It was the first time Thai food had been rated on such a scale - and rated so well at that.

One of the major reasons was the use of fresh herbs and condiments, which have become so important to health-conscious diners. Spiciness also counted.

Some might argue that Japanese cuisine belongs in the top five rather than Thai, since it's much better known globally. During the 1980s Japanese sushi became a worldwide phenomenon, helped along by Japan's economic growth and stable political system and the success of 1968 Olympics.

But Thai food enjoyed a surge of its own, especially since the availability of raw and processed ingredients in supermarkets around the planet have made its preparation easier and cheaper. No longer did anyone wanting to "cook some Thai" have to ask friends to bring back ingredients from Thailand.

International chains liked Tesco, Carrefour and Makro now carry extensive lists of Thai food products and ingredients, helping to popularise the cuisine by making it accessible in major cities everywhere.

An additional boost came from the proliferation of Thai cooking schools in and outside the Kingdom. It was only a few years ago that there were but a handful in Thailand, most notably the Dusit Thani's school and Suan Dusit College's Cooking Institute. These two places alone have produced more than 1,000 Thai chefs to date.

Since 2003, smaller but costlier cooking schools such as Blue Elephant and the Oriental Hotel have devised easily-to-follow one- and two-day courses for tourists. They learn to make popular dishes like tom yum and curries, and usually visit wet markets for hands-on lessons in choosing the right ingredients.

Since the publication of his hefty cookbook "Thai Food", celebrated Australian chef David Thompson has become the chief spokesperson for Thai cuisine overseas. In 2004 his restaurant Nahm in London earned a Michelin star, the first Thai restaurant to warrant the honour.

Over the past two years Thompson has brought Western clients to Thailand for cooking lessons. The chef has amassed a wealth of knowledge about the cuisine, spending years as a student of such well-known personalities as Sombat Janpetchara, whose connections and experience taught Thompson to appreciate the dishes traditionally served at palaces.

Napawan Nopparatnarphor of Kasetsart University, director of human-resource development for the "Kitchen of the World" project, says Thailand needs many hands to get the message out. Thousands of chefs and managers should be dispatched abroad, she advises.

As part of the government's ambition to establish Thailand as the world's kitchen, her institute has been bankrolled to train chefs, and so far more than 1,000 have graduated from the university's cooking school.

In the past two years a dozen such schools have been established at home, and in the US, Australia and Japan franchises have been set up. As part of the free-trade agreement between Thailand and Australia, Canberra agreed to establish Thai cooking schools there. It's a clause that will also be part of free-trade pacts with other countries, such as America and China.

Last year the government set criteria for chefs and assistant chefs. Rather than being merely a good cook, they now require a thorough knowledge of utensils and techniques and kitchen management. The idea is to raise the standard of Thai food internationally.

Youngyudh Suphasorn, deputy director of National Food Institute, points out that the slogan "Thai Select" has been used for the past two years to signify the outstanding Thai restaurants overseas.

Currently 85 restaurants have this label, but the owners of other establishments have questioned the approach, saying many good Thai restaurants remain unrated because of a lack of information.

Cookman

The Nation