Authentic Som Tum Thai
Authentic Som Tum Thai, the iconic Central Thai green papaya salad featuring a masterfully balanced harmony of spicy, sour, sweet, and savory flavors pounded in a traditional mortar and pestle.
Ingredients
- •4 cups unripe green papaya, peeled and shredded into thin strips
- •6 cloves garlic cloves, peeled
- •5 Thai bird's eye chilies
- •1 cup long beans (yardlong beans), cut into 1.5-inch pieces
- •1.5 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- •3 tablespoon dried shrimp, rinsed and drained
- •0.5 cup roasted unsalted peanuts
- •3 tablespoon palm sugar, finely shaved
- •3.5 tablespoon fish sauce
- •4 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- •1 tablespoon tamarind paste (concentrate)
Instructions
- 1.
In a traditional large clay or wooden mortar (krok), pound the peeled garlic cloves and Thai bird's eye chilies with a wooden pestle until coarsely crushed and fragrant.
- 2.
Add the dried shrimp and shaved palm sugar. Pound gently to break down the shrimp fibers and dissolve the palm sugar into a coarse paste with the chili-garlic mixture.
- 3.
Pour in the fish sauce, fresh lime juice, and tamarind paste. Use the pestle and a large spoon to mix and dissolve the dressing thoroughly. Taste the dressing base—it should be boldly punchy with balanced sweet, sour, salty, and fiery notes.
- 4.
Add the long beans and pound lightly just to bruise and crack them so they absorb the dressing.
- 5.
Add the cherry tomato halves and gently press them with the pestle to release their juices without crushing them completely.
- 6.
Add the shredded green papaya and half of the roasted peanuts. Using the pestle in one hand to lightly bruise the papaya and a spoon in the other to toss and lift from the bottom, thoroughly fold everything together for about 30 seconds until the papaya is slightly softened and coated in the dressing.
- 7.
Transfer the salad and all flavorful dressing juices to a serving platter. Garnish with the remaining roasted peanuts and serve immediately with sticky rice, raw cabbage wedges, and grilled chicken.
Tips
- 💡To keep the shredded green papaya extra crisp, soak the shreds in a bowl of ice water for 10 minutes, then drain and dry thoroughly before pounding.
- 💡A traditional clay mortar (krok din pao) with a wooden pestle is ideal because it bruises the delicate papaya fibers without pulverizing them like a heavy stone granite mortar would.
- 💡Adjust the number of bird's eye chilies to suit your heat preference; 1 to 2 chilies will give mild warmth, while 5 or more yields authentic Thai street-food spice levels.
Recipe from TheCookbook.ai
Created by Basil Roux