Having lunch at Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด), in Korat, Isan, Thailand

Kanom jeen (ขนมจีน) is a type of soft rice noodles that is popular throughout Thailand, from Isan to the south of the county.

It can be eaten along with salads (like som tam), but my favorite way, and probably the most typical way, to eat kanom jeen is topped with curry and vegetables.

Korat (โคราช) town, in the Isan province of Thailand is more well known for fiery som tam and grilled meat than kanom jeen and curry, so when I heard about Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด), I decided we needed to check it out.

The restaurant looks like it has just kept expanding and growing bigger

Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด)

Located on the outskirts of Korat town, the restaurant looked like it kept growing and expanding to the point where, now it looks like an entire yard and patio, all covered with a roof, and filled with tons of tables – the restaurant is huge!

We got there pretty early for lunch, probably a bit before 11 am, and already, there were a few occupied tables… and as we ate, more and more people came.

It looked like there was a mixture of both local Korat residents and Bangkok visitors.

Alright, let’s get into the food…

Kanom jeen nam ya kati (ขนมจีน น้ำยากะทิ)

Kanom jeen nam ya kati (ขนมจีน น้ำยากะทิ)

My wife is from the south of Thailand, which is famous for its version of kanom jeen nam ya kati (ขนมจีน น้ำยากะทิ), so I was interested to try the Isan style (or the Korat version).

Though much different from the southern style, the kanom jeen nam ya kati (ขนมจีน น้ำยากะทิ) here was excellent.

I could really taste the fingerroot

The recipe included coconut milk, but it still tasted light, and not too rich or creamy.

What I really loved about the kanom jeen nam ya kati (ขนมจีน น้ำยากะทิ) at Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด) was a pungent flavor of fingerroot, which I could really taste as probably the main spice in the curry.

Eating kanom jeen curry in Thailand

One of my favorite reasons for eating kanom jeen curry in Thailand, is that it’s always served with a big selection of fresh vegetables on the side.

You can either top your bowl with a bunch of fresh herbs and vegetables, or you can take bites of curry and then grab some vegetables to garnish.

At Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด) they had a whole veggie platter to eat.

One of my favorite reasons to eat kanom jeen, is for the vegetables

They had steamed morning glory, slices of raw cabbage, banana flower… but my personal favorite herb to eat with kanom jeen noodles is bai mengrak (lemon basil).

The lemony fresh fragrance of the herb, paired with the creamy coconut milk based curry, was marvelous.

Kanom jeen gaeng gai (ขนมจีน แกงไก่) – chicken curry noodles

Kanom jeen gaeng gai (ขนมจีน แกงไก่)

Along with the kanom jeen nam ya kati (ขนมจีน น้ำยากะทิ), I also got a plate of kanom jeen gaeng gai (ขนมจีน แกงไก่), which just means the kanom jeen noodles with chicken curry.

It tasted to me basically like a Thai green curry, only without the green color, and more of a light orange color.

Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด)

The flavor of the curry was quite mild, but it was definitely comforting and soothing.

Overall, I preferred the more strong and balanced flavor of the nam ya curry. But both were quite good, and I can see how this restaurant in Korat is so popular.

Gai tod (ไก่ทอด) – fried chicken

Gai tod (ไก่ทอด)

In addition to plates of kanom jeen, you won’t find anyone eating at Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด) without at least one order of gai tod (ไก่ทอด), which in this case were fried chicken wings.

What I most liked about them, was that they were served extremely fresh, right out of the oil and piping hot – the type of chicken wings that are served so fresh, you have to wait a few minutes before eating them or the hot oil will burn your mouth.

Anyway, I have to admit, they did taste pretty good with the kanom jeen and curry.

Pla pao (ปลาเผา) – a delicious grilled fish

Pla pao (ปลาเผา)

I’m a bit of a protein connoisseur, I like my protein.

So I couldn’t resist ordering their pla pao (ปลาเผา), Thai style roasted fish (you can check out my recipe for this dish here).

Isan does grilled freshwater fish very well, and this pla pao (ปลาเผา) at Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด) was as fantastic as normal.

Beautiful moist and fleshy fish

The meat of the fish was juicy and fleshy, and it was fantastic with the provided basket of vegetables, and I even mixed some of the fish into the kanom jeen curry, which was wonderful.

If you’re in need of some extra protein with your kanom jeen noodles and curry, don’t miss the pla pao (ปลาเผา).

Our total bill came to 365 THB

Total price

Our total bill came to 365 THB ($11.24), reasonable with the whole fish and the other dishes we ordered.

Here’s the outside of Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด)

Watch the video of our kanom jeen meal:

(Or you can watch it here: http://youtu.be/2ntrnAJs9Go)

Conclusion

Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด) is a pretty decent restaurant in Korat, known especially for serving kanom jeen (ขนมจีน), fresh rice noodle vermicelli with curry.

I especially loved their kanom jeen nam ya kati (ขนมจีน น้ำยากะทิ), a spice filled curry, their version including a wonderful taste of fingerroot.

Their gai tod (ไก่ทอด fried chicken) and pla pao (ปลาเผา roasted fish) were also done well, and complemented the curries nicely.

They do good business, and it’s always busy with a mixture of both local Korat residents, and I think Bangkok visitors, but I guess they are so popular because the food does hold up.

Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด)

Address: 200 moo 9, Moo Ban Kokpai 2, Thanon Siriratchathani Dambon Mun Wai, Amphoe Muang, Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat)
Open hours: 8:30 am – 3 pm (so it’s best as a breakfast / lunch restaurant)
Prices: Our total bill came to 365 THB ($11.24)

ที่อยู่ 200 หมู่ 9 หมู่บ้านโคกไผ่ 2 ถนน.สิริราชธานี ตำบลหมื่นไวย อำเภอเมือง นครราชสีมา
เปิดบริการทุกวัน 8.30 – 15.00 น.

How to get there:

Scroll on the left hand side of the map, and click on Kanom Jeen Kru Yawd (ขนมจีนครูยอด) to see the map position.