Northeastern Thai and Lao food is generally of the simple, spicy, peasant variety enjoyed by the inhabitants of this relatively poor region. The most famous dishes include somtam ??papaya salad with fish sauce, garlic, chilli peppers, peanuts and puu na field crab added to taste. This is often eaten with kai yang ??grilled chicken, the best of which is said to come from Sisaket, close to the Lao frontier.

Perhaps the most classic of Isaan dishes is larb ??spiced minced meat generally served with salad and a side plate of raw vegetables. Unlike Bangkok and the South, khao niaw, or 'sticky rice' ??a glutinous variant served in small woven bamboo baskets and eaten with the hand ??is the main accompaniment to every meal.