Green Papaya Salad with Shrimp

Not surprisingly—Vietnamese food is only occasionally hot—this isn’t as blistering as the vegetarian Thai version. You can buy Vietnamese chili-garlic paste at any store selling Asian ingredients; it keeps nearly forever in the refrigerator. Fish sauces like nam pla and nuoc mam are discussed. Palm sugar is available at many Asian markets, but brown sugar is indistinguishable in flavor.