About this recipe
Tam mak hoong is the Lao pounded green-papaya salad, made by bruising shredded unripe papaya in a tall mortar with garlic, chilli, long beans, tomato, lime and, above all, padaek — the fermented-fish seasoning that gives the Lao version its dark, savoury, funky character. It is eaten constantly, with sticky rice and raw vegetables, and it is a close cousin of the Thai som tam and other pounded salads across the Mekong region; this book presents the Lao form, which tends to be less sweet and more padaek-forward, and logs the shared-origin questions for verification. The mortar work is the point: the papaya is pounded just enough to bruise and soak up the dressing without turning to mush.
Recipe facts
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Prep
- 25 minutes
- Cook
- None (plus boiling the padaek)
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Spice
- Hot (adjust the chilli)
Allergens Contains fish and shellfish via padaek and fish sauce, and, if added, field crab (shellfish). Contains no dairy, gluten or coconut as written. Vegan/vegetarian only if the padaek, fish sauce and crab are all omitted, which changes the dish. See the halal-status field.
Development draft. This is an untested development recipe from the cookbook project. It has not been kitchen-tested, and the quantities and timings are the author’s working draft rather than a verified result.
Ingredients
The dressing base
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 to 6 fresh Thai chillies, to taste
- 2 tbsp (30 g) padaek (Lao fermented fish), boiled and strained (see notes)
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) fish sauce
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) fresh lime juice
- 1 tbsp (15 g) palm sugar (Lao salads use less than Thai; optional)
The salad
- 4 cups shredded green (unripe) papaya (about 1 small papaya)
- 1 cup long beans, cut into 2 in (5 cm) lengths
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
To serve
- Steamed sticky rice (recipe #91)
- Raw vegetables: cabbage wedges, extra long beans, cucumber
Equipment
- Tall clay or wooden mortar and a wooden pestle (a large mortar works)
- Small saucepan for boiling the padaek
- Sharp knife or papaya shredder
Method
- Boil the padaek: simmer the padaek with 2 tablespoons water for 5 minutes, then strain out any solids and reserve the liquid.
- In the mortar, lightly pound the garlic and chillies to a rough paste.
- Add the long beans and pound a few times to bruise them, then add the tomatoes and bruise them so they release their juice.
- Add the strained padaek, fish sauce, lime juice and the optional palm sugar, and pound and stir to combine into a dark, savoury dressing.
- Add the shredded papaya and pound gently while turning with a spoon, just until the strands are bruised and coated but still have crunch, about 1 minute.
- Taste and adjust: it should be sour, salty, funky and hot, with only a little sweetness. Add more lime, padaek or chilli as needed.
- Serve straight away with sticky rice and a plate of raw vegetables.
From the foundations
The book pairs this recipe with the following, from the sauces, sambals and pastes that open the collection.
The Complete Edition
Tam Mak Hoong (Papaya Salad) sits in the Laos chapter
The book carries this recipe in full alongside the rest of the Laos chapter, the pastes and dips it is built on, and the twenty-seven pantry studies that open the collection.
In review with Amazon KDP
Both editions have been submitted to Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing and are currently in review. Submitted prices are $9.99 for the kindle edition and $49.99 for the paperback. Neither is on sale yet, and prices are as submitted rather than final.