Food and drinkPla ra in Thai
Pla ra, ปลาร้าbplaa-ráa, is the fermented fish at the heart of Isan cooking.
pla ra (fermented fish) noun
- bplaa mid
- ráa high
- High: start high and go a little higher, a bit tense; don’t let it fall.
How to use it
Freshwater fish fermented for months with salt and rice bran into a pungent, salty, deeply savoury sauce. It seasons Isan food from chilli dips to curries, and its most famous use is ส้มตำปลาร้าsôm-dtam bplaa-ráa, the funky Isan papaya salad. In Isan and Laos it's called ปลาแดกbplaa-dàek.
Love it or hate it, the smell is part of the experience. Order ส้มตำไทยsôm-dtam tai if you'd rather skip it.
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:
- pla ra
- plara
- pla raa
- pa daek
- padaek
More food and drink in Thai
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- ข้าวเหนียว kâao-nǐaw Sticky rice
- ข้าวเหนียวมะม่วง kâao-nǐaw má-mûang Mango sticky rice
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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones