Tennessee celebrated Pawpaw this week.
Not your grandfather, but rather one of Tennessee’s hidden gem fruits, grown in parts of Putnam and White Counties.
TSU Nursery Extension Specialist Kaitlin Barrios said the pawpaw fruit comes from a tree with the same name. Barrios said the fruit resembles and tastes similar to a mango, but it is slightly smaller. Barrios said the plant is native to the eastern United States.
“They aren’t ripe for super long, so you know, they don’t have a terribly long shelf life,’ Barrios said. “But I think you can pick them when they’re green when they’re not quite ripe, and let them ripen on you know, your kitchen counter for a few days or so.”
Barrios said the pawpaw plant is an under-story plant that needs moist soil, so the best place to find one is by a river or creek in a shady area.
Barrios said pawpaw fruits are in season from late August until early October, so they may be easier to find in the wild this time of year.
“They start off green and they turn kind of a yellowish-orange,” Barrios said. “And sometimes they might have some darker spots on them, which is part of the ripening. And the skin is kind of a smooth texture.”
Barrios said pawpaw fruits tend to grow on the tree’s newer branches towards the end of large branches. Barrios said it takes about a year for fruits to grow.
Barrios said the fruit is healthy, with nutrients like potassium, iron, and Vitamin C. Though it is edible, Barrios said people should avoid eating the skin and seeds from a pawpaw. Barrios said there are lots of ways to enjoy and preserve pawpaws despite their brief ripeness window.
“You can chop them up and keep the good part of the fruit and freeze it,” Barrios said. “Or you can put them in, like substitute them for banana, like if you’re making banana bread you can do that. You can put them in ice cream or a smoothie, so you can eat them in a lot of different ways.”
Barrios said pawpaw fruits may be hard to come by both in the wild and at the store. Barrios said people hoping to try a pawpaw fruit have a better chance of finding them at a farmers market instead of at a traditional grocery store.
