Goi Du Du

Gỏi Đu Đủ (Vietnamese Green Papaya Salad)

A bright, crunchy salad of shredded unripe papaya and carrot, tossed in a punchy lime–fish sauce dressing with herbs, peanuts and dried beef or shrimp. Made in about 20 minutes and assembled just before serving so the papaya stays crisp.

Prep

20 min

Total

20 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •500 g (1 lb 1½ oz) green (unripe) papaya, firm, pale flesh with hard seeds; not ripe/sweet papaya
• •100 g (3½ oz) carrot, peeled
• •150 g (5½ oz) dried beef (bò khô), or dried shrimp, see note
• •60 g (2 oz) roasted unsalted peanuts, lightly crushed
• •10 g (½ cup loosely packed) Vietnamese coriander (rau răm), or a mix with mint
• •10 g (½ cup loosely packed) fresh mint leaves
• •3 tbsp (45 ml) fresh lime juice, about 2 limes
• •2 tbsp (30 ml) fish sauce, Vietnamese, such as Three Crabs or Red Boat
• •2 tbsp (25 g) granulated sugar, or palm sugar
• •1–2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• •1–2 whole birds eye chillies, sliced, to taste
• •2 tbsp (30 ml) warm water, to dissolve sugar

Steps

1. 1 Peel the green papaya. Halve it and scrape out the hard white seeds and any pith. Shred into thin strands using a julienne peeler, a mandoline, or a box grater's coarse side.
2. 2 Soak the shredded papaya (and carrot, if shredding it too) in a bowl of cold water with a pinch of salt for 5 minutes, then drain very well and pat dry with a clean towel or salad spinner. This keeps it crisp.
3. 3 Shred the carrot into thin matchsticks.
4. 4 Make the dressing: in a small bowl, stir the sugar with the warm water until dissolved. Add the lime juice, fish sauce, minced garlic and sliced chilli. Taste - it should be a balanced sweet-sour-salty hit with chilli heat. Adjust to your liking.
5. 5 If using dried shrimp instead of dried beef, soak them in warm water for 10 minutes to soften, then drain and roughly chop.
6. 6 Just before serving, combine the drained papaya, carrot, herbs and dried beef (or shrimp) in a large bowl. Pour over the dressing and toss quickly but thoroughly with your hands or tongs.
7. 7 Transfer to a serving plate, scatter the crushed peanuts over the top, and serve immediately while the papaya is still crisp.