Burmese food is savoury, sour, crunchy and full of fresh herbs. Burma sits between India, China and Thailand and shares ideas with all three, but its food tastes like none of them. This guide explains what Burmese food is through the dishes Aamna cooks at home in Hackney.
Burmese food at a glance
- Burma is also known as Myanmar
- Rice and noodles are at the centre of most meals
- The big flavours are fish sauce, tamarind, lime, turmeric and chilli
- Crunch matters: fried onions, garlic, peanuts, beans and roasted gram flour
- The national dish is mohinga, a fish and lemongrass noodle soup
Where Burmese food comes from
Burma, also called Myanmar, borders India, Bangladesh, China, Laos and Thailand, and its cooking has picked up ideas from its neighbours. You’ll find noodles and soy sauce, spices and flatbreads, and plenty of fish sauce, lime and fresh herbs.
Burma also has a long established community with Indian roots, and that mix shows in home cooking. Aamna is of Burmese-Indian heritage, so her kitchen has mohinga and lahpet alongside fried mutton chops and keema paratha.
What does Burmese food taste like?
Most Burmese dishes balance four things.
- Savoury. Fish sauce, which many Burmese cooks call fish gravy, and fish such as sardines give dishes a deep, salty flavour.
- Sour. Tamarind, lime and lemon cut through the richness.
- Crunchy. Fried onions, fried garlic, peanuts, sesame, fried beans and roasted gram flour go on top of almost everything.
- Warm. Turmeric, paprika and chilli give colour, and chilli oil on the side lets everyone add their own heat.
Toppings matter as much as the dish. Many Burmese meals come with bowls of crispy onions, lime, coriander and chilli oil so everyone can finish their own bowl the way they like it.
Burmese dishes to know
Mohinga
Burma’s national dish: a fish and lemongrass soup thickened with toasted gram flour and rice flour, poured over rice noodles. It’s traditionally eaten for breakfast. Aamna uses tinned sardines and mackerel, which makes her mohinga easy to cook in the UK.
Ohn no khao swe
A coconut chicken noodle soup, thickened with chickpea flour and served with boiled eggs, crispy noodles, onion, lime and chilli oil, so everyone builds their own bowl. Try Aamna’s ohn no khao swe.
Lahpet
Tea leaf salad: pickled tea leaves mixed with fried beans, peanuts and garlic, plus tomato, onion, coriander and lemon. Salty, sour and crunchy, and Aamna’s lahpet is completely vegan.
Thami letto
Htamin let thoke, or rice mixed by hand. Aamna mixes rice and noodles with tamarind, fish sauce, roasted gram flour, peanuts, fried garlic, crispy onions and chilli oil on a big tray for gatherings. Read our guide to what thami letto is or go straight to the recipe. If you’d rather skip making the topping, Aamna bottles hers as Thami Letto, in fish and vegan versions.
Mont di
Burmese beef noodles. Beef marinated with paprika and vinegar is cooked slowly until tender, then tossed through noodles with soy sauce, tamarind, chilli oil, sesame, peanuts and fried onions. See the mont di recipe.
Amè hnat
A Burmese beef curry: marinated beef cooked slowly in a rich gravy until it is meltingly tender, then eaten with rice. Here is Aamna’s amè hnat.
Buu thee kyaw
Crunchy fritters of gourd dipped in a thin, spiced gram flour batter, a popular street snack. Aamna uses marrow, which is easy to find in the UK. Try buu thee kyaw.
Burmese sweets
Coconut and jaggery run through Burmese desserts. Try kaala halwa, a glossy coconut milk and jaggery sweet, silky coconut jelly set with agar agar, or Aamna’s pumpkin semolina cake, a twist on sanwin makin. There is more on all of them in the guide to Burmese desserts.
Indo-Burmese home cooking
Aamna’s Burmese-Indian heritage shows in dishes that sit between the two cuisines: mutton fried chops simmered in spices then fried in egg until crisp, mini keema parathas, and a sweet and spicy pumpkin curry finished with a sizzling tadka.
Burmese food names in English
Burmese menus and recipes use names that are rarely translated. Here are the dishes you’re most likely to meet, what they are in English, and where to find them on this site.
