Fruit of the Week: Paw Paw

Name: Paw-Paw

Brand: wild, kind of

Place of Purchase: Iowa State University campus, Ames, Iowa

Country/Region of Origin: Paw Paw trees grow all over Zones 5&6 in the United States.

Price in Iowa: free

Description: elongated ovular fruit, thin-skinned, soft and yellow when ripe.

Flavor: Sweet, creamy, with banana and pineapple flavors.

Aroma: Intensely sweet, with hints of banana, citrus and mango.

Texture/Mouth-feel: Once the outer skin is removed, the fruit is sticky, creamy and dense. Imagine avocado covered in honey and cream. The flesh in the center is a bit stringy or grainy, depending on the ripeness of the fruit

Notes:

The paw paw lives up to its nickname "the prairie banana." The mouth feel reminded me of custard. The flavor was a mix of banana, pineapple and vanilla. I was amazed that a fruit this sweet could grow right here in Iowa. There is very little acid in these fruits, and so long as your patient enough to wait for them to completely ripen on the tree, you will be treated to a wonderful, wild, creamy, sweet, fruit experience. This past weekend was the Paw-Paw Festival in Athens, OH. I guess they have everything from paw paw on a stick, to paw paw ice cream and fried paw paw. These plants are easy to grow, easy to care for, and will produce a ton of fruit in a few years. Plus, they're pretty, shady trees.