Hello everyone, I'm back in the kitchen today with a special dish, one of my favorites: Som Tum, a popular Northeastern Thai dish. Many Thais are familiar with it. But today, instead of papaya, I'm using kohlrabi, a type of cabbage that comes in both green and purple varieties. It tastes similar to radish but is milder, meaning the smell isn't as pungent. Kohlrabi can be used as a substitute for papaya. Today, I want to share my recipe for Som Tum with kohlrabi, including the ingredients and how to make it.
Ingredients
- 1 head of kohlrabi
- 1 carrot
- 4-5 tomatoes
- 2-3 of Fresh or dried chilies
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 tablespoon of fermented fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon of fish sauce
- 100 grams of rice noodles
Instructions
- Blanch the rice noodles first, as dry noodles take time to blanch. Today, I'm adding a boiled egg to balance the spiciness and add protein to the meal. Boil the egg for 6 minutes from the moment the water boils.
- Wash all the vegetables thoroughly, then peel the kohlrabi and chop it into thin strips. Do the same with the carrots. Then soak both in ice-cold water to keep them crisp.
- Next, season the dish. Combine dried chilies and garlic (fresh chilies are also acceptable; adjust the amount to your liking – I personally use two to three small ones) and finely chop the garlic, but not too much.
Then, add the tomatoes and lemon (or limes if you have them). Add about four tomatoes, squeeze in the lemon juice, and include the zest for added aroma. Season with fermented fish sauce and regular fish sauce, then mix everything together.
Taste the dish. If you like it sweeter, you can add sugar. I personally don't like sugar, so I didn't add any. Adjust the seasonings to your liking; there's no fixed recipe.
- Once seasoned, add the soaked kohlrabi and carrots and mash them together. Don't mix too vigorously; the focus is on incorporating the seasonings into the mixture.
- Finally, add the cooked rice noodles, rinsed with clean water, to the papaya salad. Anyone who doesn't add noodles can still make this delicious dish. Some people don't like noodles. In Northeastern Thai cuisine, adding noodles would be called "Tam Sua." Mix everything together until well combined, then prepare to serve.
- Serve with boiled eggs and fresh vegetables. The flavor is spicy, salty, and savory, with sweetness from the carrots and tomatoes – a delicious, well-balanced, and flavorful dish. This is a recipe for Som Tum Korabi, another dish adapted from papaya, but it tastes great and can be made with a substitute for papaya. If you want to try making it, you can adapt this recipe and adjust the ingredients; I guarantee it will be just as delicious as papaya salad.
I hope everyone enjoys my cooking recipe. Thank you for your support and I wish you a good day!