Som Tum

★★★★4.6· 243 ratings

·Serves 2

About this Dish

A vibrant green papaya salad pounded with chilli, lime, fish sauce, dried shrimp and cherry tomatoes.

History & Origin

Som tum — green papaya salad — originated in Laos and northeast Thailand and is one of the most consumed dishes in Thailand. The Isan people who migrated to Bangkok for work brought their food with them, and som tum stalls became fixtures of every Bangkok street corner. The dish is made to order using a large clay mortar — the pounding technique bruises rather than crushes, releasing juices and creating texture rather than mush. Regional variations include som tum thai with peanuts and dried shrimp, and som tum pu with fermented black crab. The fermented versions are considered more authentic to the Isan tradition.

IngredientsServes 2

🥗Green unripe papaya, peeled and shredded, 400g

🍅Cherry tomatoes, halved, 150g

🫘Long beans, cut into 3cm pieces, 100g

🧄Garlic cloves, 3

🌶️Bird's eye chillies, 4-6

🌰Roasted peanuts, 50g

🦐Dried shrimp, 2 tbsp

🫙Fish sauce, 2 tbsp

🍋Lime juice, 3 tbsp

🍬Palm sugar, 1 tbsp

Method

Use a vegetable peeler or julienne peeler to shred the green papaya into long thin strips. Place in a bowl of cold water to keep crisp.

In a large mortar, pound the garlic and chillies to a coarse paste. The number of chillies determines the heat — start with 4 and adjust.

Add the long beans and pound briefly to bruise them. Add the cherry tomatoes and pound gently — you want them cracked, not mushed.

Add the dried shrimp, fish sauce, lime juice and palm sugar. Pound and mix with a spoon simultaneously to combine all the flavours.

Drain the papaya thoroughly and add to the mortar. Use the pestle and a large spoon to toss and pound together, mixing all the dressing through the papaya.

Taste and adjust — som tum should be a fierce balance of sour, spicy, salty and sweet. Transfer to a plate and scatter with crushed roasted peanuts.

What Makes it Authentic

Use a mortar and pestle — not a bowl and spoon. Use green unripe papaya only. Dried shrimp are essential and non-negotiable for authentic flavour.

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