June 12, 2006
Sample Florida’s Tropical Flavors
Fresh Florida guavas and papayas are available all year
Any time is a good time for Florida guavas and papayas. These tropical treats are available most of the year, even in the middle of winter. Include them in a salad, dessert, or main dish and get a little taste of paradise without buying a plane ticket.
“People associate the exotic, romantic taste of tropical fruits with good times,” said Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson. “Serving fresh Florida guava and papaya makes any meal or get-together more festive.”
If you’ve never tried these juicy, eye-catching fruits, then you’ve been missing out. Pear-shaped and wonderfully large, papayas are prized for their silky, buttery-soft flesh and delicately sweet, musky flavor. The flesh varies in color from yellow to orange-pink to rose and is so tender it can be scooped out and eaten with a spoon. The central cavity is filled with round black edible seeds whose peppery taste is often likened to watercress or nasturtiums.
Guavas are small round, oval, or pear-shaped fruits with thin yellow skin that may be blushed with pink. The flesh may be white, salmon-colored, or even rose-red and tastes a little like strawberries with a hint of lemon. The thin rind is fully edible.
Fresh guavas and papayas used to be difficult to find in American grocery stores, but now they are readily available. Florida is a major U.S. supplier of tropical fruits. Over 20 varieties are commercially grown in the state, and plant researchers and scientists are busy developing more varieties that are well suited to Florida’s unique soil and climate.
“Growers and scientists are working to meet an increasing demand for tropical fruits—in Florida and around the nation,” Bronson said. “As people are becoming more health conscious, they are eating more fresh produce, and they are looking for variety. Tropical fruits have been enjoyed around the world for generations, but many people in this country are just now discovering how delicious and nutritious they can be.”
Loaded with fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, papaya is one of the healthiest fruits you can eat. It provides folate, potassium, and a whopping 150 percent of your recommended daily allowance of vitamin C. Papaya is filling without being fattening, so it’s great for people who are working to control their weight: A cup of chopped fresh papaya has just 55 calories and is free of sodium and cholesterol.
Guava is another nutritional powerhouse, packed with fiber, vitamin A, and five times more vitamin C than is found in an orange. Guava is one of the few fruits containing lycopene, a potent antioxidant that helps lower the risk of heart disease and certain cancers. A cup of chopped fresh guava has only 84 calories.
When shopping for papayas, look for fairly large, yellow-skinned fruit that yields slightly to gentle palm pressure. Stored at room temperature, papayas that are still a little firm and green will ripen and be ready to eat in a couple of days. Avoid papayas that are too soft or whose skin is bruised or shriveled.
When selecting guavas, look for fruit that is free of cuts and bruises. Ripe guavas emit a strong, sweet, fruity fragrance, and the shells will give to a gentle squeeze. To ripen firm guavas, let them sit on the kitchen counter for a day or two. Keep in mind that guavas are thin-skinned and delicate and should be handled with care.
Ripe guavas and papayas can be stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator, but if you want to enjoy the best flavor, limit their time in the fridge as much as you can. Rinse under cool running water before eating or preparing.
And just how do you eat a papaya or guava? First up is the papaya: Cut it in half lengthwise, scooping out the peppery seeds. (You can add the seeds to fruit salad or your favorite creamy salad dressing for a little extra zing.) Eat the flesh with a spoon or cut it into slices; it tastes great plain or sprinkled with lemon or lime juice. If you want to get a little bit fancier, you can add ripe papaya to salsas, smoothies, milkshakes, and marinades. Green papaya can be baked in the oven and eaten like winter squash.
Fresh guavas can be eaten out of hand or sliced into fruit salads. Widely available in supermarkets, canned guava shells and guava paste are common ingredients in desserts. In Cuban cooking, guava shells are often served stuffed with sweetened cream cheese, and guava paste is used to fill turnovers. Guava juice is a popular ingredient in fruit punches, and guava jelly tastes terrific on an English muffin or toast.
For more “Fresh from Florida” cooking ideas, visit www.Florida-Agriculture.com.
Peppered Papaya and Shrimp Patties
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1 small Florida onion, chopped small
1/2 Florida red pepper, chopped small
1 teaspoon Florida garlic, minced
1 to 2 Florida jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
2 Florida eggs
1 pound Florida shrimp, pureed
3 to 4 cups breadcrumbs
1 Florida papaya, peeled, seeded, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
2 teaspoons Florida lime juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon Florida cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup flour
Sauté onion, red pepper, garlic, and jalapenos in 2 tablespoons of butter. Remove from heat and
cool slightly. In a bowl, mix together onion mixture, eggs, shrimp, breadcrumbs, papaya, salt,
pepper, lime juice, mustard, and cilantro. Form mixture into patties approximately 3 inches
across and 1 inch thick. Pour flour on plate and lightly coat patties. Melt remaining 2
tablespoons of butter in skillet and fry patties over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes on each
side, or until golden and crispy. Makes 15 cakes.
Tropical Fruit Medley
1 Florida papaya, seeded and sliced
1 Florida mango, chopped
4 Florida red bananas, sliced
1/2 pound Florida lychees, peeled and seeded
juice of 2 Florida passion fruit
1 large Florida annona, pulped and strained, reserve juice
Mix together fruits and top with strained juice from passion fruit and annona. Stir gently and
serve. Yield: 4 servings
