Lao Papaya Salad (Som Tam)
What is Lao Papaya Salad?
Lao papaya salad (tam mak hoong) is shredded green papaya pounded with chilies, garlic, lime, fish sauce, shrimp paste, crab paste and salted crab. It's funkier and spicier than the Thai version, and it's best with sticky rice.
Lao Papaya Salad (Som Tam)
Ingredients
- ½ medium papaya shredded
- ½ tablespoon shrimp paste
- ½ teaspoon crab paste
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 tablespoon sugar
- 1 lime juiced
- 3-4 salted crab + 2 teaspoon juices 'ba khia' in Vietnamese
- 10 Thai chilis
- 5 garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon MSG
- 1 large tomato sliced thinly
- 3-4 long string bean sliced into 1" pieces
Instructions
- Add your Thai chilis, garlic, and MSG to the mortar and smash until paste-like consistency.
- Add sugar, shrimp paste, crab paste, fish sauce, lime. Combine well.
- Add tomato, string bean, and lightly smash so tomato can release juices.
- Add your salted crab with juices and combine well.
- Add papaya and combine well.
- Serve with cabbage and pork rinds with sticky rice and/or rice vermicelli.