If you have been reading the past few weeks, I’ve been posting a lot of green papaya recipes. My beautiful tree broke in half under the weight of 30 or so green fruit and I had to get creative. Luckily, a seedling sprouted under the mother plant just after we pulled it out of the ground. With any luck, I’ll have more fruit from this prolific tree in a few months.
Green papaya is much more versatile than I thought, lending itself to savory dishes and cooking well, with a texture similar to a firm sweet potato. So far, I’ve roasted papaya and curried papaya and now I’ve fried it. Fried green papaya is my favorite preparation so far. It’s fun, unique and delicious. Served with a smoked paprika, cilantro remoulade, it’s a tropical spin on Southern favorite: fried green tomatoes.
It took a little experimentation to get this one right. Green papayas are too firm and need to be blanched before you fry them. I also tried green papayas at different levels of ripeness. The completely white ones (white flesh, white seeds) were good, but lacked any flavor. I found the best ones to fry were just blushing on the inside, with gray seeds. They stayed firm, and the sweetness intensified just enough.
To choose a papaya perfect for frying, the outside should be green, with a touch of yellow near the stem end. Peel of the skin with a vegetable peeler. At this point, you can slice ½” — 1’ rounds, or cut in half lengthwise, to make approximately ½” — 1’ thick sticks. Remove the seeds before you move onto the next step.
Papaya recipe adapted from Best Fried Green Tomatoes.
Ingredients
Method
Bring a pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the cut papaya to the water. Cover and cook until just tender, about 5-8 minutes. Remove the papaya from the pot and cool under cold water.
Whisk together eggs and milk in a shallow bowl. Place the flour onto a plate, season with salt and pepper. Mix together cornmeal, breadcrumbs and Cajun seasoning on another plate or shallow bowl. Line up your mixtures in order: flour, eggs and cornmeal/breadcrumbs.
Dip the papaya in the flour until coated. Dip the papaya in the egg mixture, then into the cornmeal mixture, turning to coat. It helps to use separate hands for this, one for wet, one for dry. Place each coated piece aside, sprinkled with some extra cornmeal.
Using a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. There should be about ½” of oil in the pan. Fry the papaya in batches, 3-5 minutes per side until golden brown and crispy. Drain on paper towels. Serve with smoked paprika, cilantro remoulade.
In a small bowl, mix together all of the ingredients. Allow to chill in the refrigerator 1 hour for the flavors to meld.
This Asian style tofu coconut curry is a little Thai and a little American organic farmer’s market. It was created out of ingredients I had on hand and ended up being one of those dishes that my family couldn’t get enough of. The leftovers went fast! The creamy coconut curry is comforting with just enough heat and acidity. The textures work wonderfully, with squash-like green papaya, crunchy bean sprouts, soft marinated tofu and just-cooked Swiss chard. If you don’t have some of these ingredients available, I’ve included a variety of substitutions in the recipe.
I happen to have a papaya tree in my yard (well, I HAD one in my yard). It was so full of unripe fruit; it broke in half, leaving me with 30 or so green papayas to get creative with. I found they are delicious roasted, fried, raw and sautéed, like in this dish. Each way of preparing them brings out a different quality of this versatile fruit. I used a very green papaya this time, it should be completely white on the inside and the seeds should be white as well. When cooked, the papaya softens just enough, and the texture becomes like a turnip, taking on the flavor of whatever you cook it in. If you don’t have green papaya, substitute anything starchy like winter squash, pumpkin or sweet potato.
This is an easy dish to prepare, and healthy. The key is to cook each veggie in the right order to keep them fresh and crunchy. Before preparing this dish, remove your tofu from its container, slice it and marinate it overnight. You will be surprised at how delicious and flavorful it will be. One more note: I used yellow curry powder in this dish (not authentic Thai, but easy), accented with some herbs. If you want to be more authentic, use Thai yellow curry paste.
Farmer’s Market Tofu Coconut Curry Recipe | Love and Duck Fat
Serve with white or brown rice, or rice noodles.
Ingredients
Method
Remove tofu from the container and slice into 1 inch cubes. Add the tofu to a plastic zip lock bag long with 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, 2 tablespoons of lime juice and a pinch of chili flakes. Shake bag to distribute evenly and place into the refrigerator overnight, turning once. Before cooking, drain the marinade from the tofu and place on a paper towel to dry.
To make the curry, heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ginger, garlic and chili flakes and stir until fragrant but not browned. Add the onion, coriander, cumin, turmeric, pepper, bay leaf and curry powder. Cook until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the coconut milk, stock, fish sauce,1 tablespoon of the soy sauce and brown sugar to the pan and stir to combine. Add the papaya (or substitute) to the pan and cook over medium heat, uncovered, for about 10 minutes.
While the papaya is cooking, heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan on medium high heat. Add the tofu when the oil is hot and let brown, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining tablespoon of soy sauce and cook, turning the cubes, until they are crusted and brown. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the Swiss chard to the curry and cook uncovered until wilted, about 5 minutes. Add the bean sprouts, tofu cubes and lime juice and stir for 1 minute. Remove the pan from heat. Remove the bay leaf and garnish with chopped cilantro or basil. Serve over rice or noodles.
https://loveandduckfat.com/farmers-market-tofu-coconut-curry/
A papaya tree in my backyard was so heavy with fruit; it broke in half, leaving me with 30 or so green papayas all ripening at the same time. This is our second crop of fruit from this tree, and we have learned to eat papaya in many nontraditional ways. We love to eat it while it is still green. It makes a delicious, crunchy addition to salads like in a traditional Thai green papaya salad. I’ve also prepared green papaya stewed like a potato in curry dishes, fried and roasted, like this recipe.
There are varying ripeness levels of a green papaya, each appropriate for different ways of cooking. I’ve found that a very young papaya isn’t ideal for roasting. It lacks any flavor. For this dish, you want the papaya to be green on the outside, with just a touch of yellow near the top. When you slice it open, there should be a faint blush of coral, with the seeds mostly dark grey.
At this stage, the papaya is still firm. When you roast it, the sugars will intensify and the resulting glossy chunks will have a divine taste and texture that is a cross between a peach and a butternut squash. This is nothing like the papaya you know! I can think of a bunch of ways you can use your roasted papaya. Serve it for breakfast with vanilla Greek yogurt, add it in a savory sauce to pair with tropical pork tenderloin or sprinkle it with brown sugar and cinnamon for dessert. I bet it would even be good in a pie!
Ingredients
Method
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
Peel the skin from the papaya and split in half lengthwise. With a spoon, scrape out the seeds and any membrane. Cut the papaya in slices 1-inch thick, or 1-inch cubes. Arrange in a single layer on a backing sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt. Toss to coat.
Roast for approximately 20 minutes, until papaya is tender and lightly browned.
