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Authentic Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam)

papaya salad - Tasty
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Make this crisp, spicy, and tangy Thai Green Papaya Salad, or Som Tam, at home. It balances sour, sweet, salty, and spicy flavors using fresh ingredients for a refreshing side dish or light meal.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 cups shredded green papaya (use a mandoline or grater)
  • 1/4 cup green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 2–4 Thai bird’s eye chilies (adjust for spice preference)
  • 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 tablespoon dried shrimp (optional, omit for vegetarian)
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce (use soy sauce or tamari for vegetarian)
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice, freshly squeezed
  • 1 teaspoon palm sugar or brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
  • 1/4 cup shredded carrot (optional)

Instructions

  1. Place the garlic and chilies into a mortar. Pound them gently with a pestle until they form a rough paste. Do not over-process.
  2. Add the green beans and pound them a few times to break them down slightly.
  3. Add the cherry tomatoes and dried shrimp (if using). Lightly bruise the tomatoes by pressing them against the side of the mortar.
  4. Add the fish sauce, lime juice, and palm sugar. Stir the mixture in the mortar until the sugar dissolves. This creates your dressing base.
  5. Add the shredded green papaya and shredded carrot (if using) to the mortar.
  6. Use the pestle to gently toss and press the papaya mixture into the dressing. You want to bruise the papaya slightly to soften it and coat it evenly, but avoid mashing it into a pulp.
  7. Taste the salad and adjust the seasoning if needed—add more lime for sourness or sugar for sweetness.
  8. Transfer the papaya salad to a serving plate. Top with the chopped roasted peanuts before serving immediately.

Notes

  • For the best texture, use firm, unripe green papaya. You can use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin, then shred the flesh.
  • If you do not have a mortar and pestle, you can mix the dressing ingredients in a bowl and then toss them vigorously with the shredded papaya and vegetables.
  • This **spicy papaya salad** is best eaten right after preparation to maintain the crisp texture of the papaya.
  • This recipe is naturally **gluten free papaya salad** if you use fish sauce or a gluten-free soy sauce substitute.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://pureplatepath.com/papaya-salad-authentic-thai-som-tam-recipe/