Papaya Salad (Thai)

Som Tum Thai is the sweeter, milder version of green papaya salad that’s commonly served in Thai restaurants. It’s balanced with lime, palm sugar, and fish sauce, without fermented ingredients like pla ra or pickled crab. This is often the first papaya salad people try, and it’s a great introduction to Thai flavors.

Jump to:

• What is Papaya Salad?
• What Does Som Tum Mean?
• Why you'll Love Thai papaya Salad
• Thai Papaya Salad Recipe Ingredients
• How to Make Thai Papaya Salad
• Serving Green Papaya Salad
• Green Papaya Salad Recipe Variations
• Papaya Salad Recipe Tips
• Storing Leftover Thai Papaya Salad
• Helpful Tools to Make Thai Papaya Salad
• Frequently Asked Questions
• More Papaya Salad & Isaan Recipes to Try
• Thai Green Papaya Salad Recipe (Som Tum)

What is Papaya Salad?

Papaya salad is a cold salad made with shredded green papaya that is still young, green, and not yet ripe. The papaya is lightly pounded with garlic, chiles, and other vegetables, then seasoned with fish sauce and lime juice to make a salty, sweet, sour, and salty salad with light umami-tasting salad. 

What Does Som Tum Mean?

Som Tom in Thai means to pound (something) with a sour (taste). “Som” means sour, and “Tum“ means to pound. So basically, any vegetable used to make this dish must have been pounded in a sour agent. So you can make Som Tum using green beans or Som Tum cucumber. 

There are countless versions of this Thai green papaya salad in Thai cuisine and other cuisines in Southeast Asia. This Thai version is one of the easiest and mildest to make and is most likely the version you can order at your favorite Thai restaurant.

Why you'll Love Thai papaya Salad

• This salad is a flavor bomb waiting to go off in every bite! 
• It has the fresh ingredients that make this salad fresh and vegetable-forward.
• It can be eaten as a side dish, as appetizer or as a full meal. 

Thai Papaya Salad Recipe Ingredients

This recipe does not use pla ra or fermented crab. For those versions, see Som Tum Isaan or Som Tum Pu Pla Ra. Below are the ingredients and helpful tools you need to make Thai Papaya Salad. You can find a few items online with a link below.

• Papaya. The main ingredient. Make sure it's a young, unripe green papaya.
• Garlic. Use fresh garlic cloves. Garlic paste is not recommended. 
• Thai chili peppers. Use fresh chiles to make this spicy green papaya salad. Thai bird's eye chili is traditional, but long spur chilies are ok too. Some recipes used dried peppers, too, but we'll save that for another spicier recipe. (:
• Green beans. They are also called yard-long beans, snake beans, or string beans. They are the long beans, 2-3 feet long sometimes. They are sold at Asian grocery stores. Regular greens and beans are ok as substitutes.
• Thai eggplants. This sour, sweet, salty Thai salad adds a tart and crunchy texture. They are often used raw in many Thai dishes. 
• Cherry tomatoes. Sliced the tomato pieces in halves. Roma and other types of sweet tomatoes are great for the salad. 
• Palm sugar. Used in the traditional way of making Som Tum. But nowadays, any sweetener will do. White, monk fruit or brown sugar can be used. I LOVE using agave for mine! I have never used coconut sugar before but experiment and let me know!
• Dried shrimp. Adds the extra umami and lightly chewy texture to this delicious salad. 
• Tamarind juice. Also called tamarind paste, sauce, or concentrate. It adds a wonderful sour note that is not quite as strong as the lime juice. 
• Fish sauce. This is where most of the salty taste comes from. Don't skip it or substitute soy sauce for Som Tam Thai recipes. 
• Fresh lime juice. Always use fresh lime juice. 
• Shredded carrots. It adds a nice color to the salad. Use a julienne peeler to peel into long small pieces.
• Unsalted roasted peanuts. Raw peanuts can be used too, but I suggest roasting them first for the extra nutty and earthy taste. 

