Som Tam Thai

I made this popular Thai salad for the very first time.   It is a green papaya salad that comes from Northeastern Thailand.  Ingredients: green papaya, carrots, green long beans, cherry tomatoes, fresh garlic, chillies, dried shrimp, palm sugar, juicy limes, fish sauce and roasted peanuts.

In Thailand, you often eat Som Tam with slices of grilled pork neck and roasted chicken.  And you have to have sticky rice!

It's sour, spicy, sweet, salty and savory. 

 There's also a lot of fiber and vitamins, and it's low in calories, fats and carbs.

These peanuts came from South Alabama, where my husband is from.

Last June, we went to the restaurant Saibaiji in Bangkok.  Check out some of the Som Tams on their menu.

Ingredients can really vary: pickled crabs, fermented fish sauce,  Mama noodles, mixed fruit, sweet corn, green mango, salted eggs, guava, grilled pork, lotus roots, glass noodles, young coconut and mixed seafood.

Click here for more of our photos at Sabaijai.  The menu is unbelievable.

And click here for the ultimate guide to Som Tam.

For ingredients like green papaya, fish sauce and dried shrimp, I like YZ Asian Market in Asheville.