Last week I was doing a happy dance in the produce aisle. I found non-GMO papaya and my Little Farmers begged me to buy it. The only other papaya I have ever tried has been canned — terrible stuff!
Having never tried papaya, I likely peeled this one while it was still a tad green. It wasn’t very sweet, regardless. My friend had tried fresh papaya in Ethiopia and had raved about it, so I was a little disappointed by the non-too distinct flavor. We managed to eat about half of it and then I realized that I had better find another use for this fruit — after all, I had bought 3 of them.
Confession: I don’t really care for meat and usually have to find a way to disguise the taste! Ketchup has been the go-to sauce in our family, especially for beef. However, four out of the six of us are sensitive to tomatoes or solanine on our MRT tests and we have had to make some changes to fit our LEAP diets. I have been on the hunt for a tomato-free sauce that would pair nicely with meat for the past few months.
I wondered if I could substitute the papaya for tomato in the homemade ketchup recipe that I had made recently for my Farmer.
Result? Well, this isn’t exactly a ketchup replica, it is tasty in its own merit and has the zesty tangy appeal of ketchup.
My Farmer said that this sauce reminded him of “Catalina Dressing”. He and I have fond memories of that electric orange condiment in our growing up years! Back in the day it was ever so delicious on taco salad and used to make a tasty chicken dish!
Serving Suggestion
Try Tropical Papaya Sauce as a tomato-free, solanine-free ketchup alternative. This would also be great idea to boost the nutrients for your little one who loves to dip foods! (You can leave out the onion powder for a sweeter alternative for little ones with sensitive palates.)
Serve as a dipping sauce for grilled or baked chicken. (We have particularly enjoyed this homemade chicken fingers recipe lately.) Love seafood? I imagine this would also pair well with fish.
Its sweet taste is also a nice complement to taco salad. Why not give it a whirl this week? We love a build-your-own-taco salad night on our farm!
Tropical Taco Salad:
- Chicken, Beef, Fish, or Pork – with your seasonings of choice
- Pinto Beans (or Black Beans if you are in later stages of your LEAP diet)
- Fresh Pineapple Tidbits
- Tropical Papaya Sauce
- Toasted Coconut Shreds
- Yellow/Red/Green Bell Pepper Strips
- Iceberg or Romaine Lettuce
- Organic Tortilla Chips (I like Late July for a LEAP friendly option – only Organic Corn + Sunflower oil + Sea Salt)
Layer the above (or your own creative combination of LEAP friendly ingredients) for a
Refreshing
Crunchy
Tangy
Sweet
Vibrant
and
Deliciously Wholesome Meal!
Food is Medicine… but it can also be a Poison
Solanine is a naturally occurring chemical in found tomatoes and other nightshade vegetables including white potatoes, eggplants, bell peppers, paprika, and tobacco. Solanine is often a culprit of inflammation for my clients. Often it can aggravate the pain and inflammation of arthritis.
When a client goes on a personalized immune calming diet, sometimes solanine food chemical has to be taken out of their diet for just a few weeks or months for clients to be able to tolerate it again. Sometimes a food or food chemical is in the long-term memory of the immune system and must be kept out for much longer. I have had clients with auto-immune conditions who were more reactive to solanine than they were to wheat or gluten — removing it had profound effects upon their healing process (including the avoidance of a life-threatening surgery for one of my clients!)
The MRT test allows us to pinpoint the exact cause of your food-related inflammation instead of just guessing. After all, why would you want to take out any wholesomely delicious foods for unnecessary reasons!
Sometimes clients are reactive to papaya… sometimes to solanine… sometimes to both! The results of the MRT test are as unique as your fingerprints!
I like to focus upon abundance — and not restriction — with my clients. We include as many wholesome foods as possible … as long as we know that your body isn’t fighting against that particular food or food chemical and sabotaging your health.
If you want to find out more about how to determine if solanine or other food chemicals are contributing to your auto-immune disease or other inflammatory condition schedule a nutrition strategy session call with me here.
Discover how using food as medicine can help you build lasting health!
- Papaya – 1 large papaya (preferably non-GMO)
- Water – 1/4 to 1/2 cup
- Onion Powder – 1 teaspoon
- Organic Apple Cider Vinegar – 3 tablespoons (try another LEAP friendly vinegar if you cannot have ACV)
- Maple Syrup – 1 Tablespoon (can also use honey, cane sugar, beet sugar, rice syrup, or other allowed sweetener)
- Sea Salt – 1 teaspoon
- Peel papaya and cut into chunks. Add to a high speed blender with water and puree at high speed until smooth.
- Pour puree into a shallow saucepan and add remaining ingredients.
- Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until thickened. (If you prefer to use it as a dressing you may wish to reduce simmer time or add more water at the end.)
Comments
3 responses to “Tropical Papaya Sauce”
Beautiful photos!
I love the pyramid graphic related to the Tropical Taco Salad! It’s an easy visual reference that helps in really understanding the proportions of your salad ingredients and what your final product should look like. It’s a creative yet practical tool to have in addition to the recipe!
Hey Bethany! I really loved the tropical taco salad graphic. It’s helpful to see a graphic giving easy choices for dinner. Thanks for the recipe. Can’t wait to try it!