How to Make Thai Papaya Salad

Step 1. Prepare the green papaya. Wash, and pat dry with paper towels. You can cut the peeled papaya in half before peeling it if it's easier to grip the fruit with your fingers. Peel the skin off of the papaya with a sharp knife. Learn how to shred papaya salad here.

Step 2. Rinse the papaya again with cold water as sticky saps will ooze from the peeled papaya skin. Pat dry, then peel the raw papaya into small pieces with the kiwi peeler. Place the peeled papaya slices into a large bowl of ice water to keep them fresh and crunchy for the pounding. Save the rest of the papaya for more salads for the next few days. 

Step 3. Add garlic and chilis in a large mortar and pestle. Lightly pound the garlic and chilis. Do not turn it into a paste. Also, have a large spoon ready to scrape and flip the ingredients alongside the wooden mortar.

Step 4. Add the green beans, Thai eggplants, and peanuts. Pound until bruised but not crushed.  

Step 5. Add the sliced tomatoes, palm sugar, tamarind sauce, fish sauce, and lime juice. Toss the squeezed lime wedges into the mortar as well. They add a subtle bitter note from the lime zest that balances the salad. Use the spoon often to scrape, scoop and stir all the ingredients for an even mixing. 

Step 6. Add the shredded papaya, shredded carrot, and dried shrimp. Lightly pound everything together well using a large spoon to stir and mix the ingredients in the mortar.

Step 7. Taste the finished salad and adjust with more sugar, lime juice, or fish sauce until you get the best taste for your salad.  Use the spoon to scoop and turn the salad in the mortar before serving. Sprinkle more crushed peanuts on top before place in a serving plate.  That’s it! Enjoy!

Serving Green Papaya Salad

Eat your Thai papaya salad with sticky rice, jasmine rice, rice vermicelli noodles, leafy lettuce, water spinach, long green beans, and pork rind, or eat it as a main meal.

Green Papaya Salad Recipe Variations

There are many variations of papaya salad across Thailand. This recipe focuses on the sweet and mild Thai version commonly served in restaurants. More traditional Isaan versions use fermented fish sauce and crab for bolder flavors.

Papaya Salad Recipe Tips

• Thai papaya salad is best enjoyed immediately while all the flavors are still fresh. I do not recommend having any leftovers at all! (: Well, you won't want to anyway, trust me. 
• Green papaya comes in many sizes, and you'll most likely have leftover green papaya to make a few more salads. Partially peel the skin off for each salad to help keep the papaya fresh and crunchy for your next salad. 
• The finer you pound your chiles in the mortar, the spicier your salad will be. More of the oils get released and make your salad extra spicy! 
• Pound the peanuts with chiles and garlic for a nutty and creamy texture. 
• If you don't have sticky rice, use jasmine rice. If you avoid carbs, eat the salad as your main course and use leafy greens like romaine lettuce, cabbage, or butter lettuce as a salad wrap.

Storing Leftover Thai Papaya Salad

• Keep the remaining papaya in a zip-lock bag in the refrigerator for up to a week. 
• You can always shred extra papaya for your next salad to help save some time. Keep the smaller pieces in a ziplock plastic bag in the fridge. 
• The salad will not keep well as leftovers. The vegetables will get soggy and lose flavor. The papaya sometimes tastes bitter if the salad is eaten as leftovers. Make only enough for one meal and make it fresh the next time you want some tasty Thai papaya salad.

Frequently Asked Questions

More Papaya Salad & Isaan Recipes to Try

• Som Tum Isaan – A bolder Isaan-style papaya salad made with fermented fish sauce
• Som Tum Pu Pla Ra – Traditional papaya salad with fermented crab and pla ra
• Thai Sticky Rice (Khao Niew) – The classic way papaya salad is eaten in Thailand
• Lao papaya salad
• Lao cucumber salad
• Green Mango Salad

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