Thai green papaya salad, known better as “Som Tum" (ส้มตำ) is one of the most popular Thai street food dishes available. Though it's an Isaan, northeastern Thai dish, Som Tum can be found throughout the entire country, and is widely popular in Bangkok where you'll find it being served at just about every street corner in the entire city.
Som Tum recipe
Serves: 1-2 people.
Preparation time: 10 minutes.
Cooking time: 5 minutes.
2 cloves of garlic
5 Thai long red chillies or one large red chilli if you don’t want it too spicy
2 tablespoons roasted peanuts
1 tablespoon fish sauce
½ - 1 tablespoon palm sugar
1 - 2 fresh limes
1 tablespoon of dried shrimp (optional)
1 - 2 fresh small tomatoes (in Thailand I used sida tomatoes, but you could probably use roma tomatoes)
1 green papaya
Long-beans or green beans
Green cabbage
Thai sweet basil
Method
Peel the skin off the papaya, cut in half and scrape out the seeds.
Grate the papaya with a Julienne peeler or grater.
Mix all the wet ingredients in a bowl. The sauce should be sweet, sour and salty.
Pound the chilli and garlic in the pestle and mortar (or mixing bowl), then add the beans and dried prawns (if using prawns). Bruise and then add the papaya, tomatoes, and peanuts.
Pour in the sauce. With a large spoon in one hand and the pestle in the other (this may take some practice), scoop and pound until everything is well combined and the juice of the tomatoes has made its way into the dressing.
Scoop onto a plate, making sure you get all that lovely dressing.
Serve with absolutely anything or just eat it on its own.