Unfamiliar No More

Several months ago a large Asian grocery store opened near my house. I'm a sucker for exotic ingredients, so I had to go in and look around. However, while I was there I discovered that their produce section had some great prices, so now I stop in there once a week to see what they have. My price point is 99 cents a pound or less. That way if I don't like an item I'm not out a lot of money.

I often get some type of bok choy (which I learned comes in all different sizes and shapes) or eggplant (again with a wide variety of styles). For a couple of weeks they had grapefruit for a really good price, and Hubby Tony and I enjoyed it each day until the season ran out. Then there was asparagus for much cheaper than the other stores in town. We ate a lot of that for a couple of weeks. Sometimes I take a chance on other assorted other fruits and vegetables (like yuca).

Today's exotic find was yellow papaya. I've eaten the fruit dried and in salads, but I'd never seen them whole. Unsure if they needed a lot of work to process I put a smallish one into my bag and brought it home.

Papaya cross section / Wikipedia

Thanks to the Internet I found out that you process a papaya just like a cantaloupe (not surprising, as it's also known as a tree melon). You cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, section it, then cut the skin off. I was surprised to learn, though, that the seeds were also edible and can be used in a variety of ways.

This afternoon I cut up the papaya, but didn't have time to do anything about the seeds. I put them in a small container and placed the container in the refrigerator until tomorrow.  Another culinary adventure awaits!

Five years ago today: Saucy