The Forgotten History of Pad Thai
When it comes to national dishes, Pad Thai is up there with the world’s most successful. But in a country that offers so much gastronomic variety, how did Pad Thai even become the national dish?
Thailand is famous for its rich diversity of delicious cuisines. As you travel the country, each region offers unique food adventures. In northern Thailand, dishes have been influenced by the neighbouring countries of Myanmar and China. On the other hand, southern Thai cuisine is influenced by those of Malaysia and Indonesia. But it is central Thai cuisine, found in the country’s capital city of Bangkok, that is the most popular.
Pad Thai is the national dish of Thailand, and has quickly established itself amongst international street food favourites. When it comes to national dishes, Pad Thai is up there with the world’s most successful. But in a country that offers so much gastronomic variety, how did Pad Thai even become the national dish?
The answer to this question lies in Thailand’s fascinating political history, and one man in particular, named Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram. More popularly known in Thailand as Field Marshal P. or Phibun, he is the man credited for inventing Pad Thai. While he certainly wasn’t a chef, Phibun was fiercely patriotic.
Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram. A fiercely patriotic man credited for inventing Pad Thai.
When Phibun was born in 1897, Thailand was called the Kingdom of Siam and had been ruled over by a King for centuries (known as an absolute monarchy). Phibun rose from a humble farming background and basic Buddhist Temple education to the Royal Siamese Army. Following World War I, the army liked to send its future leaders to Europe to be educated in military affairs, and Phibun went to France to study Artillery. There, he was part of a group of seven like-minded Siamese students that called themselves The People’s Party. When they returned home they led the Siamese Revolution in 1932, and a successful coup that saw the end of the only remaining absolute monarchy in world. For the first time, Thailand had a constitution that recognised the power of its people.
Phibun eventually became the country’s third and longest serving Prime Minister. As a military dictator inspired by Italy’s Mussolini and Germany’s Hitler, the legacy of Phibun’s premiership is very controversial. However, there’s no doubt that Phibun’s strong sense of nationalism had a profound impact on the country’s future. The Kingdom of Siam had been pretty unique in that it hadn’t been colonised like many of its neighbours. Now that he was in charge, Phibun was determined to build the strongest nation in South East Asia. So he set about implementing a full-on nation-building strategy only a dictator could pull off. This period is known as the Thai Cultural Revolution, and Phibun’s tsunami of changes were all carefully crafted with the aim of creating a strong national identity. The first wave included things like officially changing the name of the country from Siam to Thailand, adopting a tri-coloured flag resembling those of Western countries, and embedding a new national anthem into daily routines. So far, so dictatorial!
Flag of the Kingdom of Siam
Flag of the Kingdom of Thailand
Phibun believed that if they were uniform and civilised, the people of Thailand were the country’s greatest asset. And given his own humble beginnings and strict military background,, why wouldn’t he? While every dictator believes their people should be more like them, here at BANGKOK BOX, we agree with him on this one! In true dictatorial style, the government released a series of twelve Cultural Mandates controlling Thai life. There were detailed rules about what and when to eat, how to dress, how to speak, and how to divide the day’s tasks. The aim was to develop ‘Thai-ness’ and create unity among Thai people. Despite the extreme nature of these government directions, Thai people obliged to the extent that the twelve Cultural Mandates still exist today!
Phibun was determined to build the strongest nation in South East Asia. So he set about implementing a full-on nation-building strategy only a dictator could pull off.
Dried rice noodles would preserve Thailand’s rice stocks and provide food security.
Within this wave of nationalist policies came a stroke of gastronomic genius. While Thailand was suffering from a shortage of rice during World War II, Phibun created a national dish based on rice noodles instead. His vision was for Thai people to express their love for their country through eating this new dish regularly. And what better name for that dish than “Pad Thai”. “Pad” (ผัด) means fried, so wasn’t an uncommon word on menus. And Thai (ไทย) was the new brand for the nation’s population. was that new dish, and was promoted heavily up and down the country through the government campaign “noodle is your lunch”. The recipe was sent to every restaurant in the land, and free carts were given to people interested in selling Pad Thai on the streets.
But the genius didn’t end there. The Cultural Mandates urged people to only consume Thai products, to be proud of their culture and support Thai people in their pursuits. With the advent of Pad Thai, you could achieve all this by lunchtime! The ingredients of Pad Thai celebrated the nation by incorporating only local products. Anyone eating Pad Thai was building a stronger Thailand.
Phibun was eventually overthrown by another military coup and forced into exile. He settled in Japan, where he died peacefully in 1964. Although he made his mark on the country he loved, history books tend not to mention Phibun. This makes the history of Pad Thai a mostly forgotten one. These days, most people assume it’s a centuries-old recipe and don’t realise that it was actually a central part of a dictator’s plan to build a democratic nation.
This incredible story does have a happier ending though… Phibun’s ashes were eventually returned to the Temple of Democracy, which he founded in Bangkok. His dream of Pad Thai for the people has now gone global, and the world has embraced it as a symbol of Thailand, and one of its most popular street food dishes.
Wat Phra Si Mahathat (Temple of Democracy)
วัดพระศรีมหาธาตุวรมหาวิหาร
As two sisters growing up in Thailand, we knew surprisingly little about Phibun until later in life. By then we were already immensely proud of our culture, and this probably had a lot to do with his legacies. For our generation, expressing love for Thailand through food has become a way of life. With technological progress, it’s become a hobby enjoyed by many. And with social progress, it’s become an profession for many more. At BANGKOK BOX, we carefully source our ingredients and make our own sauces so that we can serve you real Pad Thai, just as you would find it on the streets of Bangkok.