Galangal in Thai

“Galangal” in Thai is ข่าkàa.

ข่า kàa

galangal noun

kàa low

Low: flat and lower than your normal voice, dropping a little at the end.

How to use it

A pale, hard root related to ginger, with a citrusy, piney taste. It's sliced into tom yum and into tom kha, which is named after it, and pounded into curry pastes. You don't eat the slices.

Mind the tone: ข่าkàa is low. With a rising tone, ขาkǎa is a leg, and with a falling tone, ค่าkâa is a fee.

Don't mix it up

ขาkǎa

leg

Rising tone: a leg.
ค่าkâa

fee, cost

Falling tone: a fee or a bill.

Other spellings you'll see

There's no single official way to write Thai in English letters. We mark the tone of every syllable; online you'll also find:

kha
ka
khaa

More food and drink in Thai

All food and drink

ข้าว kâao Rice
ข้าวเหนียว kâao-nǐaw Sticky rice
ข้าวเหนียวมะม่วง kâao-nǐaw má-mûang Mango sticky rice
ส้มตำ sôm-dtam Papaya salad
papaya salad, som tam
ก๋วยเตี๋ยว gǔay-dtǐaw Noodles
noodle soup
ข้าวซอย kâao-sawy Khao soi
khao soi (Chiang Mai's curry noodle soup)

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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones