COPPERSom tam recipe
Shredded green papaya bruised in a mortar with chilli, lime, fish sauce and palm sugar until it is sour, hot, salty and sweet at once.
Ingredients
- 400 g green papaya
- 4 long beans
- 8 cherry tomatoes
- 40 g roasted peanuts
- 2 tbsp dried shrimp
- 2 clove garlic
- 3 birds eye chillies
- 1 tbsp palm sugar
- 2 limes
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
How to make Som tam
- Peel the 400 g green papaya and shred it into thin strips. Soak them in iced water for about 15 minutes, then drain and pat very dry.
- Pound the 2 garlic cloves and the chillies (up to 3, to taste) to a rough paste in a large mortar.
- Add the 1 tbsp palm sugar and pound until it melts into the paste, then add the juice of the 2 limes and the 2 tbsp fish sauce and stir to dissolve. Taste: equal parts sour, hot, salty, sweet.
- Cut the 4 long beans into 5 cm pieces and pound just until they split. Add the 8 tomatoes, halved, and crush them lightly.
- Add the papaya and pound gently while turning with a spoon, so it drinks the dressing without turning to mush.
- Fold in the 40 g peanuts and 2 tbsp dried shrimp. Eat at once.
What is Som tam?
Som tam is a traditional dish from Thailand, and takes about 35 minutes from start to finish. It is built around green papaya and roasted peanuts. The recipe below uses 10 ingredients and is written out step by step.
How long does Som tam take?
At 35 minutes it is quicker than 92% of the 586 dishes in Copper's atlas. Copper's atlas has 4 dishes built on green papaya. The method runs to 6 steps, the longest being 15 minutes.
Any tips for making Som tam?
Pound the papaya gently and keep turning it with a spoon: it should soak up the dressing, not turn to mush.
How Som tam compares
Hard to find elsewhere: long beans (1), cherry tomatoes (1) and birds eye chillies (2).
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