Thai Green Papaya Salad Step-by-Step DIY Recipe (with pictures!)

I was preparing a Thai-themed dinner for my sister’s birthday, complete with Pad Thai and Green Curry from The Baos. But it felt like something was missing… (aka my mom said the food I prepared wasn’t enough), so I decided to add one more appetizer aka Thai Green Papaya Salad. The ingredients and recipe itself seemed fairly straightforward, so I was quite excited to try it! Well, I’m not sure if it’s a smashing success – it’s certainly edible, it’s certainly tasty, but I’m not super sure if I achieved the right taste HAHA

My parents are convinced that this is actually atsara, and kept telling me that I should’ve added more vinegar… But it’s not atsara?! I’m pretty sure Thai Green Papaya Salad is supposed to be alternating between sweet and sour. Ugh, never mind. I’m posting the recipe here for my future reference, in case I ever get to taste what Thai Green Papaya Salad tastes like and can therefore come back and check whether or not my version is correct.

 

DELECTABLE DISH FOR THE DAY: THAI GREEN PAPAYA SALAD

DIFFICULTY: Super easy

SERVING SIZE: Good for 5 PEOPLE

PREPARATION TIME: 30 minutes

 

INGREDIENTS FOR THAI GREEN PAPAYA SALAD

• 1 Big Green Papaya, julienned

These are literally unripe papayas, so they’re still hard and green, as opposed to the orange (and sweet) papayas that we’re accustomed to eating. Not only is the look different, but it also tastes completely different. Green papayas have a neutral flavor, similar to cucumbers I supposed

• 1 carrot, julienned
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 5 chili (up to you how many depending on how spicy you want it)
• 3 tbsp fish sauce (patis)
• 5 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/4 lemon, juiced (the original recipe called for lime, but I only had lemon)
• 4 small tomatoes, sliced

 

STEP-BY-STEP PROCESS TO PREPARE THAI GREEN PAPAYA SALAD

STEP 1: Prepare the green papaya and carrots

• Wash the green papaya and carrots, then peel off the outer skin skin. Afterwards, use a cheese grater to julienne the green papaya and carrot

STEP 2: Prepare the dressing

• Add 6 cloves of peeled garlic and 5 chillies (or however many you like) to the mortar. Pound them for a few seconds until the garlic is crushed and chilies are reduced to small bits. This allows the flavor to escape and really makes a difference in your salad

• Add the crushed garlic and chili, the 5 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tbsp of fish sauce, and squeeze the juice from 1/4 of a lemon into the bowl. You can keep adding to the seasoning depending on your preference. Honestly, I’m sure I put more than 5 tbsp brown sugar… I really like my salad sweet
• Mix the dressing well, to make sure all the flavors are well-incorporated

STEP 3: Mix the salad

• Finally, toss in your green papaya and carrot shavings, as well as your sliced tomatoes, then mix everything together. Make sure the green papaya is coated with the dressing, and that everything is evenly mixed all throughout

Step 4: Bon Appetit!

It turned out a bit too liquid-y (I ended up putting in 1 whole lemon because I didn’t know what to do with the remaining half. BIG mistake. Stick to 1/4 of a lemon…