This Thai style green papaya salad has grown to be popular all around the globe. Combining flavors typical of Thailand, this salad is spicy, sweet, sour, and savory all at once. A popular street food, made by many home cooks, and a staple in Thai restaurants everywhere, there’s a reason this dish is so famous and well-loved globally.
Combining many ingredients and colors, green papaya salad also has lots of textures and layers of flavors. Crunchy strips of green papaya and peanuts combine with softened and bruised long beans and tomatoes. Sweet palm sugar contrasts with spicy Thai chilis contrasting again with sour lime juice and savory fish sauce and dried shrimp.
Som tum salads are popular across southeast Asia, and this green papaya version is by far the most well-known of them all. While the name more refers to a style of salad, this is the version you’re most likely to be served across Thailand when asking for som tum, or som tum Thai.
While several of the ingredients may require a trip to an Asian or international market, I’ll also list substitutions where possible. Once you have things prepped and ready, the salad comes together quickly and easily and is best when made fresh and served right away.
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📜 What is Som Tum?
Som tum (ส้มตำไทย), or som tam, like many Asian dishes, is a name that describes more a cooking method or flavor than an actual dish. Som translates as orange or sour, and tum/tam translates as “pounding”, as in the pounding with a mortar and pestle. This term describes numerous salads with a sour flavor that are made in clay mortars with wooden pestles.
Like a few of Thailand’s most popular dishes, such as gai yang, green papaya salad is thought to have originated in Lao cuisine. Without getting too deep into the history, som tam became a popular dish in Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, parts of China, and Thailand.
Made with a variety of different vegetables and ingredients, this salad can be named more specifically as tam maak hoong, which literally means “pounded papaya.” In Thailand, if you request som tum Thai, this version of green papaya salad is normally understood.
🥘 Ingredients for Green Papaya Salad
Some of the following ingredients might require a trip to an Asian or international grocer, but wherever possible I’ll try and mention popular substitutes. The best part of making green papaya salad at home is that you can really tweak things to your own flavor preferences.
Papaya – Normally orange, green papaya is just the unripe version of the fruit, also called pawpaw. Without having much flavor, the closest description would be similar to cucumber. Available in some regular stores, you may need to find one in an Asian grocer. If you can’t find this fruit, you could also try green, unripe mango, cucumber, or even shredded cabbage.
Peanuts – You can use raw peanuts and roast them yourself or buy roasted peanuts. These give the salad a nice crunchy texture and nutty flavor.
Garlic – Just a few cloves to give flavor.
Chilis – The spicy component comes from red Thai chilis. If you cannot find these, some common substitutes are cayenne, serrano, jalapeno, Fresno’s, or habaneros.
Sugar – Palm sugar is the standard here, but if you can’t get that, light brown sugar is a good sub.
Long Beans – The asparagus bean, also called Chinese long bean, yardlong bean, snake bean, and other names, can be eaten raw or cooked. Usually only found in Asian or international stores, you can sub green beans as well, though I recommend blanching them first.
Tomatoes – I prefer grape or cherry tomatoes here, but you can also use a small or medium tomato and cut into half wedges. I find the chopped tomatoes tend to fall apart too much, but either one will work fine.
Dried Shrimp – This is also more often found in international stores. You can use tiny ones whole or give larger ones a rough chop. Personally, I don’t like the chewy texture, so I prefer to shred them instead. You still get the umami flavor without the randomly chewy mouthful.
Fish Sauce – The backbone of the dressing, fish sauce gives the salad a savory and pungent flavor.
Lime – Fresh lime juice gives the salad dressing a tart and sour flavor. Toss the squeezed limes in with the salad as you pound it as the released oils gives flavor as well.
Tamarind Paste – This is an optional ingredient and usually sold as tamarind concentrate. Look for a Thai brand and not an Indian brand that is more paste than liquid. This adds extra sweet and sour flavor, but just omit if you can’t find it, or you can make your own homemade tamarind paste as well.
🔪 How to Make Som Tam Thai
Traditionally, som tam, or green papaya salad, is made with a deep clay mortar and wooden pestle. The granite mortar & pestle used in recipes like Thai green curry paste and others should not be used for this. If you don’t have one, I’ll give alternative directions after this.
