Som Tam Salad, A Way To Get The Health Benefits of Green Papaya

Roasted peanut is normally added last while Som Tam is prepared. Images: bonappetit.com and cooking.nytimes.com

There are many benefits of papaya to our health. Green papaya is especially good for woman. It helps to make a woman, become a better woman, physically.

Ripe papaya is easy to eat. In the form of juice or just raw. But how to eat a raw green papaya? That’s where the role of Som Tam comes into play. A sweet sourly salad that you can take it alone or together with rice.

The time was almost midnight. We were still on the road from Bukit Kayu Hitam passing Juru on our way to Kuala Lumpur.

A meeting was scheduled with my long lost friend. Found and connected with him through the social media.

We took the exit at Bukit Tambun and he was there waiting for us after the toll. We then followed him. It is common that at night time only Tom Yam Restaurants are opened.

Sitting at the outdoor section of the restaurant, we chat, discussed, and laughed. Old memories came back. Stories after stories about our craziness or even stupidity (bravery) during childhood.

Yeah... you must have the same memories came up when meeting an old long lost friend.

Thinly grated green papaya using a grating knife. Image: thecullinarylibrary.com

A few distance away, a beautiful young lady caught my attention. She is busy preparing a dish. Something that I had never seen before. It looks like she is grating a small raw and green papaya.

Inside a special container that looks like a big bowl made from wood, she combined the grated papaya with sliced tomato, few cuts of long bean, and few chilly, plus other ingredients.

Mortar and pestle as a traditional utensil in the preparation of Som Tam. Image: foodloversnest.blogspot.com

After a few minutes of meshing and mixing she scooped the content and placed it on a plate.

It looks beautiful and delicious. I can’t stand form my curiosity and step towards her.

“What is the name of this dish?” I asked without shame.

Deliciously looking Som Tam. Image: huffingtonpost.com

“Som Tam”, replied her with a beautiful and welcoming smile. At the same time I can see few other ingredients she used to make her deliciously looking Som Tam.

If you like to try making your own Som Tam, below is the recipe.

The Recipe of Som Tam, the Green Papaya Salad from Thailand

Ingredients

1 Bowl of grated green papaya. Approximately ¼ to 1/8 of the fruit depending on the size.

2 Tomatoes of small size or 1 if the size is big. Chopped into cubical or sliced triangularly.

3-4 Small chilly (cabai Melaka or Cili padi)

2 Cloves of garlic, sliced thin

¼ - ½ of lime. Squeeze the juice

2 Spoons (means table spoon) of jaggery (gula kabung or gula Melaka)

1 Spoon of fish sauce (adjust the quantity according to your taste)

2 Spoons of tamarind sauce

½ Spoon of fine salt (adjust the amount according to your taste)

3 Spoon of dry roasted ground peanut

1 Spoon of dried shrimp

Preparation

1. Place the jaggery in the mortar and crush it using the pestle.

2. Then add garlic and chilly. Crush it gain. Adding a little bit of the papaya will help mix the garlic and chilly more consistently.

3. Put in the mortar tomato, fish sauce, tamarind sauce and salt. Mix them thoroughly.

4. Put in the shredded papaya, dried shrimp, and lime juice.

5. Using a spoon, mix all the ingredients gently to avoid damaging the papaya strips.

6. Transfer the whole content of the mortar into a bowl.

7. Top it up with ground nut and ready for serving.

Fish sauce from Thailand. One of the main ingredient for Som Tam. Image: importfood.com

Jaggery, also known as Gula Kabung or Gula melaka is a traditional non-centrifugal sugar either from palm or sugar cane. Source Google Images.

Summary
The benefits of green papaya is only realized when it is taken as a food. This part is mainly focus on making a green papaya tasty to eat. As a salad or as a complimentary dish to be taken along with rice and other dishes.

The next article presents a bit more depth on the benefits of papaya. Other rare things you wouldn’t normally see about papaya are also presented.