Papaya Salad: great food, or greatest food?

One of my favorite things ever is Thai papaya salad. I don’t remember the first time I had it, but my life has never been the same. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but it is great, and I do love it, and it’s simple. So I think you should make it. One thing you should note, I don’t really believe in recipes. I’ll explain what each ingredient is for, give you a suggestion, but you should season to taste.

Ingredients:

• Fish sauce
• Green Papaya (unripe papaya, can be found in asian markets)
• Brown Sugar
• Thai chilis (little spicy chilis)
• Lime
• Tomato
• Clove Garlic

Optional:

• Crushed Roasted Peanuts ( I always use these)
• Green Beans (Thinly sliced lengthwise)
• bean sprouts (I never use these)
• grated carrots (never use this either)

Directions:

1. Peel the papaya, cut in half, and remove the immature seeds. Grate about two cups of it into a bowl using the large holes on a cheese grater, or a salad shooter.
2. Chop Thai chilis. These are obviously used to spice the dish, and use as many or as few as you want. Start with a quarter of one, taste, and add more if it’s not spicy enough for you.
3. Chop garlic and add to bowl.
4. Squeeze half a lime over the papaya salad, this adds acidity and tartness to the dish.
5. Sprinkle brown sugar over papaya to sweeten. ~ 1.5 Tbsp
6. Add about a tablespoon of fish sauce. Fish sauce is used in place of salt in this dish. It also adds a complexity. Don’t let the fish part scare you, I don’t like fish, but this is a good use, I promise.
7. Stir the salad, taste. Reseason if necessary.
8. Add tomatoes and optional ingredients. Stir again.
9. Enjoy!