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| Papaya tree
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| Green papaya soup
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Unripe papaya is eaten as a vegetable in much of SE asia. All papayas are picked green and allowed to ripen off the tree. (We were told this was necessary to prevent the birds from eating the fruit.) The green papaya (and the leaves) contain the enzyme papain, and can be used to tenderize meats.
Green papaya is also shredded for som tom salad in Thailand, and pickled as atsara in the Philippines. It is cooked like a squash in soups or stews. The flesh does not have a strong taste and will take on the flavor of the foods with which it is cooked.
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