What does Thai Green Papaya Salad Taste Like?
Sweet is one of the five main tastes. It has smooth and round notes in its flavor profile. Sweet is a naturally occurring flavor in many foods, including fruits, berries, winter squashes, sugarcane, and honey. The sweet taste in these foods is due to a higher sugar content. Sweetness is characteristic of desserts and is used as an accent in savory foods.
Umami is one of five main tastes. It is savory with a depth of flavor. Umami is a taste in many foods, including meat, seafood, beans, and nuts. It is both naturally occurring and created through the specific use of ingredients to create a satisfying taste. Umami is characteristic of proteins and savory dishes.
Spicy is a flavor that brings heat and fire to food by creating a burning sensation in the mouth or sinuses. Spicy flavors come from hot peppers, horseradish, and wasabi. Spicy adds a kick and sometimes complexity to a dish and releases endorphins, creating a mildly addictive quality.
Ingredients
The papaya is a large fruit that grows in tropical climates. It is a larger fruit with a length of 6 to 20 inches and a width of 4 to 12 inches. They are shaped in a round oblong, or like a fat pear. When unripe the skin is green, as it ripens it turns a yellow golden color. The flesh is an orange salmon tone and firm yet soft. It is not overly juicy, and the center of the fruit is hollowed and contains round peppercorn sized black seeds. The flavor of the papaya has a meaty quality and is sweet like a melon.
Botanically the chili pepper is a fruit, in culinary terms it is a vegetable. There are a number of varieties of red chili peppers. Some common ones used for spice powders and seasonings include the piri piri, cayenne, and chile de árbol, among others. Each pepper is red and has a thin skin with a thin flesh and seeds inside the middle of the pepper. The shape varies, but is often thin and tapered. The heat level varies also, depending on the type of pepper. Some are mildly hot, while other red chilies are scorching and fiery. The pepper can be used fresh in many dishes, as well as dried or powdered.
Limes are a citrus fruit that grow on trees. They are round and roughly the size of a small plum, but can vary. Key limes are another type of lime and are much smaller. Limes have a firm texture with green rind. The pale green flesh of the lime is firm, pulpy and juicy, much like a lemon, but harder. Limes taste sour and refreshing, and less tangy than a lemon.
Cherry tomatoes are small bite-sized tomatoes that grow on tomato plants. They are a variety of tomato enjoyed for their small size, about the size of a cherry. These tomatoes are round with smooth shiny skins. When you bite into the thin skin, the soft center of the tomato bursts into a juicy sweet and tart flavor. Cherry tomatoes are often served in salads, though can be found cooked with meats, veggies and starches.
Palm sugar also called jaggery, is sourced from the flowers of coconut palm trees. The sugar is light to medium brown or golden and stickier than other sugars. It can be found granulated or in blocks. The flavor is sweet and slightly more molasses like or dark in flavor than regular sugar. It is used in Indian and other Asian desserts and to balance flavor in savory dishes.
Fish sauce is a clear and thin liquid with a color that is light or medium brown and made from anchovies. It is used in many East Asian dishes to add a marine-like umami quality. The flavor is salty, fishy and fermented. A little bit goes a long way and can make or break a dish, depending on the amount used. Just enough fish sauce brightens every flavor in the dish, while too much is overpowering.
The peanut is not a nut, but a member of the pea family. Peanuts are called groundnuts, as they are a legume. Peanuts grow on vines out of the soil and have a firm and easy to crack shell. This shell is grey and indented with a gently curved, or straight and lumpy form. Inside the shell are the peanuts, with thin brown skin and tan/light brown bodies. Peanuts are small and oblong; slightly bigger than a pistachio. The flavor is unusual and nutty with a hint of sweetness. Peanuts can be roasted and salted, or used in a number of international dishes. They are a popular American snack.
Garlic is used in cuisines around the world and is extremely popular for its depth of flavor. The garlic bulb forms underneath the soil and is harvested once it reaches maturity. The bulb typically has thin, dry, white and flaky skin, surrounding the individual cloves. Often there are 10-12 cloves to a bulb/head of garlic. The cloves are cream colored with a strong smell and flavor that is spicy and sharp. Garlic takes on a nutty flavor in addition, when cooked. It is used in countless dishes, sauces, breads and more.
