Som Tum

Som Tum (Thai Green Papaya Salad)

The definitive Isan salad: shredded unripe papaya pounded with chilli, lime, fish sauce and palm sugar until the dressing is sharp, salty, sweet and fiery all at once. It comes together in minutes once the mortar is out.

Prep

20 min

Cook

5 min

Total

25 min

Serves

4 as a side

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •450 g (1 lb) unripe green papaya, very firm and fully green; ripe orange papaya will turn mushy
• •60 g (¼ cup) roasted unsalted peanuts, divided: half pounded, half sprinkled on top
• •4 cloves garlic
• •15 g (1 Tbsp roughly chopped) Thai bird's-eye chillies, 2–3 chillies for medium heat, up to 6 for Isan-style heat; remove some seeds to tame
• •2 long fresh Thai chives (gui chai), cut into 3 cm lengths; substitute with 2 spring onions if unavailable
• •60 g (½ cup chopped) long beans, or green beans, snapped into 3 cm pieces
• •1 medium tomato, cut into wedges, lightly bruised
• •2 Tbsp fish sauce, Thai nam sai; adjust to taste
• •60 ml (¼ cup) fresh lime juice, from about 2 limes
• •30 g (2 Tbsp packed) palm sugar, finely chopped; substitute with light brown sugar
• •1 Tbsp dried shrimp (optional), small dried, soaked briefly; omit for vegetarian

Steps

1. 1 Peel the papaya, cut in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Using a shredder/grater or a sharp knife, cut the flesh into very fine julienne (around 2 mm thick, 5–6 cm long). You should have about 350 g of shreds. Submerge in cold water for 5 minutes, then drain well — this crisps the strands and prevents a watery salad.
2. 2 Pound the garlic, chillies and half the peanuts (30 g) in a clay or heavy stone mortar with a brief, firm pounding — you want a coarse paste, not a smooth one. About 15–20 seconds.
3. 3 Add the long beans and chives and pound lightly 2–3 times just to bruise (don't pulverise). Add the tomato wedges and give 2 gentle turns with the pestle so they crack but hold shape.
4. 4 Add the fish sauce, lime juice and palm sugar to the mortar. Stir and pound briefly for about 10 seconds until the sugar dissolves and the dressing tastes in balance: sharply sour, salty, a clear sweetness underneath and heat on the finish. Adjust with more lime, fish sauce or sugar as needed.
5. 5 Add the drained papaya and toss firmly with a spoon (or 3–4 light pestle strokes) for about 30 seconds, just until every strand is coated and slightly softened but still crunchy. Do not over-pound or the salad becomes watery.
6. 6 Tip onto a plate, scatter the remaining 30 g of roasted peanuts on top, and serve immediately with sticky rice, grilled chicken (gai yang) or as part of a Thai meal. Som Tum waits for no one — it should be eaten within 5 minutes of dressing for the best crunch.