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Pleasing papaya

The humble papaya is a powerhouse of vitamins. Here's a simple papaya recipe

SWEET TREAT Antioxidant rich

Called the fruit of the angels by Christopher Columbus, the papaya is deliciously sweet with musky undertones and a soft, butter-like consistency. Once considered exotic, papaya can now be found in markets throughout the year. Papaya originated in Central America, travelled to Latin America and were introduced to many other tropical and subtropical regions including India by Spanish and Portuguese explorers. Papaya is rich in antioxidants (carotenes, vitamin C and flavonoids), B vitamins (folate and pantothenic acid), minerals (potassium and magnesium) and fibre. Together, these nutrients promote the health of the cardiovascular system and provide protection against colon cancer. The fruit, as well as the other parts of the tree, contains papain, an enzyme that helps digest proteins. This enzyme is concentrated in the fruit when it is unripe. Papain is extracted to make dietary supplements and also used as an ingredient in some chewing gums.

Served fresh

Ripe papaya is most commonly eaten fresh, peeled and served with lime. The flesh is cut into cubes and served in fruit salad. Papaya when it is firm and ripe can be seasoned and baked and eaten as a vegetable.

The ripe fruits are made into sauce for short cake or ice cream sundaes or added to ice cream just before freezing or preserved as marmalade or jam.

Now here's a simple papaya recipe.

Som Tam

A tender papaya salad with sweet-sour, spicy taste.

Ingredients

Tender papaya (grated):
200 gm
Red chilli: 10 gm
Bird chilli: 5 gm
Runner bean: 15 gm
Peeled garlic: 10 gm
Cherry tomato: 15 gm
Roasted peanut: 25 gm

For dressing

Lime juice: 50 ml
White jaggery: 25 gm
Goan chilli: 10 gm
Black soya: 2 ml

Method: To make the dressing, deseed the chilli and dry it. Blend together limejuice, white jaggery and goan chilli to a smooth mixture; add a few drops of soy sauce and refrigerate it. Wash the raw papaya in cold water. To finish the salad, crush the garlic, cherry tomato, bird chilli, runner beans and chilli diamonds in a bowl. Add the papaya, crushed peanut and pour some of the above dressing. Mix together all the ingredients. Check the seasoning and serve.

HRUDANANDA BEHERA

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