“I have papaya and lime for lunch everyday.”
A passing comment that teased me to try this combination one day.
✄ —————————————————————-
We entered a village located on one of the remotest parts of Vanuatu’s 83 islands. The village had relocated 70 years prior and had the daily struggle for clean water ever since. We were there to document and help implement a water system to five villages from one water source 3.5km up a mountain.
We walked up the hill to the village where we were ambushed by their welcoming party. At first we were “under attack” from some friendly cannibals armed with clubs, machetes and bows and arrows, yelling and seeking the team member with the finest (or most) meat on their bodies. Once one team member cordially offered out their hand, an eruption of laughter followed as we shook hands and were led to the formal welcoming ceremony.
We sat down, and I couldn’t believe my eyes – along came a white girl.
She was from the Czech Republic. She has been travelling, and will be until… well she doesn’t know, but she knows she doesn’t want it to end. She had met some ni-Vanuatus in New Zealand while fruit picking. They asked her to come stay in their village. So she did. Then she made friends with the chief’s daughter, of whose village I was to call home for the next 9 days.
To me, this girl had seen the real Vanuatu.
But there was an edible equation she had not come across in all her tramping about villages across a number of islands.
Papaya + Lime = Natural Starburst Lollie
A few days before she left Vanuatu she called in to see us. I shared Papaya + Lime = Natural Starburst Lollie. She liked it a whole lot. It really worked. It’s one of those plain awesome combinations like peanut butter and honey, or basil and tomato.
✄ —————————————————————-
Recipe. (I mock you not!) There are some important things that you need to know about papaya + lime = natural starburst lollie.
1. This tastes much better when the papaya has been cooled in the fridge. So cool it!
2. There is a difference between a papaya and paw paw, and to be honest I haven’t quite figured it out. One of them has this all consuming thick stinky smell – that is not the fruit that I recommend eating. There is the other which has a much milder smell. This is also the one that I also use for my vegan papaya salad recipe.
Use the juice of one lime for one papaya. Of course it depends on how big either of these are as to whether you use more lime. Just squeeze the juice into the hollow of the papaya after removing the seeds and when you scoop the flesh make sure it touches the lime juice.
Sheer natural culinary brilliance.
Have you tried this combination already? Do tell!
No Comments