McKraprao and Pineapple Pie - World of Fast Food: McDonald's Thailand

McDonald's Thailand Basil Chicken and Pineapple Pie

The World of Fast Food: McDonald's Thailand

Despite its name, this blog isn't exclusively about street food. Sometimes I write about coffee, interesting restaurants, and even odd novelties such as DIY instant noodles. I love trying new dishes whenever I travel to a new place, and one of my guilty pleasures is visiting American fast food chains like McDonald's or Burger King when I'm in a new country to see how different the menu is.

I'm starting a new series on this blog, which might come out from time to time, called World of Fast Food, in which I feature interesting local twists on fast food as served at popular fast food chains around the world. Today, I am starting right here in my adopted city, with a few dishes ordered for delivery from a McDonald's in Bangkok, Thailand.

See also: Mango Namplawan and Shrimp Ice Cream by Swensen's Ice Cream

McDonald's Thailand

McKraprao Rice (Basil Chicken) from McDonald's Thailand

Kraprao gai, or basil chicken, is one of the most popular Thai street food dishes. Typically, basil chicken is made with ground chicken meat, or sometimes with small chopped pieces of chicken breast or thigh. At McDonald's, they use their breaded and fried chicken tenders as the base! I had never had a fried kraprao before.

The fried chicken added texture and volume to the dish, and made it really filling. I know I probably don't have to describe McDonald's chicken to you, but the chopped pieces of chicken tenders were soft, juicy, and delicious. It was spicy, but not overly so, and the taste and aroma of fresh kraprao, or Thai holy basil leaves, was strong and delightful (I am a huge fan of this dish overall, and probably eat kraprao at least once a week).

They also have a pork kraprao, which I might have to try sometime in the future.

McDonald's chicken tenders cooked with Thai chili and holy basil

I also wanted some dessert. McDonald's pies are well-known, but Thailand has a few unique options. The most famous might be the corn pie (I'll probably order a corn pie sometime soon to write about on this blog), but I was in the mood for something a little sweeter. Instead, I opted for a Thai pineapple pie.

McDonald's used to be famous in the US for their fried apple pies, but in 1992, they stopped frying their pies and began baking them. There's a big debate about if it was worth it - people swear that the fried pies were better. However, here in Thailand, pies are still fried, so if you feel nostalgic for the original fried McDonald's pies, you might have to make a trip to the Big Mango.

Thai pineapple pie from McDonald's, Thailand

Thai pineapple is some of the best in the world, and the pie was stuffed with sweet and slightly sour hot pineapple pie filling that used real pieces of fresh pineapple. I was impressed with how good the pie tasted. It didn't use that artificial pineapple flavoring you might find in psalteries and pies at cheap bakeries, but instead used real pieces of pineapple that tasted fresh.

fried Thai pineapple pie with real pineapple pieces, McDonald's Thailand

Where to get it

Basil chicken and fried pineapple pies can be ordered at any McDonald's in Thailand (which can be found all over the country in nearly every shopping mall or shopping center). You can also order online for home delivery with an app like Grab or LineMan, or through McDonald's own Thailand website, McDelivery.

Price

McKraprao Basil Chicken and Rice - 69 THB (about $2)

Fried Pineapple Pie - 28 THB (about $1)

Ronald McDonald says "Sawatdee Krap"

I hope you enjoyed this post! I plan to write more of these from time to time. I'll likely revisit McDonald's again as well, as it is always one of the most fun fast food restaurants to visit whilst abroad.