Kalaya's Southern Thai Kitchen: A Cookbook
Bring the bold, spicy, beautiful world of Southern Thai cooking to your kitchen through recipes and stories from the James Beard Award–winning chef of Kalaya, as featured on Netflix’s Chef’s Table.
“Nok’s Thai cuisine embodies everything she’s gone through and everything she’s worked for, which means that her dishes are vibrant, personal, and full of flavor. . . . It’s clear everything she does is from the heart, and that certainly includes her cooking.”—Mike Solomonov, on Nok Suntaranon for the TIME 100 Most Influential People of 2025
Growing up in the tropical region of Southern Thailand, Nok Suntaranon helped her mother pound the fresh curry pastes she would sell at their local market. But decades later, after making a life in the…
Nok Suntaranon is the chef and owner of Kalaya, a celebrated Thai restaurant in Philadelphia. A former flight attendant, Nok reinvented herself at age fifty to become a James Beard Award–winning chef. Kalaya was named by Esquire magazine as its Best New Restaurant and has topped lists from The Philadelphia Inquirer and Eater Philly.
Kalaya's Southern Thai Kitchen: A Cookbook
Nok Suntaranon with Natalie JesionkaNatalie Jesionka is a journalist who writes about food, community, and social impact. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, Toronto Star, National Post, Canadian Press, and Forbes. She served as a Fulbright scholar in Northern Thailand and is a Paul and Daisy Soros fellow for New Americans.