Most Dai people have the habit of eating two meals. Dehong Dai people mainly eat japonica rice, while Xishuangbanna Dai people mainly eat glutinous rice. Usually in spring. It is believed that eating only japonica rice and glutinous rice in spring will not lose its original color and fragrance. So they don't eat or rarely eat overnight meals, and they are used to eating with their hands. Migrant workers often eat in the wild.

These fruits have some sour taste, but they also have animal acidity, such as acid ants, and of course they also have their own acidity, such as Xishuangbanna and lemon vinegar. Second, as the name implies, the wild food is to eat some wild animals and plants, which is also an important feature of food culture.

In the food formula of Dai people, animals eat "Winton", an insect living on the beach, and eat nutritious food such as Zen; These plants include wild ferns, hedgehogs, fish leeks and citronella. "This is a lever", an evergreen plant that can eat its buds and is named after the Dai people.

The moss eaten by Dai people is the moss on the rocks in the river in spring, and the best choice is dark green. After fishing, tear it into thin slices, dry it in the sun and use it with bamboo products. When cooking, the thick ones are fried and the thin ones are roasted with fire. Crispy and knead into a bowl. Then pour in boiling oil and mix with salt. Tangyuan or bacon dipped in it is very delicious. When cooking fish, it is usually made into sour fish or roasted into citronella fish. In addition, it can also be made into fish steak rolls (that is, the fish is roasted and mashed, and ingredients such as Dawu, frozen fish, salamander and white sauce eel are mixed). When eating crabs, they are usually cut into crab juice and dipped in rice.

Their diet is very consistent with the green diet recommended today, which is also the reason why women are not easy to get fat. From the health point of view, the diet culture of Dai people is worth popularizing.