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Beat the Heat: The Best Wine Pairing with Papaya Salad (ส้มตำ)

One of my favorite dishes when visiting Thailand is som tam, or green papaya salad. This cool, fresh, flavorful dish is the perfect way to beat the summer heat. Plus, it is filled with digestive enzymes, nutrients, and antioxidants. However, returning to America, I find the som tam served in restaurants here just isn’t the same. Ever since, I have been on a quest to recreate the same som tam I tasted on the streets of Thailand. Read on for my full recipe, tips, and wine pairing with papaya salad.

Unripe green papaya – exterior
Unripe green papaya – interior
Shredding raw papaya using a julienne peeler
Adding remaining ingredients
Lightly pounding and tossing
Noodle-like consistency of som tam

Tips to Create Authentic Som Tam (Papaya Salad) at Home

1. Take the Time to Shred

One of the biggest differences I notice between som tam served in Thailand versus America is the thickness of the papaya shreds. In Thailand, the papaya is julienned very thin, almost to the thickness of a ramen noodle. In America, perhaps because restaurants are trying to save time, som tam is cut much thicker. As a result, it is tougher to eat – imagine crunching into a salad of raw carrots. While traditionally the papaya flesh is scored with a knife, I prefer to use this (slightly safer) julienne peeler.

2. Give it a Light Pounding

Raw green papaya is pretty crunchy. If you lightly pound the shredded papaya with a mortar and pestle (or bowl and pestle), it is much easier to eat. Pounded papaya shreds have a texture that is almost noodle-like. You should be able to wind them around your fork. Som tam also should not require much effort to chew; it should have a texture closer to cucumber slivers than carrot. To note, you don’t need to spend that much time with the mortar and pestle. When the papaya is shredded thinly, it bruises easily and doesn’t require much pounding.

3. Go For a Balance of Flavors

Thai food is known for being spicy, sour, salty, and sweet all at once. No one flavor should overpower the others. At many American Thai restaurants, I have found that the som tam is too sweet. This recipe aims for balance between the flavors.

4. Make it Ahead

Shredding green papaya is time-consuming. Chances are, you won’t have the time to make som tam right before serving it alongside other dinner dishes. The great news? In my opinion, som tam actually tastes a little better when it has been refrigerated for a few hours, and up to a day. The green papaya soaks up the flavor of the sauce, and actually seems to get a little sweeter and less vegetal. 

Wine Pairing with Papaya Salad

For wine pairings, I tested som tam against the realm of white wines that typically pair well with salads – those with high acidity, little to no oak, and a crisp, light body. These included a crisp French Rosé, a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, an Italian Pinot Bianco, and an off-dry Austrian Riesling.

wine pairing with papaya salad

What’s the winning wine pairing with papaya salad? It depends on whether you are making a salad that is spicy or mild.

  • If your papaya salad is spicy (or has at least one Thai chili pepper), pick an off-dry white wine. Spice overpowers wine’s delicate aromatics, blocking the palate and making many wines taste flavorless. Sugar, however, has the power to stand up to the heat of chili peppers. Off-dry Vouvray (Chenin Blanc) and Riesling Spätlese are two great examples of wines that have the sweetness and acidity to stand up to spicy papaya salad. 
  • If your papaya salad is mild, consider a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Unripe papaya tastes far more like a vegetable than a fruit. Coupled with green beans and garlic, you have a pretty crunchy, green-tasting dish! New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc is one of the boldest white wines, and has intensity to pop against the strong flavors of vegetables. It also has high levels of pyrazines, the compound that produces bell pepper-like flavors. If you normally find New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc a bit in-your-face, I encourage you to try it with papaya salad and see how it softens.

If you dislike off-dry wines or Sauvignon Blanc, a more delicate Gruner Veltliner or Rosé also can work with Som Tam. Both have the crisp acidity to match the sauce, along with melon and herbal aromatics to match the salad. However, bear in mind that these varietals’ more delicate floral and stone fruit flavors will be lost against the bold flavors of fish sauce, tomatoes, and other ingredients.

wine pairing with papaya salad

Easy Thai Papaya Salad (Som Tam, ส้มตำ)

Ingredients

For the Salad

  • 1/2 raw green papaya, shredded
  • 1/2 cup long beans (or green beans)
  • 1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved
  • 1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • Optional: Thai red chili (but note: too much chili and it won't work well with wine!)

For the Dressing

  • 1.5 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 2 tablespoons palm sugar, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Instructions

    1. Mix the dressing ingredients. You may need to heat up the liquid in the microwave for about 20 seconds to melt the palm sugar.
    2. Lightly pound garlic with a mortar and pestle. Then, add green beans and tomatoes, and continue lightly pounding.
    3. Add papaya, peanuts, dressing, and optional chili, using the mortar and a spatula to lightly bruise and mix the salad. Place in the refrigerator for a few hours if not serving immediately.
    4. Enjoy with a Sauvignon Blanc (if mild) or an off-dry Riesling or Chenin Blanc (if spicy)
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