Why dishes from China’s Yunnan province can taste so much like Thai food

Why dishes from China's Yunnan province can taste so much like Thai food

At a Yunnan restaurant, you might expect a feast of mushrooms or a warm bowl of chewy noodles. However, some dishes carry the unmistakable, citrusy perfume of lemongrass, lime and galangal, which combine into the very familiar scent of the classic Thai tom yum soup.

Why dishes from China’s Yunnan province can taste so much like Thai food

Spicy, aromatic dishes are hallmarks of both Yunnan and Thailand, whose shared ancestry makes them the equivalent of culinary cousins.