Enzyme helps digest meat before you chew it

If you want to eat papaya right away, pick one that's mostly yellow and slightly soft to the touch. When cooking with the tropical fruit, however, green papayas - not yet ripe, and hence firm - are best.

Unripe papaya is rich in an enzyme called papain that helps digest proteins. In this recipe by the Chinese Cuisine Training Institute's English-Speaking Dining Society, the fruit tenderises the chicken meat, making it soft and delicious.

Papaya also packs antioxidants such as carotenes, vitamin C and flavonoids; the B vitamins - folate and pantothenic acid; potassium, magnesium and fibre.

Stewed chicken with papaya

Serves 4

For the chicken marinade