Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam)

If you've never tried it, papaya salad is a refreshing (but spicy) first course served in Thailand.  It's got something for everyone's food allergy, too - peanuts, shrimp, and cilantro.  So be careful who you serve this to.  And don't worry if you can't find shrimp paste, since I didn't feel that it added much to the dish, plus it smells... strange.

The recipe provides a fun exercise in taste testing, wherein you get to adjust at the end for sweetness, saltiness, and tartness using three different ingredients.  So even if you abandoned your dreams of culinary school, you can still practice working out each group of your taste buds and feel like a chef for a fleeting moment.

And if you need even MORE reasons to make this, well, let me tell you about papaya.  Did you know that it is a digestive aid?  That it's high in vitamins B and C, dietary fiber, and other minerals?  That it's being studied as a suppressor of liver cancer, and as a contraceptive?  That it has antifungal properties, and its leaves are used to treat malaria?  Or my favorite bizarre 'fact':

"Harrison Ford was treated for a ruptured disc incurred during filming of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom by papain (made from papaya) injections."  -Wikipedia, citing the book Harrison Ford: The Films

This recipe was taken practically verbatim from About.com's Thai food page, which is a really good source of information if you're looking to branch out.

Papaya salad - a good way to wake up your taste buds

Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam)
by Darlene Schmidt

• 1/2 tsp. shrimp paste (if vegetarian, substitute 1/2 Tbsp. Thai golden mountain sauce OR 1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce)
• 2 Tbsp. good-tasting oil, such as olive
• 2 Tbsp. fish sauce OR 2+1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce for vegetarians
• 3 Tbsp. lime juice
• 1/2 to 1 Tbsp. liquid honey, to taste
• 1 small green papaya, OR 1/2 large (your papaya should be very firm, the flesh white to light orange in color)
• 1/2 cup roasted peanuts, or cashews
• 1-2 cups bean sprouts
• 1 to 2 tomatoes, cut into long thin strips, or 1/2 pound cherry tomatoes
• 1 red chili, minced (seeds removed if you prefer a milder salad)
• 3 spring onions, sliced into long matchstick-like pieces
• 1/2 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped if leaves are large
• handful of fresh cilantro

This is what papaya looks like.  I believe the seeds are black when it's ripe

Most of the remaining ingredients.  The shrimp paste is particularly scary

I used a couple of cherry tomato varieties rather than large tomatoes

Prepare the dressing by mixing together the first five ingredients together in a cup. Make sure shrimp paste (if using) and honey dissolve fully.  Set aside.

Peel the green papaya, then slice it in half and remove all the seeds.  Using the largest grater you have, grate the papaya.  If you have a mandoline, things will be a lot more consistent and will go a lot faster, plus you get the opportunity to get stitches.  Place in a large bowl.

Papaya, after a run through the mandoline.  Note the absence of fingertips from the mandoline blade

Shred the green onions to the same shape as the papaya

Add the sliced tomato, spring onion, chili, bean sprouts, and most of the basil.  Add the dressing, tossing to combine.  Add only as much dressing as you think will be necessary - this makes a bit more than I thought should have been in there, and as a result it became too watery by the end.

Add the peanuts / cashews (I prefer to chop, but you can leave them whole).  Toss again, and taste.  If not sweet enough, add a little more honey.  If not salty enough, add a little more fish sauce.  If too sweet or salty, add more lime juice.  If you prefer it spicier, add more fresh-cut chili or dried crushed chili.

To serve, scoop the salad into individual bowls or onto a serving platter.  Sprinkle with remaining basil leaves plus fresh coriander, and serve immediately.