Skip to content

Gỏi đu đủ khô bò

Green papaya salad with beef jerky

Gỏi đu đủ khô bò: Saigon green papaya salad with beef jerky, herbs and peanuts

Outside Saigon's schools and in the alleys off Hồ Con Rùa, carts piled with shredded green papaya sell gỏi đu đủ khô bò by the plate as an after-school or after-work snack. The papaya is crisp and cool, tossed with strips of sweet-spicy beef jerky, Thai basil and rau răm, then drowned in a thin, sweet fish-sauce dressing and finished with peanuts and a squirt of chilli sauce. It is lighter and sweeter than Thai som tam and never pounded. Chef's tip: soak the shredded papaya in iced salted water and dry it well; skip this and the salad is limp and the dressing tastes watery.
Total time
20 min
Difficulty
easy
Serves
4
One step at a time, big text, timers, read-aloud. Your screen stays on.

Ingredients

Serves4

For the salad

For the dressing

Shop this recipe on Amazon

Fresh ingredients (6)

Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.

Method

0/5 done
  1. Step 1: Toss 1 ⅓ lb green papaya with 1 tsp salt in a bowl of iced water and leave until the shreds feel crisp and springy.

    10 min
  2. Step 2: Stir 2 ½ tbsp fish sauce, 3 tbsp sugar, 3 tbsp lime juice and 3 tbsp warm water until the sugar dissolves, then add 2 cloves garlic and 2 red bird's-eye chillies. Taste: sweet first, then sour and salty.

    3 min
  3. Step 3: Drain the papaya, squeeze out the water and spin or pat it very dry.

    3 min
  4. Step 4: Toss the papaya with 1 carrot and half the dressing, then pile on plates.

    1 min
  5. Step 5: Top with 2 ⅞ oz Vietnamese beef jerky (khô bò), 1 handful Thai basil leaves, 1 handful Vietnamese coriander (rau răm) and 1 ⅜ oz roasted peanuts, spoon over the rest of the dressing and add a squiggle of 1 tbsp Sriracha-style chilli sauce. Eat at once while crunchy.

Nutrition per serving

Calories
190 kcal
Protein
10 g
Carbs
25 g
Fat
6 g
Fibre
4 g

Nutrition values are estimates.

K
Recipe by

KrazyBadal

All recipes by this chef →

Good to know

How long does gỏi đu đủ khô bò take?
About 20 minutes in total.
How many people does it serve?
4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
Is it gluten free?
Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
What can I use instead of carrot?
Parsnip or sweet potato, same weight.
What can I use instead of vietnamese coriander (rau răm)?
Flat-leaf parsley with a little mint.

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.

Rate this recipe

Sign in to rate and review this recipe.

Mix capsicum peanut salad

A crunchy salad of red, yellow and green peppers with roasted peanuts, cucumber, carrots and celery, dressed with lemon, dill, mint and celery leaves. Just before serving, olive oil mixed with sesame seeds is poured over the top. It's colourful, filling and full of protein.

20 minSaladsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 3 views

Pepper, beans and fruit salad

A big, bright salad of red, green and yellow peppers, boiled peanuts, sweet corn, grapes, apple and coconut, tossed in a sweet-sour passion fruit and mint dressing. It is very popular at big parties: it looks festive, keeps its crunch and is easy to double. Serve it on a bed of crisp lettuce.

50 minSaladsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 2 views

Caramelised clay-pot tofu and mushroomsBraised tofu and mushrooms

Kho is the slow braise of the Mekong Delta: food simmered in a little clay pot (nồi đất) with dark caramel and seasoning until the sauce is sticky and the flavours go deep. This vegetarian cousin of cá kho tộ (braised fish) uses golden tofu and meaty mushrooms in place of fish, cooked in coconut water, as cooks do in the south, and finished with plenty of black pepper. Serve it bubbling in its pot with steamed rice and a sour soup or plain boiled vegetables. Chef's tip: take the caramel (nước màu) to a deep mahogany, darker than you think, just before it smokes; pale caramel only tastes sweet, while dark caramel gives the bittersweet, smoky flavour of a real kho.

by KrazyBadal 2 views