| Burmese name | In English | On this site |
|---|---|---|
| Mohinga | Fish and lemongrass soup with rice noodles, often called the national dish | Mohinga recipe |
| Ohn no khao swe | Coconut chicken noodle soup | Ohn no khao swe recipe |
| Lahpet thoke | Pickled tea leaf salad with fried beans, peanuts and garlic | Lahpet recipe |
| Htamin let thoke (thami letto) | Rice, and often noodles, mixed by hand with tamarind and crunchy toppings | What is thami letto? |
| Mont di | Rice noodles eaten dressed or in a light soup | Beef mont di |
| Amè hnat | Slow-cooked beef curry | Amè hnat recipe |
| Buu thee kyaw | Gourd fritters in a light gram flour batter | Buu thee kyaw recipe |
| Nan gyi thoke | Thick rice noodle salad with chickpea flour and chicken | Burmese noodles guide |
| Shan khauk swe | Shan noodles: rice noodles with chicken, tomato, garlic, chilli and crushed peanuts | Burmese noodles guide |
| Danbauk | Burmese biryani with chicken or mutton, served with mango pickle, mint and green chilli | |
| Samusa thoke | Samosa salad with cabbage, onion, mint, potato curry and lime | Burmese salads guide |
| Htamin jaw | Fried rice with boiled peas, sometimes with meat and eggs | |
| Palata | Burmese paratha, eaten with egg or mutton | Mini keema paratha |
| To hpu (Shan tofu) | Tofu made from chickpea flour, eaten as fritters or in salads | |
| Ngapi | Fermented fish or shrimp paste, at the heart of a traditional meal | |
| Lahpet yay | Strong black tea sweetened with condensed and evaporated milk | |
| Kyauk kyaw | Two-layer agar jelly made with coconut milk | Burmese coconut jelly |
| Shwe yin aye | Agar jelly, tapioca and sago in coconut milk | Burmese desserts guide |
| Sanwin makin | Semolina cake | Pumpkin semolina cake |
A few words help with the rest: htamin means rice, khauk swe means noodles, ohn no means coconut milk, and thoke is a salad mixed by hand.
Where to start
New to Burmese food? Start with these three. Mohinga shows you the flavours, lahpet shows you the crunch, and ohn no khao swe is comfort in a bowl.
Mohinga: Burmese Fish Noodle Soup
Mohinga, Burma's national dish: a fragrant fish and lemongrass soup with rice noodles and crunchy toppings.
Lahpet: Burmese Tea Leaf Salad
Burmese tea leaf salad: pickled tea leaves with roasted peanuts and crunchy beans. Bold, savoury and vegan.
Ohn No Khau Swe
Burmese coconut chicken noodles, topped with crispy rice noodles, fresh garnishes and homemade chilli oil.
Then work through our best Burmese recipes and stock up with the Burmese ingredients guide. When you want something sweet, the Burmese desserts guide covers the classics.
Burmese food FAQs
Is Burmese food spicy?
Some dishes are, but a lot of the heat comes from chilli oil served on the side, so you can add as much or as little as you like.
Is Burmese food the same as Thai food?
No. They share some ingredients, like fish sauce, lime and lemongrass, but Burmese cooking leans on turmeric, gram flour, tamarind and crunchy fried toppings, and it has strong links with Indian cooking.
What is the national dish of Burma?
Mohinga, a fish and lemongrass noodle soup that is traditionally eaten for breakfast.
Where can I buy Burmese ingredients in the UK?
Most are in South Asian grocers and Asian supermarkets, and plenty are in big supermarkets too. Our Burmese ingredients guide covers what to buy.
What do Burmese people eat for breakfast?
Mohinga is the classic. Ohn no khao swe, fried rice and Indian-style breads like palata are popular too, usually with a cup of sweet milk tea.
What does a Burmese meal look like?
Steamed rice sits in the middle, with a few curries, a light soup and side dishes such as fried vegetables, fritters and a dip made with ngapi, fermented fish or shrimp paste.
More guides
What Is Thami Letto? The Burmese Rice Topper Explained
What thami letto is, what's in Aamna's jars, how it tastes, Fish or Vegan, and how to use it on rice and noodles.
Best Burmese Recipes to Try at Home
All of Aamna's Burmese recipes, grouped into noodles, salads, curries, Indo-Burmese favourites and sweets.
Burmese Ingredients Guide: What to Buy in the UK
What to buy for Burmese cooking, what each ingredient does, which of Aamna's recipes use it and where to find it in the UK.
Burmese Desserts: Traditional Sweets and Recipes
Burmese sweets explained, from kaala halwa and coconut jelly to sanwin makin, plus the classics from Burma.
Burmese Salads: A Guide to Thoke
Burmese salads explained: what thoke means, how lahpet and thami letto are made, and the salads you will find on stalls in Burma.
Burmese Noodles: Mohinga, Ohn No Khao Swe and More
A guide to Burmese noodles: mohinga, ohn no khao swe, mont di and noodle salads, with tips for cooking them at home in the UK.
Burmese Curry: How It Differs From Indian Curry
What makes a curry Burmese: the onion, garlic and ginger base, the oil that rises to the top, and three of Aamna’s Burmese curries to cook.
Burmese Pickled Tea Leaves: What Lahpet Is
Burmese pickled tea leaves explained: how lahpet is made, how it is served, what it tastes like and where to buy it in the UK.
Khow Suey vs Ohn No Khao Swe
Khow suey and ohn no khao swe compared: how Burma’s coconut chicken noodles became a Memon and Karachi favourite, and how to make them.
