Papaya
The best Fruit in the Wold
The Papaya is my favorite fruit in
the world. It is the fruit of the Carica papaya plant. It originated in
Central America and Southern Mexico but is now grown in
many other parts of the world. Papaya contains an enzyme called
papain, which can break down the tough protein chains found in
muscle meat. Because of this, people have used papaya to
tenderize meat for thousands of years. If the papaya is ripe, it
can be eaten raw. However,
unripe papaya should always be cooked before eating —
especially during pregnancy, as the unripe fruit is high in latex, which
can stimulate contractions.
Papayas are shaped similar to
pears and can be up to 20 inches (51 cm) long. The skin is green
when unripe and orange when ripe, while the flesh is yellow, orange or
red. The fruit also has many black seeds, which are
edible but bitter.
One small papaya (152 grams) contains (2): Calories: 59 Carbohydrates:
15 grams Fiber: 3 grams Protein: 1 gram Vitamin C: 157% of the RDI
Vitamin A: 33% of the RDI Folate (vitamin B9): 14% of the RDI Potassium:
11% of the RDI Trace amounts of calcium, magnesium and vitamins B1, B3,
B5, E and K. Papayas also contain healthy antioxidants known as
carotenoids — particularly one type called lycopene.
This page was built my Marie Bieber.