Q: What is the difference between Paw-Paw and Papaya?
There is a common misnomer that Winter is ‘Apple and Pear’ season due to the shortage of bright, tropical summer fruits. In truth, there are a myriad of tropical and other fruit varieties available at the markets during winter; each offering unique textures, flavours and twist to your menu. So over the coming weeks, while pineapples, melons and figs are predicted to be in short supply and up in price why not try something new. Below we have featured a range of fruits that are both good quality and in good supply at the markets – making them smart buying this Winter.
BERRIES:
While berry season (Nov – Feb) is still some time away, we are seeing some lovely fruit at the markets at the moment. QLD strawberries have suffered a little from recent rain and are experiencing some quality issues, however overall supply and standard is good for strawberries, blueberries and raspberries (red).
CARAMBOLA: StarFruit, 5 corner, Bilimbing, Yang Tao
Currently sourced from: QLD
Availability: Available all year- peak production April/May, Jul/Oct, Dec/Jan
Appearance: distinctive 5 winged fruit with waxy green-yellow skin
Flesh: transparent- yellow to white
Flavour: crisp, juicy – sweet (yellow) to slightly tart (green). The edges/tips of the wings have the most acid/tannins and are therefore the most astringent
Selection: firm bright fruit with clean, waxy skin
Preparation: can be eaten fresh – slicing achieves the distinctive star shape for platters, salads, desserts and seafood dishes
CUMQUATS: aka kumquats
Currently sourced from: QLD
Availability: autumn/winter
Appearance: small orange fruits with a thin peel that are round-oval in shape
Flesh: segmented yellow-orange flesh
Flavour: intense, sweet-sour flavour,- most often candied, glazed or preserved though can be eaten fresh or even in liqueur
Selection: start to deteriorate once picked so look for robust, bright fruit with no obvious damage on skin
KIWIFRUIT: aka Chinese Gooseberry
Currently sourced from: NZ
Selection: firm, full fruit with no blemishes
Preparation: while many choose to forgo, the entire fruit is edible including the skin
GREEN: Hayward
Availability: Local: Mar-Jul, NZ: Jun-Dec
Appearance: egg shaped fruit with fuzzy, light-brown skin
Flesh: rich green flesh with small edible black seeds
Flavour: tangy, sweet
GOLD:
Availability: Jun – Sept
Appearance: egg shaped fruit with smooth, golden-brown skin
Flesh: gold flesh with less seeds than the green variety
Flavour: sweeter than Haywards
PANAMA PASSIONFRUIT:
Currently sourced from: QLD
Availability: all year
Appearance: lighter purple skin than other varieties, with white flecks
Flesh: orange pulp with lots of hard, black seeds(more pulp than black passionfruit)
Flavour: intensely refreshing- tangy (slightly acidic) flavour
Selection: fruit that is heavy for size, smooth and firm
Preparation: eaten fresh from casing or used in desserts
PAPAYA: aka Paw-Paw
Currently sourced from: QLD
Availability: all year with peaks May/June and Sept/Oct
Appearance: looks like an elongated melon with smooth, thin green-yellow skin
Selection: look for fragrant, well shaped fruit, no discolouration or soft spots
Preparation: unlike many fruits it can be cut without discolouration, eaten fresh, in salads or as a accompaniment to seafood or chicken.
RED PAPAYA:
Appearance: firm, dark orange-red flesh
Flavour: fragrant, sweet, succulent – similar to rockmelon
YELLOW PAW-PAW:
Appearance: rounder & larger than red variety, it has yellow skin and soft yellow flesh
Flavour: fragrant, juicy, sweet- milder than red papaya
GREEN PAPAYA:
Appearance: a green unripe fruit from either varieties listed above (commonly red papaya due to their fuller flavour)
Flavour: oil hands and knife prior to cutting (unripe papaya release a latex fluid which can cause allergic reactions) – used as a vegetable in Asian cuisines, suitable for pickles, salads and vegetables in curries
YELLOW DRAGON FRUIT: aka Pitaya Amarillo, S. megalanthus
Currently sourced from: QLD
Availability: Main fruiting May- Jun – good quality fruit available, will be winding up in next few weeks
Appearance: med–large oval fruit with distinctive yellow skin and pointy scales
Flesh: clear-white with edible black seeds
Flavour: often lauded as the best tasting due to its higher sugar levels- crisp kiwi/melon flavours, delicately sweet and mild
Selection: look for bright fruit that gives slightly under pressure
Preparation: chilled and eaten fresh or used in gelatos, ice-creams, sorbets, cocktails etc
A: Nothing. Paw-Paw and Papaya are actually different varieties of the species Carica papaya– though in Australia we tend to refer to the yellow fruit as ‘paw-paw’ and the red as ‘papaya’. Native to the Americas and first cultivated in Mexico, this tropical fruit is highly nutritious and unfortunately under-used in Australian cuisine due to the popularity of melon varieties.