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Authentic Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam Thai)

Close-up of vibrant Thai Papaya Salad Som Tam featuring shredded green papaya, bright red tomatoes, and green beans in a white bowl.
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A recipe for making traditional Thai Green Papaya Salad, Som Tam Thai, balancing sweet, sour, salty, and spicy flavors using a mortar and pestle.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 cups shredded unripe green papaya
  • 1/4 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1/4 cup green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1-2 Thai chilies (adjust to your spice preference)
  • 1 tablespoon dried shrimp (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon roasted peanuts
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice, freshly squeezed
  • 1 teaspoon palm sugar, packed
  • 1/2 teaspoon tamarind paste (or concentrate)

Instructions

  1. Place the garlic and chilies in a mortar. Pound them lightly until they are crushed but not completely smooth.
  2. Add the green beans and pound a few times to break them down slightly.
  3. Add the dried shrimp (if using) and peanuts. Pound briefly to combine.
  4. Add the palm sugar and tamarind paste. Lightly pound until the sugar dissolves into a paste.
  5. Add the cherry tomatoes. Gently bruise the tomatoes with the pestle a few times; do not mash them completely.
  6. Pour in the fish sauce and lime juice. Stir the mixture in the mortar with the pestle to combine the dressing.
  7. Add the shredded green papaya to the mortar. Use the pestle to gently pound and toss the papaya with the dressing mixture. You want to bruise the papaya to release its juices and absorb the flavor, not shred it further.
  8. Taste the salad and adjust the seasoning if needed (add more lime for sour, sugar for sweet, or fish sauce for salty).
  9. Transfer the Som Tam to a serving plate. Serve immediately.

Notes

  • If you do not have a mortar and pestle, you can mix the dressing ingredients in a bowl and toss them with the papaya, but the flavor will be less authentic as pounding releases essential oils.
  • For a vegan version, omit the dried shrimp and substitute the fish sauce with soy sauce or vegan fish sauce.
  • Unripe green papaya is firm and pale green; ripe papaya is soft and orange and should not be used for this salad.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://recipesfleet.com/thai-papaya-salad-som-tam-recipe-2/