Content may contain affiliate links. When you shop the links, we receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for supporting my small business.
In this article, I’m sharing with you the differences between Thai and Laos papaya salad. If you have ever tried either of these deliciously light salads, you’re probably wondering: Thai versus Lao papaya salad, what is the real difference?
Thai papaya salad, referred to as som tom, uses mainly fish sauce as the flavoring condiment and is generally topped with crushed roasted peanut. Laos papaya salad, referred to as tham mak hoong, uses fermented crab dip (nam pu) and padaek as flavoring condiments. The core difference between Thai green papaya salad and Laos green papaya salad is the liquid component of the recipe along with the topping.
The classic green papaya salad is loved throughout southeast Asia in various forms, but the two most popular are the Thai and Lao style papaya salad.
What ingredients do Thai and Lao papaya salad have in common?
The common ingredients between both salads are cherry tomatoes, lime juice, sugar, unripened green papaya, and Thai birds eye chiles.
Thai Green Papaya Salad
Outside of the common ingredients shared with the Laos style papaya salad, Thai versions generally include fish sauce and includes dry shrimp jerky. It is generally topped with roasted peanuts.
What does som tum mean?
Thai green papaya salad is referred to as som tum. Som means sour and tum refers to the pounding sounds from the mortar and pestle that is used to mix up the ingredients.
With western translations, you may find this dish listed as: som tum, som tam, sum tam, somtum, tam som.
Laos Green Papaya Salad
Laos papaya salad shares some of the main ingredients of its Thai counterpart, uses fermented crap dip (nam pu) and fermented fish sauce (padaek).
What does tham mak hoong mean?
Laos style green papaya salad is known as tham mak hoong. Tham means crush and mak hoong references the green papaya.
Again, with western translations, you may find this dish in restaurants listed as: tham mak hoong, tam mak hung, tam mak hoong, thum mak huong, tum mak hoong and pretty much any variation of any of those words.
Variations
There is also a Vietnamese version of papaya salad. The difference there is that they add shrimp and meat into the salad.
Specifically, there are other variations of the green papaya salad that you may find in restaurant menus.
Lao and Thai languages are very similar to each other and also share common words between one another. Often, you’ll find Laos and Thai restaurant menus mixed together. There are some Thai restaurants that are owned by Lao people, which often will represent some of the menu items in a mixed Lao and Thai translation.
Other Variations of Green Papaya Salad
- Som Tam – This is the mild version of green papaya salad where the dressing is sweet and sour.
Som Tam Boo Pla Ra – This is the Lao version that uses fermented fish sauce and crab in the recipe. This is also known as tham mak hoong. - Tam Ba – This translates to “jungle” which means that the salad includes a variety of ingredients which includes freshwater snails.
- Tam Sua – This version includes fermented fish sauce as well as rice noodles.
Where did green papaya salad originate from?
Green papaya salad originated from Laos. Between the 1970s and early 1990s, there were over 200,000 Lao refugees that made their way into Thailand due to the Vietnam War.
As both cultures melded together, this specific dish was adapted by the Thai. The middle class in Bangkok adapted the recipe to remove what was deemed as “low class” ingredients like fermented fish sauces and pastes. Instead of using padaek and nam pu, a substitute of fish sauce was used as well as making the dish slightly sweeter. This lowered the overpowering flavors of padaek and nam pu, which made it more popular for those that had not yet acquired the Lao palette.
This Bangkok variation was then introduced to the world and added on a global scale by being added on an international menu of things to try while in Thailand.
What is green papaya salad served with?
Both Thai and Lao green papaya salad is served accompanied with sticky rice known as khao niew, long green beans, egg plants, and cabbage.
Where can I find best recipes for Thai and Lao papaya salad?
These are the most popular variations of a light and flavorful papaya salad recipe. The Thai and Lao style green papaya salads share some common ingredients, but the dressing is modified in the Lao version for a more flavorful taste for those who have acquired a taste for fermented fish sauce.
Which green papaya salad is better: Thai or Lao style?
This is a very tough question. As someone who is of Vietnamese descent, but born and raised on Laos, left to Thailand as a refugee, I can attest to you that all of these variations are absolutely delicious.
If you have not acquired the Lao palette to appreciate the umami of fermented fish sauce and shrimp paste, I would recommend the Thai style green papaya salad.
If you want a bursting of flavor and the combination of sweet, sour, bitterness and saltiness, Lao style definitely has more depth of flavor that you won’t find in the Thai style.
Thai vs Laos Papaya Salad - Differences Explained
If you are wondering the core differences between Thai papaya salad and Laos papaya salad, I'm sharing with you some of the main ingredients that are different.
Thai papaya salad is milder.
Thai papaya salad has a milder flavor than it's Lao counterpart because it uses fish sauce as the dressing.
Lao papaya salad has more ingredients in the dressing.
Lao papaya salad has a much flavorful palette due to the incorporation of fermented fish sauce known as padaek and nam pu which is shrimp paste/sauce.
Thai papaya salad uses roasted peanuts and shrimp.
In the Thai variation of this recipe, roasted and crushed peanuts top the dish for another layer of texture. In some other recipes, cooked shrimp or shrimp jerkey is also used.
Both salads are references by different names in each country.
The most common name for Thai papaya salad is sum tum. The most common name for Lao papaya salad is tham mak hoong.
Thai papaya salad popularized the cuisine around the world.
The middle class in Bangkok, Thailand adapted the original recipe from Laos. They presented it to the world stage and put it on the map with the milder flavors as well as the additional textures of the roasted peanuts. This popularized the dish around the world including the west.
Get my free recipe eBooks
New recipes and Asian grocery guides straight to your inbox — plus instant access to my free resource library.
Andrea says
Hi Lane, thanks for explaining the differences. I noticed that several recipe bloggers websites include two recipes (one Laos, one Thai) for green papaya salad. I love that they are similar yet different.
I think Vietnamese green papaya salads are very tasty and worth a comparison. There are a couple variations (northern vs southern styles) within Vietnam. Some dressings don’t use fish sauce, some use it. I like the one without fish sauce which is eaten with sliced beef jerkey, Thai basil, and cilantro.