Salads
Som Tam ส้มตำ · sôm tam
Pounded green papaya salad — the fiery sound of Isaan street food.
- Spice
- Hot
- Also called
- Green Papaya Salad, Papaya Pok Pok, Som Tum
- Virtual price
- ฿55
What it is
Som Tam is a salad of shredded unripe green papaya pounded in a clay mortar with chilli, garlic, lime, fish sauce, palm sugar, tomatoes, long beans and peanuts. The rhythmic 'pok pok' of the pestle is the sound of Thai street food.
How it tastes
Bright, crunchy and aggressive: sour lime, salty fish sauce, sweet palm sugar and serious chilli heat, with the fresh crunch of raw papaya. The Isaan version (som tam pla ra) adds funky fermented fish sauce.
Where it comes from
From Isaan (northeastern Thailand) and Laos, where green papaya and fermented fish are staples. Now eaten across the whole country.
Ingredients
- Green (unripe) papaya
- Bird's eye chilli
- Garlic
- Lime
- Fish sauce
- Palm sugar
- Cherry tomatoes
- Long beans
- Peanuts
- Dried shrimp
How it's made
Garlic and chilli are pounded first, then palm sugar, lime and fish sauce, and finally the papaya, beans and tomatoes are bruised gently with the pestle so they soak up the dressing without turning to mush.
Variations
- Som Tam Thai (sweet, with peanuts)
- Som Tam Pla Ra (with fermented fish)
- Som Tam Poo (with salted crab)
- Tam Sua (with rice noodles)
- Tam Taeng (cucumber instead of papaya)
Where to eat it
Isaan food stalls, som tam carts and markets everywhere; usually eaten with sticky rice and grilled chicken.
