🔄 Updated 21 Jun 2026
If you're used to central-Thai sweets that lead with sugar and a lot of coconut cream, Buriram's local desserts feel different. Most are built from sticky rice, khao mao, coconut, sesame and cane sugar, with a softer sweetness that leans into the aroma of toasted rice and banana leaf rather than the sugar itself. Many started as sweets made for merit-making and festivals before turning into everyday market snacks. We've picked out both the sweets worth trying and the places you can actually buy them, in town and around the province.
Why Buriram's desserts are worth a try
What sets the sweets here apart from other towns is khao mao. In Ban Khok Wan and Nong Sano subdistrict, Nang Rong district, almost the whole village has made khao mao for generations. They use young sticky rice still in the milky stage, toast it, pound it, then sieve it down to flat, pale-green grains with a distinctive aroma. Beyond eating it fresh tossed with coconut and sugar, it's turned into fried khao mao, khao mao mee, and a riceberry version that has won national awards. This is the kind of thing that's hard to find in big cities — once you're in Buriram, it's worth trying.
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Local sweets and desserts worth trying
Khao Mao (Nang Rong)
The town's signature, made from young sticky rice that's toasted then pounded flat. Eat it fresh tossed with grated coconut and sugar, or grab fried khao mao and khao mao mee to take home. The real stuff comes from Ban Khok Wan and Nong Sano in Nang Rong district. Late rainy season into early cool season is fresh khao mao season — easiest to find and at its most fragrant.
Khao Tom Mat (sticky-rice parcels)
Coconut-cooked sticky rice wrapped in banana leaf around a banana or black-bean filling, tied in pairs and steamed until fragrant. Nicely sweet and rich, it's a merit-making sweet you can find year-round at morning and evening markets. Great with morning coffee.
Khao Pong
A sheet of pounded sticky rice mixed with egg and cane sugar, spread thin and grilled until it puffs up crisp, with a faint hint of char. Homey sweet richness, an honest Isan snack that's light, crisp and not too sweet. Look for it at local markets and souvenir shops.
Krayasart
A sweet made for the tenth-lunar-month merit festival, from puffed khao mao, popped rice, peanuts and sesame simmered with cane sugar until sticky and chewy, then cut into pieces. Eaten with namwa bananas to cut the sweetness. Since Buriram already has good khao mao, the krayasart here is especially fragrant with it.
Khanom Tian & Khanom Sai Sai
Sticky-rice-flour dumplings wrapped in banana leaf around a bean or coconut filling, steamed until soft and chewy. A merit-making sweet you'll find at evening markets, with a balanced sweet-savory flavor you can keep snacking on without it turning cloying.
Khanom Tan & Khanom Gluay
Steamed sticky-rice and flour cakes topped with coconut — soft, gently sweet. A morning-market classic people buy to eat with coffee. Cheap, easy to find, and good for anyone who doesn't like sweets too sugary.
Mixed sweets in coconut milk (ruam mit)
A cooling cold dessert for hot days — lod chong, grass jelly and palm-fruit seeds in fresh coconut milk over ice. In town there are old-school dessert shops that have been at it for generations, using fragrant fresh coconut milk rather than canned.
Khao Jee (morning snack)
Pressed sticky rice brushed with egg and grilled until fragrant; some vendors add sugar or a pork-floss filling. Eaten warm in the morning, it's a snack that sits between savory and sweet. Find it at morning markets and roadside carts — cheap and just filling enough.
Khanom Buang & Khanom Krok at evening markets
Walking-street snacks: crisp khanom buang with sweet or savory filling, alongside khanom krok topped with shrimp or corn, made fresh and hot with the smell drifting across the stall. Easy to graze on as you wander Saoragrao Market.
Local bakeries
If you're in the mood for something more Western, town has long-running bakeries like Sasaki making bread, éclairs and cake at friendly prices. A good cool-down dessert option in an air-conditioned shop once the markets have left you sweating.
Before you go
Fresh khao mao is seasonal, most fragrant in the late rainy to early cool season (roughly Nov–Dec). Come outside that window and you'll mostly find dried khao mao or fried khao mao, which are still tasty and keep longer — good as souvenirs. The street snacks at Saoragrao Market only run on Saturday and Sunday evenings, around 16:00–22:00, so plan your day to line up with that.
Where to buy local desserts
Toward Nang Rong (the khao mao source)
Ban Khok Wan and Nong Sano subdistrict in Nang Rong district are where khao mao is actually made. Drive through during khao mao season and you'll see it sold roadside — fresher and cheaper than in town.
In-town fresh / morning markets
Sticky-rice parcels, khanom tan, khanom gluay, khao jee and banana-leaf sweets every morning. Good for grabbing something to eat with coffee before you head out.
Saoragrao Market (walking street)
Saturday and Sunday evenings, with both savory and sweet street snacks — khanom buang, khanom krok, cold desserts — stretched across plenty of stalls to graze through.
Local souvenir shops
Fried khao mao, khao pong and krayasart packed and ready to carry home. The longer-keeping options are more convenient as souvenirs than the fresh stuff.
Plan it day by day to taste it all
In town — morning market to evening market
Out of town — the Nang Rong khao mao run
Local sweets worth taking home
- Fried khao mao / khao mao mee — keeps longer than fresh khao mao, fragrant and crisp, a souvenir that clearly says Buriram
- Khao pong — light, crisp sheets, sweet and rich, easy to pack, a hit with kids and adults alike
- Krayasart — fragrant with khao mao and chewy; come during the tenth-month festival and you'll get a freshly made batch
- Banana / taro chips — homey local snacks you'll find at souvenir shops, cheap and easy to grab on the way out
Honestly, Buriram's desserts aren't flashy, photogenic sweets — they're homey ones that taste good because the ingredients are real. Fresh khao mao is seasonal, and if you come at the wrong time of year there's still fried khao mao and dried versions to try. Most shops and market stalls take cash only, so keeping small bills on hand is the easiest way to go.
Plan your full Buriram eat-and-travel trip
See the Buriram travel guide →