Preparing Green Papaya
Starting with the green papaya, use a peeler to expose the flesh below the thin skin. A standard julienne peeler makes too thin of strips for the salad. If you have a mandolin that can cut julienne strips about ⅛” thick, that can work, or use a julienne peeler made for this like the Kiwi brand ones.
Another method is to peel the skin and use a sharp chef’s knife or cleaver. Holding the papaya with a strong grip, slap the knife down into the flesh, making lots of cuts close together. Turn the blade so that it’s against the papaya flesh and make thin slices through the deep cuts and you should have the right sized shreds.
Add the shredded green papaya to a bowl of ice water and let it sit for 15 minutes. This will make the shredded papaya nice and crunchy. After the ice bath, drain the papaya thoroughly and set on some paper towels to soak up any extra water.
Clay Mortar & Wooden Pestle
While the papaya soaks in the ice water, add the roasted peanuts to the mortar. Using the pestle, smash and crush the peanuts into chunks. You don’t want to reduce them to powder, just pound them into pieces and then remove them and set aside.
Chop the garlic and Thai chilis into small pieces and then add to the mortar. Pound and grind them into a paste. Finely chop the palm sugar and add that to the paste, grinding it into the juices made from the rest until combined.
Break the long beans into 2-3” segments and add directly into the mortar. For the dried shrimp, you can add tiny ones directly as well or chop larger ones into smaller pieces (I like to shred them in a spice grinder) and add them also. Use the pestle to bruise and lightly smash open the beans. Add half of the reserved peanuts.
Cut the lime into large wedges and squeeze in the lime juice, tossing the squeezed lime in as well. Add the fish sauce and tamarind concentrate if using and stir into the rest of the ingredients with a spoon.
Finally, add the drained green papaya and sliced tomatoes and stir everything together. Alternatively pound everything gently with the pestle and stir with a spoon. Lightly bruise and smash the tomatoes to release their juices.
Remove from the mortar and serve the salad in a bowl or plate, topping with the rest of the reserved peanuts.
Making Without Mortar & Pestle
If you don’t have a clay mortar, you can make this by hand. Using a knife, coarsely chop the roasted peanuts and set aside, then finely mince the garlic and Thai red chilis and set into a small bowl.
Thinly slice the palm sugar and then finely chop it into a powder. Add the sugar to a mixing bowl and add the lime juice, fish sauce, and tamarind paste. Mix until the sugar is dissolved and then add the garlic, chilis, and half the crushed peanuts and mix again.
Using the flat of your knife, gently smash the long beans so that they’re bruised and split, then chop into 2-3” segments and add that to the mixing bowl as well.
Finally, add the shredded papaya and sliced tomatoes to the mixing bowl and stir together with a wooden spoon. Gently press into the papaya and tomatoes with the spoon to bruise them as well and mix and press a few times.
Portion the salad into bowls or plates and top with the remaining peanuts.
🥗 What to Serve with Som Tum Thai
One of the most classic pairings with Thai green papaya salad is being served with sticky rice and Thai grilled chicken (gai yang).
Sides & Toppings
- Sticky Rice
- Rice Noodles
- Pork Rinds
- Brined Rice Field Crabs
- White Cabbage Wedges
Meal Pairings
- Gai Yang (Thai BBQ Chicken)
- Chicken Satay
- Thai Basil Chicken
- Pork Laab
- Pad See Ew
🍽 Recommended Equipment
While you can make this entire dish with a quality, sharp chef’s knife or cleaver, there’s two items I’d like to highlight here. Neither is completely necessary unless you plan on making this dish or other Thai or Lao salads frequently though.
Julienne Peeler – While I love this set of OXO vegetable peelers for most things, a regular julienne peeler shreds green papaya a bit too finely for green papaya salads. This Kiwi brand julienne peeler is inexpensive though and made specifically for shredding papaya at the correct thickness for som tum salads.
Clay Mortar – I love my granite mortar & pestle for a lot of things, but it would crush the ingredients for som tum salads. The classic tool for this application is a tall clay mortar & wooden pestle. This tool lets you smash and bruise things, without completely destroying softer fruits and vegetables. While you can buy it online, check any Asian or international stores in your area too; I found mine at a local store for about $22.
❄️ Storing Green Papaya Salad
Like most dressed salads, Thai green papaya salad is best enjoyed the day it is made, preferably as soon after making it as possible. If you expect to have leftovers, you can store the salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. I recommend reserving the extra peanuts at room temperature until ready to serve the leftover salad.
