Recipes

Ingredients

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1. Green Papaya: 2 cups, peeled and julienned into thin, crunchy strips
2. Garlic: 2 small cloves, peeled
3. Thai Bird's Eye Chilies: 1 to 3 pieces, according to your heat tolerance
4. Roasted Peanuts: 3 tablespoons, unsalted
5. Dried Shrimp: 1 heaping tablespoon, roughly chopped
6. Chinese Long Beans: 2 pieces, cut into 2-inch lengths
7. Cherry Tomatoes: 5 pieces, sliced in half
8. Palm Sugar: 1 ½ tablespoons, finely chopped
9. Fish Sauce: 1 ½ tablespoons (such as Red Boat Fish Sauce)
10. Fresh Lime Juice: 2 tablespoons
11. Tamarind Paste: 2 teaspoons

Directions

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1. Crisp the Papaya: Soak your shredded green papaya in ice water for 15 minutes. Drain it completely and pat thoroughly dry with a clean towel. Dry papaya prevents the dressing from watering down.
2. Pound Aromatics: Place the garlic and chilies into the mortar. Pound them with the pestle for about 30 seconds until coarsely crushed but not pasted.
3. Build Flavors: Add the palm sugar, dried shrimp, and half of the peanuts. Pound gently to break up the peanuts and dissolve the sugar.
4. Bruise Veggies: Toss in the long beans and cherry tomatoes. Use the pestle to lightly bruise them so they release their natural juices into the mix.
5. Emulsify Dressing: Pour in the fish sauce, lime juice, and tamarind paste. Stir with a large spoon to fully integrate the liquid flavors.
6. Toss and Serve: Add the crisp green papaya strips. Use the pestle in one hand to gently bruise the papaya, while simultaneously using a large spoon in the other hand to flip and mix everything together. Transfer to a plate, sprinkle with the remaining roasted peanuts, and serve immediately.