Papaya

Also known asPawpaw · Papaw · Carica papaya · Betik · 木瓜

Name: Papaya (Carica papaya). Also commonly called papaw or pawpaw in various English-speaking regions — the same fruit, not the unrelated North American pawpaw.

Description

Papaya is the large, sweet-fleshed fruit of a fast-growing, soft-stemmed plant in the family Caricaceae. Its exact origin is uncertain, but it is thought to have arisen from the crossing of two or more wild Carica species native to Mexico and Central America; from there cultivation spread until today it is grown throughout the tropics and into the warmer parts of the subtropics worldwide. The plant is often called a tree, though its palm-like trunk is not truly woody, and it is crowned with large, deeply lobed leaves on long hollow stalks.

A serious setback for papaya growing came from the papaya ringspot virus, which began devastating Hawaiian plantations in the 1940s and later spread to other growing regions. The problem was largely overcome in the early 2000s with the Rainbow papaya, a genetically modified variety bred for resistance to the virus — one of the first GMO fruits grown commercially, and today the majority of papayas grown for export are GMO varieties.

Main nutrition value

Per 100g, raw papaya:

Papaya stands out for vitamin C — nearly 61mg per 100g — and also contributes meaningful folate and potassium, plus a modest amount of fiber.

How best to be consumed

Papaya is best eaten ripe and raw, halved and scooped with a spoon or cubed into fruit salads; a squeeze of lime or lemon juice is a classic pairing that balances its musky sweetness. The small black seeds are edible, with a peppery bite, but are usually scraped out and discarded. Unripe green papaya is also eaten, most often shredded raw into salads or cooked like a vegetable, and its milky latex is the source of papain, an enzyme also used commercially as a meat tenderizer.

Overconsumption could cause…

Papaya is well tolerated in ordinary amounts, but eating very large quantities can bring on digestive upset such as bloating, cramping, or loose stools, particularly from unripe fruit and its latex. The latex found in the skin and unripe flesh can also trigger allergic reactions in sensitive individuals, and papaya is among the fruits associated with latex-fruit cross-reactivity in people who have a latex allergy. None of this is a concern at typical serving sizes.

GroupsTropical FruitsLow fatLow sodiumRich in vitamin CFresh

Made intoDried Papaya

Related foodsLoquatPomeloAcerola CherryStar Fruit / CarambolaLonganMango

U.S. Department of Agriculture, FoodData Central — Papayas, raw, (FDC ID 169926), 100g portion: https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/169926/nutrients Encyclopaedia Britannica — Papaya: https://www.britannica.com/plant/papaya