Thailand's largest photos and videos site!
Over 3400 pages, 2800 photos, 100 videos. 1.4+ million pages served

Popular: Thailand PHOTOS Index Thailand VIDEOS Index Thailand E-BOOKS & Articles E-books for Sale Thailand BLOGS Thai Restaurants

Travel Activities: Things to do in Thailand Articles: Thai People and Culture General: Thailand Reference Info

Som Tam - What is it?

What is som tam? And, why is it in the "Thai People" section?

It's a favorite dish among people of Thailand - perhaps THE most favorite dish. Why is so special? It is spicy and has a lot of different tastes to it. It's cheap and can be eaten for any meal - though usually not breakfast.

Ingredients: Unripe papaya shaved into a shredded salad. Red and green chilis. Crushed garlic cloves. Tomatoes. Sometimes a bit of shredded carrot pieces. A favorite addition is "Bla Rah" often pronounced "Bla la". This is a fermented (for 1 year) fish and or crab mixture that has a very addictive taste once it gets you. I must admit a slight addiction for spicy som tam.

Som Tam is often eaten with sticky rice - Kowl Nee-ow. In Isaan among friends people eating it may use their hands to ball up the rice before dipping it into the bowl of som tam.

It's really delicious - and, as I said, it's addictive.

Here is a recipe for it on my wife's blog... Joy's Thai Food Recipe and Cooking Blog

Som Tam is in the "Thai People" section because Som Tam IS Thai People. Does that make grammatical sense? I'm not sure. Nor does it make logical sense, it's a simple dish but the Thais' are nuts over it. Myself included and I'm not sure why. It is sour, salty, and full of blistering spice - all things I like. But really, it's so simple...

[Video]

Here is a short video of a woman making som tam in Isaan at a night market. Som Tam Maker

Thai Buddha and other Buddhist Amulets shipped from Thailand. Authentic.

Main links: Thailand Videos Thailand photos Thailand News Thailand Hotel Reservations Weather