Rice is the staple of all the hill-tribe groups. Each person uses his or her spoon to place a small amounts of topping onto their rice. Beyond this however, the style and substance of cooking, the flavours, and even the way in which food is eaten varies widely.

Both the Karen and Akha tribes generally sit cross-legged on the floor or on mats to eat, while Lahu people eat sitting at a table. All the tribes have a version of narm prik, a spicy chili sauce eaten with rice, vegetable and meat, but the Akha version is the most fiery. Hmong food is usually slightly milder and more closely resembles Chinese.

The majority of hill-tribe people used to be subsistence farmers. They ate only what they were able to grow, find in the forest or catch. Nowadays, many communities farm cash crops and buy produce from the local market. In Northern Thailand vegetables grown in China are now more easily available and are often cheaper than those grown locally. As lifestyles change, the rich cuisine of tribal people continues to evolve, and the recipes available from this site are only a small representation of the immense diversity of tribal food.