Yam Som O

Yam Som O (ยำส้มโอ) - Thai Pomelo and Prawn Salad

Yam Som O is the epitome of the classic Thai dish. It has the finely balanced flavours of sweet, sour, salty and spicy with the uniquely Thai fruit, the Som O, along with Thai chili jam (nam prik pao), the ubiquitous Thai fish sauce, shredded fresh coconut, coriander, Thai shallots, palm sugar, lime juice and lemon grass. It is a fabulously refreshing summer salad that can be served as a main dish with a few simple accompaniments. The Som O or Pomelo is one of the largest citrus fruits in Southeast Asia. Ripe Som O has an only slightly acidic taste not like the grapefruit we know in Australia. The rind is very easy to peel off and it has some great health benefits as well.

Apart from ingredients we had in the kitchen or grow at home we purchased from the local fresh Thai market the Som O $1, 300g green prawns $2.80, bunches old coriander and mint 40, each and 20g freshly shredded 20c, total $4.60.

Serves 2

Preparation time: 2 glasses of Sauvignon Blanc or I large beer Chang

Ingredients:

One large Som O (ยำส้ม) peeled and cut into separated segments making sure there is no pith. This is so easy to do – forget about trying to segment oranges for crepe suzette.

300 g sautéed or cooked medium sized prawns peeled (gûng กุ้ง)

4 tbsp dry roasted shredded coconut (má~práao มะพร้าว)

4 tbsp dry roasted peanuts or cashews (mét má~mûuang-hǐm-má~paan เม็ดมะม่วงหิมพานต์)

2 tbsp fried crispy chopped Thai shallots (hɔ̌ɔm-dɛɛng grɔ̀ɔp หอมแดงกรอบ)

½ cup coriander leaves (nám-bplaa น้ำปลา)

½ cup mint leaves (sà~rá~nɛ̀ɛ สะระแหน่)

Ingredients for Dressing:

½ tbsp fish sauce (nám-bplaa น้ำปลา)

1 tbsp palm sugar (nám-dtaan น้ำตาล)

2 tbsp lime juice (nám má~naao น้ำมะนาว)

1 ½ tbsp roasted chilli jam (nám-prík-pǎo น้ำพริกเผา)

1 tbsp finely chopped lemon grass (soft part only) (dtà~krái ตะไคร้)

In a dressing bowl, add roasted chili paste, lemon grass, palm sugar, fish sauce and lime juice. Stir well.

In a mixing bowl, add Som O, prawns, fried shallots, roasted shredded coconut and peanuts, coriander and mint leaves and toss with dressing.

Garnish with kaffir lime leaves and sliced red spur chili.

Cooking Note

To fry shallots, peel the skin off and thinly slice. Heat 2 tbsp of cooking oil in a frying pan over low to medium heat. Add shallot and fry until golden brown. Set aside and discard the oil. Or just use the readymade ones available at any good Asian grocery store.