Baku Kitchen! An independent reference of traditional food

Pla Ra

ปลาร้า

Freshwater fish fermented in salt and rice bran for a year, intensely pungent

Thailand Fermented & pickled One for the adventurous

Your guide, Chef Baku
Drawn, not photographed Updated September 2026
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A full recipe for this dish has not been written yet.

History

The defining seasoning of Isan cooking, made in clay jars after the rice harvest; the version stirred into som tam divides Thai diners sharply.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pla Ra?

Pla Ra is a fermented & pickled from Thailand: freshwater fish fermented in salt and rice bran for a year, intensely pungent. The defining seasoning of Isan cooking, made in clay jars after the rice harvest; the version stirred into som tam divides Thai diners sharply.

Made with

fishrice

Cooked

fermented

Nutrition facts

Nutrition has not been calculated for this dish yet.

The atlas would have to match every ingredient to a food-composition database before it could publish a figure, and an estimate is not worth having if someone is counting on it.

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