Thai Papaya Salad

Thai Papaya Salad (Som Tam)
This Thai Papaya Salad (Som Tam) is a regular and traditional Thai salad dish. Usually, it’s very spicy and eaten with other food dishes, like rice and some sort of B.B.Q. meat.

Thai Papaya Salad (Som Tam) Recipe

A summer salad dish that is fresh, crisp, delicious and gorgeous enough to spice up a picnic table all by itself. This Thai version of Spicy Papaya Salad (Som Tum) is prepared throughout Southeast Asia, including Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, in various forms, and we are pleased to present this simple and basic detailed summary, so you can prepare it for yourself and family members. Spicy Papaya Salad is a classic Thai dish and served all over the country of Thailand including sidewalk shops and food carts, but you can order it at your nearest neighborhood Thai restaurant.Traditional Spicy Papaya Salad (Som Tum) is typically prepared with different variations, which may include peanuts and/or raw green beans mixed in, but here we feature the classic and basic variation with special, fresh Thai chili peppers. Som Tum is eaten as a side dish, as a salad, usually with rice or meat dish. (Caution! Can be Extremely Spicy if you have sensitive taste buds)

All ingredients and cooking tools can be found at your nearest neighborhood Asian Super MarketBasic Version of Spicy Papaya Salad (Som Tum)Ingredients2 cups shredded fresh green papaya
(already shredded green papaya can be purchased at your
nearest Asian Super Market)
1/2 cup of shredded firmly ripened mangoes
3 medium Roma tomatoes or 5 cherry tomatoes
A handful of fresh string beans cut into 1 inch pieces (optional)
2 tablespoons dried shrimp
4-6 fresh Thai chilies, remove stems
3-4 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons palm sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons of shrimp paste
1 shredded firmly ripened mango
Cilantro and Mint LeavesCooking Tools
Lao-style clay mortar & pestle

Preparation

Peel fresh green papaya, rinse the white milk off, pat dry, then shred the whole papaya. Sprinkle with a bit of salt then rinse it off and drain. Keep 2 cups shredded papaya out, and put the rest in a sealed container for later use. Thinly slice the tomatoes and chop cilantro and mint leaves. Place to the side.

Peel fresh, firmly ripened mango, then shred the skinless mango, making sure to shred only the edible part of the mango, not the pit, or seed in the middle. Shred about 1 cup and place aside.

In a clay Lao-style mortar & pestle, coarsely pound the fresh (whole) chilies and garlic together. Add string beans, sliced tomatoes, and pound it lightly (do not over-crush).
Add dried shrimp, fish sauce, palm sugar and lime juice. Add these items spoon-by-spoon, and taste as you go.
Add peanuts, lightly pound and add now (optional).
Add two tablespoons of shrimp paste (optional).
Add shredded papaya and mango (help offset the heat from the pepper) to your pound-mixed ingredients.

Toss thoroughly until everything is coated together. Serve on a dish and garnish with chopped cilantro and mint leaves.