Salads are a great way to lose weight quickly; they are light, so you don’t feel heavy and tired after you eat — and are cooling. One of my all-time favorite salads is the Thai green papaya salad.
Growing up in Darwin, going to the weekly markets and buying a green papaya salad was a treat for all of us. My parents would only buy two so we’d have to share, and when something tastes this good, it’s hard to share. We would all scoff as much as we could before the other could get it.
For me, this is the perfect salad for a hot climate — even if there is chili in it.
Thai green papaya salad has many different flavors
The mixture of sweet, sour, and hot dances on your taste buds, and combine that with crunchy peanuts and small amounts of tomato, and there is nothing more perfect to eat.
After leaving Darwin, I had to learn to make this salad on my own. Aside from being utterly delicious, it’s very healthy; the salad is free from saturated fat, is a source of protein, and is rich in vitamin C due to the green papaya.
Here is a recipe that I used, and it is spot on how they make it in Bangkok. However, I have never eaten it with snake beans.
Ingredients
- 1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1-3 chilies, chopped — remember the smaller the chili, the hotter
- 2 tbsp of roasted peanuts
- 2 snake beans, cut to 4 cm lengths
- 2 cups of green papaya yielded from 1 small, firm fruit
- 8 cherry tomatoes, halved or dice 1 large tomato
- 2-3 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp palm or raw sugar
Method
As you crush and pound, use a spoon to lift and mix ingredients from the base of the mortar.
- Add garlic and chili, and smash to a rough paste.
- Add peanuts and crush until they are chunky, not a paste.
- Add sugar, lime juice, and fish sauce, and LIGHTLY pound and mix well.
- Add papaya, beans, and tomato, and LIGHTLY bruise and mix together.
- Taste and adjust seasoning as required.
So if you haven’t tried this, I suggest you do. I have made this for numerous people and turned them into Thai papaya salad lovers.
