Papaya Salad

Tum Mak Hoong (Papaya Salad) is a popular unripe green papaya salad in Laotian cuisine. “Tum” means to pound and “Mak Hoong” means papaya. Crunchy raw papaya shreds and other ingredients are traditionally pounded together in a mortar and pestle. In authentic recipes you’ll use a fermented fish sauce called padaek, a distinctive Tum Mak Hoong umami flavor. Papaya salad is the perfect dish to satisfy the acquired taste for things that are spicy, sour, salty, and sweet. Tum Mak Hoong is commonly eaten with grilled meats, pork rinds, sticky rice, lettuce, and cabbage.