Somtum is the epitome of Thai salads. It is the true taste of the E-sarn region. The biggest trick is using kohlrabi instead of green papaya which allows me to use fresh and local ingredient which is widely available in the UK.
What is Green Papaya Salad?
This type of salad is probably one of the most famous types of salad in Thailand. Most likely because it is inexpensive as it contains no meat. Just fresh green papaya, cut into thin strips tossed in with few other ingredients.
The highlight is the dressing that takes your tastebuds for a rollercoaster ride. It is savoury, yet a bit sweet and tart. And like many of the dishes in Thailand, you will find different variations of it as you travel across the country. More recently the dish has evolved to contain the addition of many popular ingredients such as fresh fruits (tum pon la mai), corn (tum kao phod), salted egg (tum khai kem) and many more.
However, the original version of this traces back to the Northeastern region of Thailand, aka the E-sarn region. Green papaya salad in the local dialect is called tum mak houng while it is known to the rest of the country as somtum.
Amongst the many variations of somtum, the most common version enjoyed in the E-sarn region ALWAYS contains fermented fish sauce (ปลาร้า).
The Key Ingredients in Somtum
My single favourite key ingredient to a legit E-sarn style papaya salad is the addition of fermented fish sauce (pla ra ปลาร้า aka pla daek ปลาแดก). It just lifts the whole dish with an incredible amount of savouriness as well as umami.
Fish Sauce vs. Fermented Fish Sauce
What exactly is fermented fish sauce? What is the difference between fermented and regular fish sauce? I hear you ask. Simply put, fermented fish sauce is like fish sauce but more pungent.
Visually, fish sauce is transparent and has a deep-golden brown tint while the fermented fish sauce is murky and opaque. Fermented fish sauce is mostly made from freshwater fish fermented with salt and the addition of rice. On the contrary, regular fish sauce is made from saltwater fish and just salt.
Tamarind Juice
Tamarind primarily serves as the sour element to a dish. It is the alternative (and sometimes used in conjunction with) citruses to add tartness. Did you know, it is also the main ingredient in Pad Thai seasoning sauce!
You can now pick up a concentrated tamarind juice from grocery stores but it traditionally comes in blocks. To extract the juice, you simply have to mix a bit of the block with hot and let it dissolve.
Substituting Green Papaya with Kohlrabi in Somtum
Kohlrabi, the funky-looking bulb vegetable has officially landed in one of my greatest ingredient discovery. I initially saw it used in a Korean TV show to make kimchi so I gave it a go and there’s no turning back.
For anyone not familiar, kohlrabi is comparable to radish without the peppery taste. Which makes it the perfect green papaya substitute. It has a mild sweet flavour similar to a radish but crispier in texture than a radish when eaten raw. This is my preferred way of enjoying this vegetable.
I will not lie, I have been obsessed with this vegetable since my discovery. On top of the somtum recipe, I have also used it instead of radish to make kimchi as well as the sweet-acidic Vietnamese pickles.
Green Papaya Salad – Somtum Pla-ra Kohlrabi ส้มตำปลาร้า
Ingredients
- 1 head kohlrabi
- 1 clove garlic
- 4 pieces bird's eye chillies
- 2 pieces dried red chillies
- ½ tsp palm sugar
- 2 tsp lime juice (or juice of ½ a lime)
- 2 tbsp tamarind juice
- 2 tbsp fermented fish sauce
- 4 small cherry tomatoes
Instructions
- Peel and slice the kohlrabi into about 5mm-thick matchsticks.
- Prepare the tamarind juice by soaking it in hot water then give it a little massage. Leave it to cool.
- Start making the dressing by pounding garlic and chilli using the pestle and mortar.
- Then add the rest of the dressing: palm sugar, lime juice, fermented fish sauce, and tamarind juice. Make sure to adjust the dressing according to taste.
- Tip the dressing into a mixing bowl together with kohlrabi and halved tomatoes. Toss and plate.
Video
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