Young green papaya soup

Young papaya soup. — Photos: PATSY KAM

Don’t throw out unripe young fruit just yet.

Some years back, we chopped off the top half of the papaya tree in the garden as it was leaning precariously into the neighbour’s side of the fence. We didn’t want it to land on someone’s head if it broke off in the midst of a thunderstorm, so it was off with its top branches instead.

We harvested a whole bunch of papayas, but they were all so tiny. Firstly, it’s supposed to be a Hawaiian papaya species which is small by nature, and secondly, the soil in my garden wasn’t very rich, so the fruits didn’t grow that well and were ultra small!

Young papayas can be used for soup.

Rather than have them go to waste, we gave some to friends who wanted to make papaya pickles. Then, someone suggested I used the fruit for soup and I thought, why not?

Besides being high in vitamin C and antioxidants, it seems this soup is traditionally believed to be good for big bosom too! According to old wives’ tales, consistent consumption of young papaya soup is touted to encourage breast enlargement!

The papayas were so young and raw that the seeds hadn’t even begun to form yet. But in the soup, they tasted delicious and if you didn’t already know, you would have thought it was some kind of melon instead.

Pour all the ingredients into the pot and boil for 30 mins.

If the papayas had been a teensy bit riper, it would have sweetened the soup naturally even more.

I’m not a papaya fan but this soup has given me a whole new look at the fruit. — Contributed by PATSY KAM/kameatwithme.com

Young green papaya soup

Ingredients

1 or 2 large young papaya or a few baby ones (cut into bite-size cubes)

1.5L water

Chicken stock (you can omit this if you prefer a more subtle and natural flavour)

Half a chicken, cut into small pieces (or 3 large chicken thighs, or an equivalent amount of pork ribs)

1 carrot, cut into wheels

8 to 10 red dates (optional)

2 tablespoons goji berries (approximate)

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Bring the water to a boil in a deep soup pot.

2. Put in the chicken (or other meats), followed by the young papaya, carrots and other ingredients.

3. Boil for about 30 mins or until the papaya and carrots have softened.

It’s so simple that even a novice in the kitchen can whip this up. Serve as a starter or with rice.