A Thai meal can be as simple as steamed rice accompanying one dish but it will mainly consist of several complementary dishes centered around rice. 

A typical dinner should include three to five different dishes, such as soup (Tom), Salad (Yam), Curry (Gaeng), Stir-Fry (Pat), and a dipping sauce (Nam prik) accompanied with raw and blanched vegetables. 

The main objective is to try to vary the textures and avoid repeating similar flavours. It is also important to serve a variety of meats, such as one chicken dish, one pork, one fish or seafood. Similarly, food presentation should reflect a panoply of colors and garnishes, appealing not only to the gastronomes but also to the eyes.  

All these side dishes are only accompaniments to the rice. Noodles are never served with rice, neither do they ever replace Rice in a main meal. 

Thai people never eat all the different dishes at once. They place the rice in the center of their plate and then take a few spoonful of any of the dishes. 

Thai Desserts are very sweet unlike other Asian countries.  

Thai meal does not mean precise timing from stove to table. Although soups are served hot, and stir-fries are generally cooked to order, many other dishes are commonly served warm or at room temperature. In fact, the flavours of many of theses dishes improve during this slow steeping.

Thai People don't need too much equipment to prepare a meal. A Thai kitchen will generally be equipped with a wok and shovels, a sauce pan, a few large bowls, a mortar, a few knives, a coconut grater and a rice cooker.