DISH NAME : SOM TAM

Preparation Time : 20 Minutes

Cooking Time : Nil

Chilling Time : 30 minutes

Description

Som tam, which literally means `sour pounded`, is a spicy salad that originated in Thailand. Som tam is usually served with sticky rice or Thai rice noodles.
In Thailand its customary to make the dish suited to his or her taste. The dish combines the 4 main taste of Thai cuisine-sour (Lime), hot (chilli), salty (fish sauce/ soya sauce) and sweet (palm sugar/jaggery).
It is know as bird’s eye chili because birds love to pick the ripe chili,These chillies are very spicy even though small.The small chillies found in Kerala and Meghalaya, India, are birds eye chillies of India. In Kerala it is referred to as 'Kanthari mulagu'. Bird’s eye chili flower faces down and chili faces upward towards the sky. Chilies can also be used as an insect repellent when crushed with water.
Cherry tomatoes are slightly smaller and sweeter than ordinary tomatoes. They are a popular variety of tomato all over the world, and they can be found in lots of salads. They are also remarkably easy to grow, and they mature quickly in hot climates. They are expensive than ordinary tomatoes.
The peanut, or groundnut, is a species in the legume or "bean" family. The peanut was probably first domesticated and cultivated in the valleys of Paraguay. The brown shell or pod of the peanut contains two or three peanut kernels. Each oval-shaped kernel or seed is comprised of two off-white lobes that are covered by a brownish-red skin. Peanuts have a high protein content & mono saturated fats.

Note

1. Pregnant women are generally advised to avoid the dish since it has raw pappaya.
2. Vegetarians can avoid fish sauce.
3. If using regular tomatoes, use only 1 no.
4. Tastes best the next day.
5) Most recipes use green beans in this salad, but i omitted it.
6) If using ordinary tomato, then use only one.

Method

1) Shred raw pappaya and carrots.
2) Soak in ice cold water for about 40 minutes to make it crunchy.
Dressing:
1) Mix soya sauce, lime juice, garlic, palm sugar, fish sauce, chillies chopped and crush well.
2) Slice cherry tomatoes and crush them.
3) Mix in carrots and pappaya, mixing about 10 to 15 times to evenly coat the pappaya with the dressing.
4) Add crushed peanuts and mix well.
5) Serve chilled for 30 minutes.

Serving Suggestions

Seve chilled.