Khanom Buang
ขนมเบื้อง
Khanom Buang are crispy Thai folded crepes — thin, lacy rice flour pancakes filled with sweet or savoury toppings like meringue, shredded coconut, and foi thong (golden egg threads).
Cultural Origin
Khanom Buang is a classical Thai crispy crepe with origins in the Ayutthaya-era royal kitchens, where it was filled with foi thong-style sweet egg threads and meringue. Today it is sold by street vendors in both sweet and savory versions and is considered one of the oldest surviving Thai street snacks.
Allergens & Sensitivities
Key Ingredients
- rice flour
- coconut milk
- meringue
- foi thong
- shredded coconut
Taste profile
- Salty
- fish sauce, soy, shrimp paste
- Sweet
- palm sugar, coconut
- Sour
- lime, tamarind, fermentation
- Umami
- dried shrimp, fermented pastes, stock
This is the sweetest dish on the list by a clear margin, built almost entirely around the contrast between a wafer-thin, brittle shell and a soft, airy meringue topping, with the savoury version replacing that sweetness with dried shrimp and salted coconut rather than splitting the difference.
How Khanom Buang Is Made
- 1
Making the batter
A thin batter of rice flour and coconut milk is prepared loose enough to spread paper-thin, closer to the consistency of a crepe batter than a pancake one.
- 2
Spreading the shell
A ladleful of batter is spread across a hot, flat pan in a circular motion using the back of the ladle, building a shell only slightly thicker at the edges.
- 3
Preparing the toppings separately
Meringue is whipped and coloured, and foi thong or shredded coconut is prepared well ahead of time, since assembly happens quickly once the shell is ready.
- 4
Filling
The topping is spread over half of the still-warm shell the moment it releases cleanly from the pan, while it is still pliable enough to fold.
- 5
Folding and serving
The shell is folded over the filling into a half-moon shape and served immediately, since the crispness the dish is known for lasts only a few minutes.
When It’s Eaten
Bought as a market treat rather than a dessert course after a meal, folded to order and eaten on the spot rather than carried elsewhere.
How to Order It
- ขอขนมเบื้องหนึ่งที่
- kor khanom buang neung thi
- One order of Thai folded crepes, please.
- ไม่หวาน
- mai wan
- Not sweet (the savoury version).
What people get wrong
Buying a bag of them to eat later; the shell's crispness is the entire appeal, and it turns leathery from trapped steam within about ten minutes of being bagged.
Where to Try It
Traditional Thai dessert vendors at markets in Bangkok; the Grand Palace area has several famous stalls.
Tips
- Eat immediately — the crisp shell softens within minutes of being filled.