🔄 Updated 21 Jun 2026
Khon Kaen is basically the home of mum and Isan sausage, especially the stretch of the Mittraphap Highway that runs through Phon district, where roadside stalls line both sides for what feels like a kilometer. Tour buses and private cars pull over to buy them nonstop. Both are fermented meats that get their sour tang naturally — no acid is added to fake it — which is why they carry a smell and a flavor that Isan folks miss when they're far from home.
Mum vs. Isan sausage — what's the difference
People from outside the region tend to lump them together, but they're really two different things. Knowing the difference helps you buy what you actually want.
- Mum — ground pork or beef mixed with finely chopped liver and offal, seasoned with garlic and pepper, stuffed into casing and fermented to a mild sourness. The pieces are short and plump, the meat is dense, the flavor is bolder and the liver comes through clearly. People like to grill or fry it and eat it with sticky rice.
- Isan sausage — ground pork mixed with cooked rice and garlic, stuffed into long links and fermented until sour. The rice inside makes it softer, rounder and tangier, and it's easier to eat than mum — even kids like it.
- Where the sourness comes from — it's the rice and meat fermenting, not vinegar. The longer it ferments, the sourer it gets, and good shops control the timing so it's tangy but not overpoweringly funky.
How to eat it at its best
Grill over low heat or fry just until the skin tightens and turns golden, then eat it hot with steamed sticky rice, shredded young ginger, peanuts, fresh bird's-eye chili and cilantro. The sourness cuts the richness just right. Don't fry it until it's dry, or the inside turns hard and loses its flavor.
Want to taste deeper? Try a Khon Kaen food tour or cooking class
Half a day with a local who knows the lanes — or cooking a dish yourself — teaches you more than just eating. Book ahead on Klook or GetYourGuide.
Shops where you can actually buy it
We've picked shops and brands that are genuinely open and that Khon Kaen locals regularly buy as gifts, split between in-town shops and the Phon stalls along the Mittraphap Highway. Prices shift with the season and the size, so treat these as rough comparisons.
Phumsuk Mueang Phon
A big souvenir shop on the Mittraphap Highway in Phon district, open for over 25 years and a regular rest stop for tour buses. It makes its own mum and Isan sausage in a clean kitchen, with a nicely balanced sourness, and has a food court and cafe on site plus plenty of other souvenirs to choose from.
Sorkon (S. Khon Kaen)
The easiest Isan sausage brand from Khon Kaen to find. Natural casing, heavy on the pork, low on fat, sour naturally from fermentation, with skin that crisps up when fried. It's the safe pick if you don't have time to shop around, and it comes both fresh and ready-to-heat.
Je Rat Khon Kaen Souvenirs
A long-running souvenir shop in town that's been around for decades, carrying Isan sausage, mum, Chinese sausage, mu yo and naem all in one place. They pack everything for free, which suits anyone staying in town who doesn't want to drive out to Phon. The owner is friendly and shopping here is easy.
Mum Khun Thorn Mueang Phon
A roadside shop on the Khon Kaen–Korat stretch of the Mittraphap Highway, across from Phon Technological College. It mainly sells beef mum, pork mum and Isan sausage — a specialist spot that mum lovers stop for, with the bold flavor and clear liver note that fans of real mum are after.
Aree Daed Diao
A Khon Kaen souvenir shop known for its sun-dried beef alongside Isan sausage and Isan mum. Good for anyone who wants several kinds of meaty souvenirs from one shop, and the sour ferments pair easily with sticky rice.
How to choose so you don't miss
- Check freshness — good ferments smell sour and fragrant, not sharp or off. If the pack is bloated or full of cloudy liquid, skip it.
- Pick mum or sausage to suit who's eating — go for mum if you like a bold flavor with a clear liver note, and Isan sausage if you prefer something soft, rounded and pleasantly sour. Buy a little of each to try first.
- Think about the journey home — if you've got a long drive, ask for vacuum-packed or ready-to-heat, which keeps better. Fresh ones should be eaten within 1–2 days or refrigerated right away.
- Ask the production date — the fresher the ferment, the better the sourness is controlled, and shops that make their own can usually tell you exactly when it was made.
A mum-and-sausage souvenir route
If you're set on stocking up on these specifically, half a day does it easily. We've split it into an in-town route and a Phon route depending on which way you'll be driving.
Half a day of souvenir shopping without leaving the city
If you're already driving the Mittraphap Highway
What you can make with it
Grilled/fried with sticky rice
The most classic way — skin tight and golden, eaten hot with ginger and fresh chili. Filling enough to be a meal on its own.
Larb mum / sausage salad
Slice it up and toss with chili powder, toasted rice, shallots and lime, and you've got a bold-flavored side to go with drinks.
Fried rice / stir-fried with chili and salt
Slice it into fried rice or stir-fry it with chili and salt — the sourness gives an ordinary dish more depth.
Want the fuller spread of Khon Kaen Isan food? See everything the city has to eat.
See Khon Kaen Isan food →