Som Tum (Papaya Salad) Part 1 original recipe!!!

Papaya salad

This is the number one of E-sann(Northeatsen)food “Som-tom” (Papaya salad). We almost call this dish the nation’s food of Thailand. That’s because they have it to sell everywhere and everyone loves it!! The ingredients of Som Tum is young papaya, chili, sherry tomato, lime juice, fish sauce and different ingredients depend on what people tastes, but some add nut, sugar, shrimp we call Som Tum Thai.  Some add fermented rice pattern crab call Som Tom Poo. The top chart is Som Tom Pra-Rha. Pra-rha is fermented fish with rice salt, some people add garlic depending on the recipe. It smells very strong and even some Thai folk cannot handle it (one of them is my dad).  Also some people use carrot, cucumber, long bean or fruit like apple, grape instead of papaya.  They just call Som-tum first word and follow with that ingredient  Ex. Som-Tum Pon la Mai (Som Tum fruit salad). 

In this blog I started with the original Som Tum Thai Recipe and continued the next blog with modern Thai food style Som tum Thai recipe.  Later on (after you get to use Thai food more) I will add more Som Tum recipes for you one bit at a time.

Som Tum Thai : Original recipe

Ingredients

1 medium carrot chopped

Green Papaya Salad

1 hand full chopped green papaya

1 long bean cut into 1 inch.

2-3 cherry tomatoes cut in half

2-3 globes of garlic

1-1 ½ lime juice

1-2 tbsp. fish sauce

1-2 tsp. Sugar

3 tbsp. peanut

1-7 Thai chili (depends on your spicy level)

Mortar and pestle

Cooking Instructions :  Original recipe

Original Som tum has to use the tool that’s called “Krok and  Sahk” or mortar and pestle.  It’s the best way to make it, because it makes the ingredients mix well and Som-Tum juicy,  but if you don’t have one I have the way you can enjoy Som-tum without it in the next blog Som Tum Modern Thai Food style.

1.       In the mortar put garlic and Thai chili and pound with pestle together about 5-8 times

2.       Add 1 tbsp. peanut, 1 tbsp. dried shrimp  and long beans pound it 2-3 times until it brakes

3.       Add lime juice, fish sauce, sugar and mix it well

4.       Add carrot and green papaya, pound 2-3 times and tomatoes pound and mix it together.

5.       Pour Som-tum on serving plate, garnish with remaining peanut and dried shrimp.

Note : you can use carrot or cucumber instead of papaya.



And next time I will show you how to make Som Tum with out mortar and pastle.