Sok Lek (ซกเล็ก) – Raw Beef and Blood in Isaan at Lab Som Phit (ร้านลาบสมพิศ)

Lab Som Phit (ร้านลาบสมพิศ) is a well know restaurant in Korat (โคราช Khorat), known especially for its sok lek (ซกเล็ก), a Thai dish of raw beef and blood. Read more here: http://migrationology.com/2014/10/sok-lek-raw-meat-korat-thailand/

Nakhon Ratchasima (นครราชสีมา), better known by its shorter name of Korat (โคราช Khorat), is one of the main cities in the Isaan region of Thailand – the northeastern part of the country. The city is about a five hour drive from Bangkok, and on my way to visit a friend who is working in Isaan, my wife and I decided to stop for a few days to eat and hang out. One of the restaurants that we ate at was this place, known as Lab Som Phit (ร้านลาบสมพิศ). I immediately loved the look of the restaurant from the outside appearance, old and rustic, classic Thai style, and full of happy eaters, munching down on delicious and authentic Thai Isaan food.

We ordered a spread of different dishes, including the main event, sok lek (ซกเล็ก), which is a Thai dish of slices of raw beef combined with raw blood, and spices. The plate was honestly a little intimidating as it also included big slices of tripe mixed in a as well. I decided to go in for the sok lek (ซกเล็ก), and took a bite with beef, blood, and some herbs in there as well. Despite it looking a little on the bloody side, it was extremely good, so juicy and so flavorful. The dish actually didn’t have a real strong blood irony flavor like you might expect it too, but it rather was well spices, seasoned with herbs and chilies and toasted crushed sticky rice powder for that larb style crunch. If only sok lek (ซกเล็ก) was not potentially hazardous to eat, I would definitely be eating it very frequently as the meat is so good, and it goes so well with sticky rice as well.

Another dish we ordered was kaw moo jeem (คอหมูจิ้ม), which is the Isaan version of kaw moo yang, or grilled pork neck. The dish included thin fat marbled pieces of pork neck, marinated in a brew of soy sauce, garlic, and sugar, and grilled over hot coals. The pork was extremely tender and the flavor was incredibly good, especially when dipped into the chili dipping sauce. I have to say that it may have been some of the best grilled pork neck I’ve ever had in Thailand so far. The meat was nearly perfect.

Mam (หม่ำ) is a type of Thai sausage that’s popular in the Isaan region of Thailand, and really, it’s very hard to even find in other parts of Thailand, even oddly in Bangkok. The sausage is quite lean, mixed with a bit of liver to give it a dark color, and then grilled. At Lab Som Phit (ร้านลาบสมพิศ) they then sliced it into bite sized pieces and garnished it with a handful of slices green onions and cilantro. The sausage was amazing, and though I’ve had it numerous times since this video, this was actually my first time to try it. What I really love about eating Thai mam (หม่ำ) is that the meat is very lean. It has almost the flavor of a hamburger or a Middle Eastern style lamb kebab, just a little more dry and less fat mixed into the meat.

To round out our delicious Isaan food feast at Lab Som Phit (ร้านลาบสมพิศ) in Korat (โคราช), we also ordered a plate of tom moo (ต้มหมู), a soup of boiled pork and herbs, and also a plate of som tam Lao (ส้มตำลาว), green papaya salad prepared with fermented fish sauce.

All the dishes at Lab Som Phit (ร้านลาบสมพิศ) were insanely good, and I would have to say it’s one of the best restaurants I ate at while I was in Nakhon Ratchasima (นครราชสีมา). If I’m ever back again, this will likely be the first restaurant I stop at.

Get more details about eating at this restaurant here: http://migrationology.com/2014/10/sok-lek-raw-meat-korat-thailand/ (and if you don’t want to, you don’t have to order the sok lek (ซกเล็ก) here, they also have plenty of other dishes as well)
Open hours: 7 am – 8 pm daily
Prices: Our total meal cost about 300 THB ($9.25)
ร้านลาบสมพิศ
ที่อยู่ ทางหลวงแผ่นดินหมายเลข 226 หัวทะเล , เมืองนครราชสีมา , นครราชสีมา 30000
โทร. 044-245-026
เปิดบริการทุกวัน 7.00-20.00 น.

Music in this video is courtesy of: http://www.audionetwork.com/

Produced by Mark Wiens and Ying Wiens: http://migrationology.com/blog & http://www.eatingthaifood.com/blog/
Check out our Thai Food Guide: http://www.eatingthaifood.com/eating-thai-food-guide/
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