Edge]

...............................................

I explained that the Thai's considered it rude to put a fork in your mouth... and he asked Why?

............................................

 

 

I'd like to think that it's because they also use the fork to take more food from the main dish, regardless of whether there are serving utensils.

 

If the fork has been in your mouth it really shouldn't be used for raking around selecting the next piece of meat you fancy.

 

People who do it (mostly farang) really piss me off and put me off eating. Maybe that's why they do it.

 

 

 

[Temujin]

I'd like to think that it's because they also use the fork to take more food from the main dish, regardless of whether there are serving utensils.

 

 

From this site... http://importfood.com/thai_meal.html

 

Each dish is shared, and eaten bit-by-bit as it's spooned over rice. In the picture above, the eaters are all in the same family. Serving spoons aren't placed on each food dish, but often a meal between friends will use serving spoons. Each eater reaches over and spoons out whatever he/she wants, sets it on their plate and eats it with rice.

Sorry mate... I spent an hour or two on the net trying to nut this one out.

[Edge]

From this site... http://importfood.com/thai_meal.html

 

Each dish is shared, and eaten bit-by-bit as it's spooned over rice. In the picture above, the eaters are all in the same family. Serving spoons aren't placed on each food dish, but often a meal between friends will use serving spoons. Each eater reaches over and spoons out whatever he/she wants, sets it on their plate and eats it with rice.

Sorry mate... I spent an hour or two on the net trying to nut this one out.

 

 

 

You're probably right, but the way I read -

Each dish is shared, and eaten bit-by-bit as it's spooned over rice. In the picture above, the eaters are all in the same family. Serving spoons aren't placed on each food dish, but often a meal between friends will use serving spoons. Each eater reaches over and spoons out whatever he/she wants, sets it on their plate and eats it with rice.

- it didn't sound as though the same spoon used for serving was also put in their mouths.

Anyway, yes, I know they do it, but I just don't like to see the same utensil that's been in someone's mouth raking around the main dish.

Now, back you go to google, because this is about forks I'm afraid.

[TehVen]

Maybe, Fork is used in the left hand and spoon in right hand. The left hand is considered unclean and not used for eating, hence dont use the fork which is also in your left hand ?

 

 

I also read somewhere it's along the lines of licking your knife in the west, generally just frowned upon in certain "uptight" circles.

[Perthie]

wikipedia's 'etiquette for business travellers' says that in Thailand using your fork to put food in your mouth is the same as using your knife to put food in your mouth in the West. Just a cultural thing I guess, socially taboo, good manners etc.

 

Cheers

 

Perthie

[McFly]

I have never seen Thais eat with there fingers ie. like Indians

I have seen people in the village eat with hands, especially with sticky rice.

[jojomecanic]

I have seen people in the village eat with hands, especially with sticky rice.

 

 

Do they put back their fingers in the main dish ?...

[McFly]

Do they put back their fingers in the main dish ?...

No, just kept grabbing rice with hands only.

[Buddy Edgewood]

Reading around, aparently using a fork to push food onto your spoon is just Thai etiquette, with no special reasoning behind it.

 

I wonder how'd they feel if I were to use a spork?

 

[Bakwan]

Rose from DD taught me to eat rice Issan style...

 

Rose taught me some things, too! (Including some things about eating, if you know what I mean... )

[Anokanite]

I was told during the Viet Nam era that over there the people wipe their arse with the right hand. And eat with their left hand. He also said that if they offer to shake with their right hand, tell them don't hand me that shat. I asked a Thai girl about it, she said most people do, but her family does it the with the other hand, as do some others. maybe having silverware is a fairly new concept to them.

[stillakid]

Rose taught me some things, too! (Including some things about eating, if you know what I mean... )

More than most anyone else, you would know about learning from and teaching Devils Den ladies. Comment meant with the utmost respect, Sir.

 

Stillakid

[Benny10]

This might bring some light into it.

 

A King, a fork and spoon

 

King Chulalongkorn the Great (Rama V) is largely credited with modernising Thailand in the latter half of the nineteenth century; he was educated by the an Englishwoman, courted Western diplomates and leaders and travelled abroad. One morning he ordered his kitchen to cook a multi-course Western meal and invited the British consul over, sat him down and asked him to 'eat as they do in Europe' so that he could observe their table 'skills'. After everything was done, the King decided he had no use for a knife when eating Thai food (for it was all already chopped up), but found the fork and spoon handy and so begun the use of cutlery in Thailand. Nowadays everyone uses the fork to push the food onto the spoon (in your right hand), which then goes in your mouth. The fork, however, never does.

[ExpatDave]

I guess and the same reason you don't lick the butter off of the knife at Christmas dinner.

 

 

 

Huh?

 

[joltme1313]

well to be honest and a little insensitive, a lot of people in issan go out and work on their farms all day and touch all sorts of nasty stuff and then they come home and ball up their sticky rice and hand it off to their family members and themselves and never once think about washing there hands first. even with their cooked meats they grab a piece of meat slap it together with a small rice ball and pop it into their mouths.. ive seen this with my own eyes. i think i lost ten pounds that week... but for the most part i dont think thais give a damn what hand we use our fork or spoon with. as long as we are neat and not rude they could care less.

[Cerberus]

Which is in fact why they seldom get food poisoning, as they have so many anti-bodies shared with them from birth. When eating up country I have never been handed a fork, they only have spoons and their hands and yes sticky rice is always eaten with your hands, try eating it with a fork ;-)

[Bobdabilda]

I can remember my very first Thai meal in Patts a few years back.

 

Thai green curry with 'plenty chili'. Started using my spoon to scoop up the rice and obviously Thai curry uses alot of coconut milk so its more like a soup...spoon was easier I thought.

 

I noticed the waitresses giggling and staring my way... I thought it was because I was using a spoon instead of a fork. Then I noticed TGs nearby using a spoon the same way, so for once I got the foreign etiquette thing right for a change.

 

One of the waitresses came over with something in her hand, turned out to be a cold cloth from the fridge. They were giggling at the amount of sweat pouring from my bald head...heh...heh...

[layow]

Eating with thai can be a free for all, get what you can while you can!

 

Hands, forks, spoons, knives, maybe not feet...lol

 

I ate at least 4 or 5 times a week with groups of thais for over a year,

they did comment on my utensil use.

 

I would explain that my mum would hit me if i ate with a spoon, so

i could not disrespect what my mother spent years indoctrinating me with.

They'd look at me strange and grab the last decent piece of meat, before i could fork it.....;(

[upa1000]

While we're on the subject of etiquette and food maybe someone can answer this for me: Why do Thais think it's really rude to use a toothpick without covering your mouth? Dangling a toothpick from your mouth is also considered quite rude. I've found it one of the most annoying cultural habits here in Thailand to get used to. It's annoying only because I know it's frowned upon, but I always catch myself making the mistake.

[UNREALADDICT]

Often when you see a group of asians eat together they have several dishes they share. The spoon is for eating and the fork takes food from the dishes, so you dont put the spoon that has just been in your mouth back in the

common dishes.

[na-rak86]

While we're on the subject of etiquette and food maybe someone can answer this for me: Why do Thais think it's really rude to use a toothpick without covering your mouth? Dangling a toothpick from your mouth is also considered quite rude. I've found it one of the most annoying cultural habits here in Thailand to get used to. It's annoying only because I know it's frowned upon, but I always catch myself making the mistake.

It does kind of make me wanna throw up when i see someone doing this though, very disrespectful to others, you might as well show everyone your a**hole while your at it