Most Dai people have the habit of eating two meals at a time, with rice and glutinous rice as their staple food. Dehong Dai's staple food is japonica rice, and Xishuangbanna Dai's staple food is glutinous rice. Usually eaten immediately. People think that japonica rice and glutinous rice will lose their original color and fragrance only if they are eaten immediately, so they don't eat overnight meals or seldom eat them, and they are used to kneading rice with their hands.

The Dai people live in a place with a low altitude and a wide area (commonly known as "bazi"). Due to the influence of natural factors such as climate and temperature, the most striking feature of the Dai people living on the dam is that they like to eat sour food, so they are called "acid". In the famous dishes of the Dai nationality, almost all famous dishes are inseparable from acid. As a condiment, "acid" is both botanical, such as bamboo shoots and limes; There are animals, such as acid ants; There are also chemical reactions, such as vinegar (homemade).

On the one hand, the diet of Dai people is acidophilic, which is related to their living area. Dai people live in hot and dry places. Acidic food can not only help digestion, but also stimulate appetite and prevent heatstroke. The Dai people's love for acid is gradually formed and preserved in the process of fighting against nature and overcoming natural factors such as high temperature. It is the simplest, most direct and most effective custom formed in the process of labor, and it is also the most eye-catching highlight in Dai food culture, which can best reflect the national characteristics.

Another feature of Dai food culture is "eating game". The so-called "wild food" means that Dai people like to eat some wild animals and plants. There are animals in the "Eat Wild" menu of Dai food culture, such as eating "Wendun" (an insect living on the bank of Nujiang River) and cicadas. There are also plants, such as wild bracken, spiny buds, fish dishes, citronella, and "swinging sticks" (a long green plant that eats its tender buds and is named after the favorite food of the Dai people). These wild plants have the functions of clearing away lung heat, improving eyesight, strengthening brain and resisting aging. The characteristics of "eating wild" in Dai diet culture prove that Dai people know and admire nature, which reflects a kind of indifferent, leisurely and casual psychological characteristics of Dai people.