Spicy green papaya salad with basil and mint

The lightest of pork scratchings, as airy as prawn crackers, should accompany this one, the perfect antidote to the sharpness and crunch of the salad. But not essential. A powerful and pungent fish sauce, paa-daek, is used by Laotians in their dressing. I suggest adding a touch of crushed dried shrimp to regular fish sauce if you really want to score goals. They’d throw in some maak kawk, a sour olive-shaped fruit, too (no, you’re not expected to find that one).