Prepare: 2 cups coarsely graded unripe Papaya 1/2 cup diced tomatoes 1-4 small red or green chilis (in Isaan we often use 10 or more!) 2 garlic cloves 1 long squirt of fish sauce 1 lemon/lime (minao in Thai) 1/4 cup yardlong beans (green beans) if you wish Dash of salt, sugar to preference (1 tsp)
Instructions 1. Combine chili peppers, garlic, tomatoes, salt, sugar, with mortar and pestle. 2. Squirt in some fish oil and squeeze the lemon juice into the mix. Add the papaya in small groups to make sure it mixes well.
Som Tam (Spicy papaya salad with fermented fish/crab sauce)
5 peppers 3 garlic 1 tomato (sliced) 1 eggplant (sliced) 1 fermented crab 1 handfull chopped papaya 1 tbsp. fish sauce 3 tbsp. fermented fish juice (Blarah) 2 pieces lemon 1 tsp. sugar or palm sugar
Cooking Instruction: 1. Pound peppers and garlic together. Add tomato, eggplant, and fermented crab. Then, mix it with fish sauce, Blarah, lemon, and sugar.
2. Use a pestle to press and mix all the ingredients together.
3. Put papaya in and mix it by pestle. Now it's ready to be served.
4. Lay fresh vegetable, cucumber, cabbage, string bean or morning glory for example, on a side.
Tip Using a pestle to pound and mix the ingredients with papaya makes the sauce get in the papaya better than stirring. It will also make your Somtam juicy.