THAI RAW PAPAYA SALAD

An awesome tangy sweet and sour healthy salad.

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups julienned ( like matchsticks) raw papaya

1cup diagonally thinly sliced French beans

1tsp sugar

1 medium sized tomato.

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup water

2 tsp light soya sauce

3 dry red chillies( Can use fresh red/ green too)-If using dry, soak in hot water for 5 minutes to soften it

4 to 5 fat garlic cloves

Juice of 3 lemons

Salt-To taste

1/2 cup -Roasted coarsely crushed peanuts

METHOD:

Julienne the raw papaya.

Boil the sliced beans in water just enough to cover it.Add 1 tsp sugar to it, coz sugar helps to retain the green colour.Take it off from the fire , immediately after the first boil.Let it remain in the pan for 5minutes.Then drain the water and add ice cold water.The beans must be crunchy and green.Mix it with papaya.

Dice the tomatoes, discarding the seeds.Add this to the papaya , beans mix.

Make a paste of dry red chillies and garlic in a pestle and mortar.( Tastes better than the one made in a mixie)

Boil sugar and water till sugar dissloves.Add this to the chilli garlic paste.

Add the sugar chilli garlic mix to the vegetable mix.Add salt and lemon juice. Mix well.

Sprinkle groundnuts just at the time of serving, otherwise they will cease to remain crunchy.

VARIATION: 1 cup of diced cucumbers (after discarding the seeds) and ½ cup of fresh pomegranate seeds (Fresh anar ) added to the above mix tastes very nice too. Accordingly, increase the amount of red chillies, garlic and lemon juice.