Ari Prempapaiporn holds a plate of rice with fried pork.

BANGKOK — Nobody, but nobody, fries pork like Auntie Ri – and even one of the best chefs in Asia are at the mercy of her 35 baht dishes.

Ari Prempapaiporn, better known as Auntie (Pa) Ri, runs the Kin Kun Rice with Fried Pork shop on Nang Linchi Road. Every single day, the 63-year-old fries up kilos and kilos of pork for as little as 35 baht even as the price of pork rises. Auntie’s pork sells out every single day, with office workers, security guards, and motorcycle taxi drivers queuing to fuel up.

“If I increased the price, I would feel sorry for the people eating. I want people at all income levels to eat it and feel full,” Auntie Ri said. “My food is yummy and I don’t sell at expensive prices. I want both the seller and customers to be able to live.”

Gaggan Anand, a household name for earning two Michelin Stars and repeatedly topping best restaurant lists, posted about Auntie Ri’s fried pork on his Instagram as one of his go-to street food places.

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Rice with fried pork and fish ball green curry (45 baht).

“I really like it, it’s very cheap, and very good, very tasty, and sells out so fast,” Gaggan Anand said by phone. “I love the fried pork ribs.”

However, Anand, no stranger to the world of fame via international dining, says low-priced street food like Auntie Ri’s should be reserved as a local experience.

“Can we leave street food for locals and not tourists?” he said. “Hasn’t COVID taught us that the domestic market is more important? She’s already selling out without tourists. Not everything should be marketed for tourists. Some things should be kept for locals only.” 

Auntie Ri’s been cooking meals in the Nang Linchi Road area for about 20 years, mostly selling food for monks’ morning alms. She set up her fried pork stand at the Nang Linchi Market about five years ago. 

“I put my heart into it. I’m not stingy with the ingredients for marinating,” Auntie Ri said when asked about her secret to charming an endless row of customers. “It’s about picking good ingredients such as pepper, garlic, and coriander root and using them liberally.” 

A lunchtime queue at Auntie Ri’s stall.

People can pick whether they want rice or kanom jeen fermented rice noodles to eat with fried pork, and curries that she makes daily which can be green curry with fish balls, tom jeud vegetable soup, pad phed spicy curry, and so on. Dishes with fried pork start at 35 baht. 

On a recent visit to Auntie Ri, we ordered the regular fried pork with rice (although there’s an option for an extra large portion), and picked fish balls in green curry as an extra side. Customers can self-serve if they want cucumbers and a spicy seafood sauce.

This entire dish was only 45 baht, and the fried pork was perfectly and professionally fried – Auntie slices off the gristle and skin off of every chunk before serving them. The flour coating turns into an orange-gold, crunchy coating with a coriander root flavor. 

Anyone can tell that the green curry is also made with a seasoned hand; the fish balls springy and full of fish rather than just flour.

For 45 baht, Auntie even garnishes the plate with coriander leaves and cucumbers for you. As the clock approached 1pm, Auntie sold off her last piece of pork to someone buying just the fried pork for 100 baht. 

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She chopped up the pork skin and rinds as a crispy snack to another waiting regular, and started to clean up shop to go rest – before the dinner rush at 5pm.

Kin Kun Rice with Fried Pork shop is open 5pm to 8pm every day, and also open for lunch from 11am to 1pm on weekdays. Arrive sooner than later as the fried pork sells out quickly. The stall is located in front of the 7-Eleven at Nang Linchi Market on Nang Linchi Road. It’s a short walk from BRT Thanon Chan, or a bike ride from BTS Chong Nonsi or MRT Lumphini.

This review is unsponsored and we paid for the food ourselves.