Thai food recipes: Som tam pon-la-mai (spicy fruit salad)

Thai food lovers will already be familiar with the classic papaya salad, som tam. But have you tried the fruit-filled version of som tam? Known in Thai as som tam pon-la-mai, this simple dish is packed with colour and flavour, with the chillies and fish sauce giving it a tasty kick. This is one of those Thai dessert dishes that sound like they shouldn’t work but do (we’re thinking of you, Thai ice cream sandwich!)

This dish requires no complicated cooking skills and makes for an unusual and super-tasty dessert. To make it the Thai way, it’s best to use a pestle and mortar. This recipe for som tam pon-la-mai comes from Chef Pi Tou at Fitou’s Thai Restaurant in London.

Ingredients

There is plenty of room for personal taste in this recipe, and you can use whatever seasonal fruits you like. However, using a mix of sweet and sour helps balance the flavours. The amounts for each ingredient are shown as a guide; adjust for your own taste preference. This recipe uses mixed fruit, but you could also add in cherry tomatoes or vegetables like green beans.

• Apples (red and green)
• Blueberries
• Grapes (red and green)
• Pineapple
• Strawberries
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 2 Tbsp dried shrimp
• 3 Tbsp fish sauce
• 3 Tbsp tamarind sauce
• 1 Tbsp palm sugar
• Juice from one lime
• Handful of roasted cashew nuts (can use peanuts as a substitute)
• 5 or 6 red bird’s eye chillies (use fewer chillies if you prefer it less spicy)

Method

• Roast the cashew nuts in a frying pan until just starting to brown
• Fry the dried shrimps in a pan until they are fragrant
• Cut the fruit into bite-size pieces
• Add the apples to a bowl of water to stop yellowing
• Crush the garlic in a mortar
• Add the bird’s eye chillies
• Add 2 tablespoons dried shrimp
• Add 1 tablespoon palm sugar
• Add 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• Add 3 tablespoons tamarind sauce
• Squeeze the juice from one lime into the mixture*
• Add the fruit starting with the apples
• Mix without pounding too hard
• Top with roasted cashew nuts and serve

*Add more lime juice if you prefer a sour taste/more palm sugar for a sweeter taste/more fish sauce for a saltier flavour.

Health benefits

• Apples: Full of vitamins, antioxidants and fibre. Good for digestion, eating apples regularly can have various health benefits, from lowering cholesterol levels to improving bone strength.
• Blueberries: Labelled as a ‘superfood’, blueberries are thought to have plenty of health benefits including supporting immune health and managing blood pressure.
• Cashews: Good source of protein and unsaturated fats and also contain disease-fighting antioxidants.
• Chillies: Contain capsaicin which can work as a painkiller and also helps relieve cold symptoms and mucus.
• Garlic: Contains high levels of potassium, phosphorus, and iron which are good for the body.
• Grapes: Thought to be good for the heart, eyes, and brain.
• Lime juice: Limes are high in vitamin C, which may help to improve immunity and promote healthy skin.
• Pineapples: Good source of fibre and antioxidants
• Strawberries: Low in calories, strawberries are thought to have several potential health benefits, including the prevention of inflammatory conditions and heart disease.

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