How to Cut Papaya

Why shouldn't you be gorging on the papaya fruit? It's totally cholesterol free, very low on calories coming from fat, is an exceptionally good source of vitamin C, even the small-size of this fruit can cater to nearly 11% of the daily dietary fiber needs of the body, and the papaya health benefits are too many to count on your fingers. So, the fruit which even Christopher Columbus called "the fruit of the angels", is definitely a very healthy snack option and a must-have to have every now and then. But everybody knows how difficult it can be to cut a papaya - it gets messy and slippery and extremely gooey sometimes. So, how do you cut papaya sans the mess? I shall divulge to you in the following paragraphs exactly how to cut papaya fruit properly.

How to Cut a Papaya Properly?

In order to learn to cut a papaya, you have to learn how to shop for a good papaya first. It is recommended that you do not buy a totally ripened yellow-orangish papaya. You must look for a fruit 2 or 3 days before you actually plan to eat the papaya and go in for one which is a partially ripe specimen having a green and yellow mélanged skin. Press it with your thumb before buying it to know whether the fruit is firm yet soft. Your thumb should neither completely be able to dent it, nor should it be absolutely tough and unimpressionable. It should be somewhere in-between. Of course, to make the Som tam or the Thai papaya salad, you need to buy the green, unripe version of the fruit.

When you bring the fruit home, allow it to stand in the kitchen for about two days, so that it ripens to the optimal extent and then prepare to cut it. You can store this papaya in a paper bag with an ethylene-releasing ripening catalyst like an apple or banana, in order to make it ripen faster. After it has ripened to the extent you desire, you can also wrap it in a cling film and store it in the fridge, as cooler temperatures limit it from ripening any further. Also, never store a papaya for more than seven days, even in the refrigerator.

While preparing to cut the fruit, make sure you are near the sink as the entire procedure is extremely slushy and you will need to wash your hands several times. Make it a point to also put on an apron and try to place the cutting board on some newspapers, which you can dispose off easily later.

• Lay the fruit down and cut off the two ends of the fruit.
• Then cut the fruit, first lengthwise and then breadth wise.
• Now take a spoon and scoop out all the black seeds and the slushy membranous parts into a small bowl. This will leave you with only the fleshy fruit sans the messy beans.
• Then, take each quarter and then move on to making three longitudinal slices of each.
• All you now need to do is to hold each sliver into your hand, with the peel of the papaya facing upwards and slowly cut away the skin, in one smooth stroke. Make sure the blade of the knife is faced away from you and runs about 1½ mm below the skin. This is the best way for peeling papaya.
• Sometimes, the membranous part has a hard, whitish looking layer on it. You can use the knife in the same way to scrape that layer off as well.

So, there you know how to cut a papaya in the least untidy way possible. Cut it into smaller cubes if you want and serve it with other fruits if you wish. Those who know how to eat a papaya raw with slightly sprinkled black salt on top, know healthy, sumptuous bliss to a great extent.

I eat a lot of papaya myself, as there are literally innumerable papaya enzyme benefits to be reaped. Papain, as the enzyme is called, is a proteolytic which plays a very vital role in the dissolution of certain forms of proteins and aids peptide digestion. But, there are certain papain side effects, which you must know before you plan to increase your papain intake, especially if you're pregnant or lactating. Papaya fruit is a good source of minerals like calcium and iron as well. So, let not the worries of cutting a papaya by making a sappy mess all around stand in the way of your eating this delightful fruit. After all, nothing ventured is nothing gained!