Thailand · Salads
Som Tam (Green Papaya Salad)
Thailand's most iconic salad — shredded green papaya pounded in a mortar with tomatoes, green beans, garlic, chili, lime juice, and fish sauce.
Ingredients
- green papaya, peeled and shredded200 g
- carrot1
- cherry tomatoes6
- garlic cloves2
- red chili1 tsp
- lime juice2 tbsp
- fish sauce2 tbsp
- palm sugar1 tbsp
- roasted peanuts2 tbsp
- green beans50 g
- dried shrimp1 tbsp
Method
- 1Peel the papaya and carrot, grate into long thin shreds. Halve the cherry tomatoes, cut green beans into 2-3 cm pieces. Ordinary green beans must not be eaten raw: drop them into plenty of boiling water and boil until tender all the way through, with no raw squeak when you bite one, then cool them in cold water and drain. Thai vendors use raw yard-long beans; with regular green beans this boiling step is not optional.
- 2In a mortar, pound the garlic and chili. Add sugar, fish sauce and lime juice and mix until sugar dissolves.
- 3Add papaya, carrot, green beans, and tomatoes to the mortar. Lightly pound with a spoon or pestle — the vegetables should soften slightly and absorb the dressing but keep their crunch. Add dried shrimp if using.
- 4Transfer to a bowl, sprinkle with roasted peanuts, garnish with a lime wedge and fresh chili. Serve cold.