If you need to make this salad ahead of time, you can prepare most of the ingredients ahead of time and store them separately. You can prepare and combine the garlic and chilis and the sugar and wet ingredients and store them together in the refrigerator. You can also prep the long beans, papaya, and tomatoes and store them together in the fridge also. Leave the peanuts at room temperature however and combine everything when ready to serve.
📋 Recipe
Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tum Thai)
Ingredients
- 1 medium green papaya, about 2 cups shredded
- 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1-3 Thai red chilis, depending on spice level desired
- 1 ½ tablespoons palm sugar, finely chopped
- 2-3 long beans
- 1 tablespoon dried shrimp, see note
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 2 teaspoons tamarind paste, optional
- 6-8 cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
Directions
Preparing Green Papaya
- Starting with the green papaya, use a peeler to expose the flesh below the thin skin. A standard julienne peeler makes too thin of strips for the salad. If you have a mandolin that can cut julienne strips about ⅛” thick, that can work, or use a julienne peeler made for this like the Kiwi brand ones.
- Another method is to peel the skin and use a sharp chef’s knife or cleaver. Holding the papaya with a strong grip, slap the knife down into the flesh, making lots of cuts close together. Turn the blade so that it’s against the papaya flesh and make thin slices through the deep cuts and you should have the right sized shreds, about 2 packed cups worth.
- Add the shredded green papaya to a bowl of ice water and let it sit for 15 minutes. This will make the shredded papaya nice and crunchy. After the ice bath, drain the papaya thoroughly and set on some paper towels to soak up any extra water.
Clay Mortar & Wooden Pestle
- While the papaya soaks in the ice water, add 2-3 tablespoons of roasted peanuts to the mortar. Using the pestle, smash and crush the peanuts into chunks. You don’t want to reduce them to powder, just pound them into pieces and then remove them and set aside.
- Chop 2 cloves of garlic and 1-3 Thai red chilis into small pieces and then add to the mortar. Pound and grind them into a paste. Finely chop 1 ½ tablespoons of palm sugar and add that to the paste, grinding it into the juices made from the rest until combined.
- Break 2-3 long beans into 2-3” segments and add directly into the mortar. For the dried shrimp, you can add 1 tablespoon of tiny ones directly as well or chop larger ones into smaller pieces (I like to shred them in a spice grinder) and add them also. Use the pestle to bruise and lightly smash open the beans. Add half of the reserved peanuts.
- Cut the lime into large wedges and squeeze in the lime juice, tossing the squeezed lime in as well. Add 2 tablespoons of fish sauce and 2 teaspoons of tamarind concentrate if using and stir into the rest of the ingredients with a spoon.
- Finally, add the drained green papaya and 6-8 halved cherry tomatoes and stir everything together. Alternatively pound everything gently with the pestle and stir with a spoon. Lightly bruise and smash the tomatoes to release their juices.
- Remove from the mortar and serve the salad in a bowl or plate, topping with the rest of the reserved peanuts.
Making Without Mortar & Pestle
- If you don’t have a clay mortar, you can make this by hand. Using a knife, coarsely chop the roasted peanuts and set aside, then finely mince the garlic and Thai red chilis and set into a small bowl.
- Thinly slice the palm sugar and then finely chop it into a powder. Add the sugar to a mixing bowl and add the lime juice, fish sauce, and tamarind paste. Mix until the sugar is dissolved and then add the garlic, chilis, and half the crushed peanuts and mix again.
- Using the flat of your knife, gently smash the long beans so that they’re bruised and split, then chop into 2-3” segments and add that to the mixing bowl as well.
- Finally, add the shredded papaya and sliced tomatoes to the mixing bowl and stir together with a wooden spoon. Gently press into the papaya and tomatoes with the spoon to bruise them as well and mix and press a few times.
- Portion the salad into bowls or plates and top with the remaining peanuts.
Equipment Used
- Spice Grinder (if shredding dried shrimp)
Notes
- Dried shrimp – Omit
- Tamarind concentrate – Omit
- Green papaya – Cucumber, unripe green mango, cabbage
- Thai red chilis – Jalapeno, Fresno, serrano, habanero
- Long beans – Blanched green beans
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