Som Tam Recipe (Thai Green Papaya Salad)
Authentic Thai som tam recipe: crunchy green papaya pounded with lime, chili, fish sauce and palm sugar. Ready in 15 minutes, no cooking, plus how to say som tam.
Som tam is the salad Thailand cannot live without. It started in Isaan, the northeast of the country, and today you will find it pounded fresh to order on almost every street corner from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. This som tam recipe follows the classic Thai street style: shredded green papaya, garlic, chili, tomato and long beans, bruised together in a mortar with lime juice, fish sauce and palm sugar. It takes about 15 minutes and needs no stove at all.
The name tells you exactly what it is. Som means sour and tam means to pound, so som tam is simply a pounded sour salad. The pounding is the whole technique. You are not mashing the papaya into a pulp, you are bruising it just enough so the dressing soaks into every strand while it stays crunchy. Thai cooks hold the pestle in one hand and a large spoon in the other, tapping and turning at the same time.
A good som tam balances four flavours at once. Lime brings the sour, fish sauce brings the salt, palm sugar softens the edges and fresh bird's eye chilies bring the heat. Every stall makes it a little differently, so taste as you go and adjust until it makes you want another bite. Start with fewer chilies than you think you need, because you can always add more and you cannot take them out.
Green papaya is simply papaya picked before it ripens. It is firm, pale and almost neutral in flavour, which is exactly what you want here. Look for it in Asian grocery stores. If you cannot find it, green mango, firm cucumber or carrot all make a tasty version, even if it is not strictly traditional.
In Thailand, som tam is almost always eaten with sticky rice and grilled chicken, known as gai yang. The cool, crunchy salad cuts through the smoky meat perfectly. Make it right before you eat, because the papaya softens and releases water if it sits for more than half an hour.
Watch the 11-second version on our YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/shorts/s_EeTlNKf4A
Ingredients
- 300 g green papaya, peeled and finely shreddedSubstitute: green mango, carrot or cucumber
- 2 garlic cloves
- 3 Thai bird's eye chiliesSubstitute: 1 red chili for a mild version
- 1 tbsp dried shrimpSubstitute: leave out for vegan
- 2 tbsp roasted peanuts
- 2 long beans, cut into 5 cm piecesSubstitute: green beans
- 8 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1.5 tbsp palm sugar, choppedSubstitute: light brown sugar
- 2 tbsp fish sauceSubstitute: light soy sauce for vegan
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
Method
- Shred the papaya. Peel the green papaya, cut it in half and scoop out the white seeds. Shred the flesh into long thin strands with a julienne peeler or the large holes of a grater, then keep it in cold water so it stays crisp.
- Pound garlic and chili. Put the garlic and chilies in a large mortar and pound until roughly crushed. You want pieces, not a smooth paste.
- Dissolve the sugar. Add the palm sugar and pound until it melts into the garlic and chili. Palm sugar is hard, so this takes about 30 seconds.
- Add shrimp and peanuts. Add the dried shrimp and peanuts and pound lightly so they break into small pieces. Stop before the peanuts turn to powder.
- Bruise the beans. Add the long beans and press them with the pestle until they split slightly. This lets them soak up the dressing.
- Make the dressing. Add the tomatoes, fish sauce and lime juice. Press the tomatoes gently so their juice runs into the dressing.
- Add the papaya. Drain the papaya well and add it to the mortar. Pound gently with one hand while turning the salad over with a spoon in the other hand, for about 1 minute.
- Taste and balance. Taste a strand of papaya. Add more lime if it needs sour, fish sauce if it needs salt, or a pinch of sugar if it is too sharp. Serve straight away.
No mortar? Use a large sturdy bowl and the end of a rolling pin. Keep the shredded papaya in iced water until you need it, it stays extra crunchy. Serve with sticky rice and grilled chicken for the classic Isaan meal. Do not make it ahead, it goes watery after 30 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
What does som tam mean?
Som means sour and tam means pounded in Thai, so som tam literally means pounded sour salad. It is named after the way it is made in a mortar.
Is som tam very spicy?
Street versions in Thailand are often very hot, but you control the heat. Use one chili for mild, three for medium and five or more for true Thai street spice.
Can I make som tam vegan?
Yes. Leave out the dried shrimp and replace the fish sauce with light soy sauce or a vegan fish sauce. Add a few extra peanuts for more savoury flavour.
Can I use ripe papaya for som tam?
No. Ripe papaya is soft and sweet and falls apart when pounded. Som tam needs firm, unripe green papaya for its crunch.
What do you eat with som tam?
In Thailand it is usually served with sticky rice and grilled chicken (gai yang). It also goes well with grilled fish, pork skewers or plain jasmine rice.
Is som tam healthy?
It is low in fat and calories and made mostly from raw vegetables. The main thing to watch is salt from the fish sauce, so use less if you need to.
