I took a break from my day-job to visit the grocery store. I was craving a papaya smoothie so I purchased half a papaya from the local store (sometimes payapas are only found at specialty stores).  My plan was to make Indonesian papaya juice for this blog.

Upon seeing this deep orange fruit, one of my co-workers asked what it was.  I found it a surprising comment since growing up in Indonesia, we consume a lot of papaya.

In the US papaya is still considered a tropical exotic fruit. It has gained more popularity and can be found in just about every local grocery store in my city, San Diego.

Growing up we always had papaya in our refrigerator.  The fruit might be cut up and served as-is or often my mom would sprinkle some sugar and squeeze some lime juice.

The other preparation my family cook prepare sometimes was mashing them with a fork to create a coarse smoothie.  They are sweet, tangy and ooh so refreshing on a hot day in Jakarta.

A BRIEF BACKGROUND OF PAPAYA

Papaya is a native to Central America region, although the Spanish and Portuguese explorers spread them around throughout the tropical and subtropical lands, such as Southeast Asia, India and some part of Africa. 

They are relatively easy to grow and produce fruit in only two years. They are a herbaceous plant but resemble a tree (and a unique one at that). It even has a hollow trunk! Most varieties will product a lot of fruit over several years.

Papaya has a sort of elongated sphere-like shape. It looks like a melon.  The skin is green when unripe and slowly turn to yellow in color as it turns ripe.

Some variety of papaya has a deep, intense orange color, reminding me of sunset in the tropic with small gelatinous-like black seeds the size of small peas that are nicely nestled and covered the hollow center of the fruit once cut in half.

Other varieties have a yellow flesh with the same gelatinous-black seeds in the center.  The flesh is sweet with an almost buttery soft texture.

The largest papaya producing countries are India, followed with Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia and Nigeria.

PAPAYA VARIETY IN THE US

There are a few different varieties of papaya that can be found in your local supermarket.

Mexican Red or Yellow or Caribbean Red Papaya

• These types of papaya are the most popular and more economical than the Hawaiian counterpart.  They are not as sweet as the Hawaiian papaya. The Mexican and Caribbean varieties are fairly large fruit that can weigh close to several pounds.

Hawaiian Sunrise and Sunset Papaya

• oth varieties are fairly small fruit weighing less than 2 lbs.  The skin is yellowish reddish color and the flesh is more yellowish orange.

In my opinion, the Hawaiian papaya is the sweetest and most flavorful papaya I have ever eaten.  When I’ve visited Hawaii, I always make sure to get some in the local grocery store along with some lime.

I will cut them in half once I get to the hotel, remove the seeds out, squeeze some lime juice and using a spoon, spooning the flesh right out of the skin.

It is so delicious and simple, a perfect addition to any breakfast or snack.

Thankfully, Hawaiian papaya are gaining some popularity in the mainland and can be found in some grocery store.  It is a little pricier than the Mexican at just under $5 per papaya.

If you can splurge, do purchase them, although you might need to get a couple of the fruits to make papaya smoothie/juice.

HEALTH BENEFIT OF PAPAYA JUICE AND SMOOTHIES

Besides it is delicious, papaya is also high in nutritional value and has medicinal qualities.  These are some of the benefits:

• Have you been suggested by your doctor or your friend to eat fruits that start with a letter P when constipated?  Papaya is indeed included on this list of high-fiber fruits along with peach, pear, prune, plum, etc.  Study shows, the fiber in papaya can bind to cancer-causing toxins in the colon and keep them away from healthy colon cell, thus has been associated in reducing the risk of colon cancer.  One of the memories I remember from my childhood, my mom always fed us papaya to help with our digestive system.  Now that I have my own children, I offer the same for my kids especially when they are having a little trouble using the toilet. 
• Papaya is packed with antioxidant nutrients such as carotenes (what makes the color orange, similar to carrot) and vitamin C.  These nutrients may be helpful to promote against heart disease including atherosclerosis and diabetic heart disease.
• The vitamin A and C in papaya can also be useful in promoting healthy immune system to prevent illnesses such as common cold and flu.

PREPARATION TIPS FOR PAPAYA SMOOTHIES

• Look for papayas with a yellow colored skin that is somewhat soft to the touch for ripe papaya.  Store them in room temperature if they won’t be eaten right away.  If you purchase papaya that is not quite ripe, place it in a brown paper bag with a banana. It will accelerate the ripening process.
• Once the papaya is cut in half length-wise, scoop the seeds out with a spoon.  The seeds are actually edible but a little grainy with a hint of bitterness once you bite into it.
• Use either a blender or a food processor to make the smoothie.  Alternatively, you may use the back of the fork to mash the papaya (this was how my family cook prepared the juice since we did not have any small electronic appliances to turn them into smoothie.

Yield: 12 ounces

Best Papaya Smoothie Recipe

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Papaya's make an excellent and healthy option for juice and smoothies. Though not as common in the U.S. papaya can be found at most specialty stores. Papaya smoothies are easy to make and only require 3 ingredients for a delicious recipe.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 cups of cut up papaya
• Juice from ½ of a lime
• 3 cubes of ice

Instructions

1. Peel the skin of the papaya of your choice.
2. Cut peeled papaya in ½ length-wise.
3. Using a large spoon, remove all the seeds.
4. Cut up papaya into 1-2“ cube.
5. Place 3 cups of cut up papaya in a jar of a blender or a food processor. 
6. Squeeze juice from ½ of lime.
7. Add a few cubes of ice
8. Process smoothie until papaya looks smooth.
9. Pour over a glass and serve.

CONCLUSION

Besides all the nutritional and health benefits packed within a papaya, this juice or smoothie is super easy to prepare and makes a great breakfast for you and your family.

I hope you will make an acquaintance with this tropical, sweet and exotic fruit and start eating more papaya.