Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam) – Vegan

Name: Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam) – Vegan
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Thai
Ingredients: 2 cups shredded green papaya; 1 ripe tomato, sliced; 6 green beans, cut into 3 cm pieces; 2 garlic cloves; 2 bird's eye chilies (Thai chili); 2 tbsp roasted peanuts; 2 tbsp fresh lime juice; 1 tbsp soy sauce (tamari); 1 tsp coconut sugar or brown sugar; 6 cherry tomatoes, halved

A fully vegan, crunchy Thai salad where shredded green papaya, tomato and green beans meet a lime-chili dressing, using soy sauce instead of fish sauce.

Total: 15 min
Servings: 2 servings
Difficulty: Easy
Calories · per serving: 180 kcal

Written by

Ecem Akkaba · Dietitian

Dietitian, graduate of İstanbul Medipol University. She develops the recipes and nutrition values on FitZen.

Updated: July 25, 2026

In short

Thai Green Papaya Salad (Som Tam) – Vegan contains 180 calories per serving: 6 g protein, 22 g carbohydrate and 8 g fat. It takes 15 minutes in total and makes 2 servings.

About this recipe

This Thai som tam salad blends crunchy green papaya with tomato, green beans and roasted peanuts, seasoned with a lime and chili dressing. By using soy sauce instead of fish sauce, it offers a fully vegan and low-calorie option.

Method

1
Lightly pound the garlic and chilies in a mortar until they form a paste.
2
Add the roasted peanuts and pound a few times, letting them stay coarse.
3
Add the green beans and cherry tomatoes and lightly pound them.
4
Add the shredded green papaya and tomato slices to the mortar.
5
Prepare the dressing by adding the lime juice, soy sauce and sugar.
6
Gently toss and pound the ingredients together with a spoon and pestle.
7
Transfer the salad to a serving plate and finish with a few more peanuts.

Tips

For less heat, remove the chili seeds or reduce the amount.
Prepare the papaya just before serving so it keeps its crunch.
Using tamari instead of fish sauce keeps the recipe vegan while preserving the umami flavor.

Language

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