If you're looking for a light, refreshing dish, you can't go wrong with som tam Thai. Also known as Thai green papaya salad, this Southeast Asian dish offers a perfect balance of sweetness, savoriness ...

Lightly pounding and tossing shreds of green papaya in the bowl of the mortar allows it to absorb the sweet, salty, sour, spicy paste while preserving the salad’s crisp crunch.

I have been entranced by the green papaya salad called som tam ever since my first visit to Tiny Thai Restaurant, in fall 2004, shortly after it opened in what is now the Essex Experience. The classic ...