Green Papaya salad
Green Papaya Salad Recipe (Som Tam): A Thai Classic
Every season I have a favorite salad that becomes my go-to lunch. Winter can be more challenging because fresh, locally grown salad ingredients are limited in a four-season climate. Recently, I developed an interest in authentic Thai cooking and discovered a wonderful recipe for Som Tam, Thailand’s famous green papaya salad. I’ve adapted it using ingredients that are easy to find in the United States and flavors that are familiar to western palates.
In tropical regions such as southern Thailand, papayas grow year-round. Green papayas are simply regular papayas harvested while they are still unripe. The flesh is crisp, crunchy, and mild, making it the perfect base for the sweet, salty, spicy, and sour flavors that define this refreshing salad.
What Makes Green Papaya Salad Unique?
What really makes green papaya salad stand out is the irresistible dressing that coats every bite. The combination of sweet, salty, spicy, and sour flavors creates a balance that keeps me coming back for more.
The dressing relies on five essential ingredients:
1. Palm Sugar
The sweetness comes from palm sugar, which is commonly sold in hard discs at international grocery stores. Palm sugar is an unrefined sweetener made from palm sap and has a rich caramel-like flavor similar to brown sugar. If you can’t find palm sugar, brown sugar makes an acceptable substitute.
2. Thai Chili Peppers
Thai chilies provide the heat. Their spiciness can vary significantly, so start with a small amount if you’re unfamiliar with them. Crushed red pepper flakes can also be used when fresh chilies aren’t available.
3. Fresh Garlic
Fresh garlic balances the heat from the chilies and contributes a savory depth that makes the dressing so distinctive.
4. Lime Juice
Freshly squeezed lime juice provides the sour element that brightens the entire dish. I highly recommend using fresh limes, as bottled lime juice often has an artificial flavor that can ruin the freshness of the salad.
5. Fish Sauce
Fish sauce contributes a subtle salty flavor and is a key ingredient in traditional Thai cuisine. Authentic Som Tam often includes dried shrimp as well, but I find that flavor a bit too strong for my taste. If fish sauce isn’t to your liking, you can omit it. Doing so will also make the salad vegan.
Why Use a Mortar and Pestle?
While you can mash the ingredients with a fork or use a small food processor, a mortar and pestle creates a texture and flavor that is difficult to replicate with other tools.
Pounding the garlic, chilies, sugar, and other dressing ingredients helps them blend together into a cohesive sauce. Once the dressing is prepared, the shredded papaya and vegetables are lightly pounded in the mortar as well. This gently bruises the ingredients, allowing them to absorb more of the dressing’s flavor while maintaining their crisp texture.
How to Select and Prepare Green Papaya
Green papayas have made it into mainstream grocery stores in the US. Any Gourmet grocery chain should have it in their produce section. If not, find an international store near you. Select fruits that are all green and firm, with no wrinkly outer skin.
Green papaya is easy to prepare. Start by peeling away the green outer skin with a vegetable peeler. Cut the papaya in half lengthwise and use a spoon to remove the seeds and the stringy material surrounding them.
Once cleaned, shred the flesh into thin strips. There are several tools that work well for this task:
- Handheld julienne shredder (affiliate link)
- Mandoline slicer
- Box grater
- Sharp knife
I prefer using a handheld shredder because it produces uniform strips with minimal effort.
Green Papaya Salad Recipe
Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam)
Ingredients
- 2 small cloves fresh garlic
- 2 small Thai chili peppers or 1/2 tsp dried pepper flakes
- 3 tbsp roasted peanuts, divided
- 2 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar
- 8 cherry tomatoes, halved or 4 Campari tomatoes quartered
- 1/2 cup green beans raw, cut into 2-3 inch pieces
- 3 tbsp fresh lime juice about 2 limes
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 4 cups shredded green papaya
- 1 cup shredded carrot
Instructions
- use a mortar and pestle to pound the garlic and chiles or a mini food grinder.
- add half of the peanuts and pound or blend lightly to still have peanut pieces. then add sugar and pound or grind lightly.
- if using mortar and pestle, add the green beans and lighlt pound. if not, move the mixture to a bowl and add the grren beans
- move mortar ingredients to a bowl and add tomatoes
- add lime juice and fish sauce and mix well.
- add shredded green papaya and carrots and mix well. let flavors meld together for about 30 minutes on countertop.
- crush the remaining peanuts and sprinkle on top. serve
Storage
Green papaya salad can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two days. Over time, the papaya will absorb more dressing and lose some of its crisp texture. In my house, however, leftovers are rarely a concern because the salad disappears quickly!
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