Som Tum (Papaya Salad)
Serves 1
Directions
- 1Peel the unripened green papaya.
- 2Julienne the peeled green papaya using either a knife or a julienne peeler.
- 3Peel and julienne the carrot using a julienne peeler.
- 4In a mortar, add Thai chilies and garlic, then pound them together.
- 5Add palm sugar or regular sugar to the mortar to balance the heat.
- 6Add shredded papaya and carrots to the mortar.
- 7Add fish sauce for salty umami.
- 8Add long beans (or blanched regular green beans) to the mortar.
- 9Add cut tomatoes to the mortar.
- 10Pound the ingredients a few times to infuse flavors into the papaya, then toss the salad to ensure all strips are coated.
- 11Serve the papaya salad on a plate.
- 12Garnish with roasted peanuts.
Ingredients
- unripened green papaya
- carrots
- Thai chilies
- garlic
- lime
- palm sugar
- fish sauce
- long beans
- tomatoes
- roasted peanuts
- roasted dried Thai chilies
- MSG
- fermented crab paste
Equipment
mortar and pestlepeelerknifecutting boardspoon
Tips
- The knife method for julienning papaya and carrots results in a better texture.
- Go easy on Thai chilies as raw chilies pack an extra punch.
- Roll your lime to get the maximum amount of juice.
- If using regular green beans, blanch them for 30 seconds before adding.
- Pound the flavors into the papaya, smashing it a few times and then tossing to ensure contact with each strip of fruit.
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