Love the famous Thai green papaya salad but struggle to find the ingredients at your local supermarket? Then this one is for you. It uses carrot instead of papaya but still has the spicy kick. Perfect for a hot summer day, it’s a great salad to serve as a starter or side to your main meal.
Carrot Som Tum
4 small Thai garlic cloves or 2 regular garlic cloves
1 long red chilli, roughly chopped
2 small birds’ eye chillies, roughly chopped
2 tbsp peanuts, toasted
2 heaped cups of finely strips of carrot
50g (1.7 oz) cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp white sugar
- Use a mortar and pestle to pound the garlic and chillies until roughly bruised. Add the peanuts and pound until lightly crushed. Add the carrot and tomato and lightly pound until bruised. Add the fish sauce, lime juice and sugar. Lightly pound and mix until well combined. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking with more fish sauce, lime juice and/or sugar.
