Paw Paw, The "Indiana Banana"

​If you grew up in rural Indiana, there is a good chance that you have encountered Paw Paw trees at some point in your life, maybe while roaming the wooded countryside.  I remember my first discovery of this strange and unique-looking fruit when I was about 10 years old.  My friend Kent and I often played in the woods behind my childhood home in rural Howard County, building forts, camping out, making trails, fishing Mud Creek, and exploring … sometimes searching for that spot of “quicksand” according to local legend (we never found it, LOL). 

We also usually referred to the woods as “the swamp” because there were areas that had cattails and soggy black organic soil, which I now know meets the criteria of a “wetland.”  It was not all soggy, though, and there was a spot, somewhat of a clearing free of larger trees on slightly higher ground, and that is where we discovered this Paw Paw grove!
I’m not sure which one of us first found this odd banana-looking fruit on the ground, but we showed it to our parents, and they told us what it was.  Thinking we had hit the jackpot, we returned to the woods with a large paper grocery bag (back when all grocery bags were paper) and started to collect our bounty.  Now, I know it had to be around September, as that’s when Paw Paws ripen typically. We picked up what we could find on the ground, but soon noticed there were many more Paw Paws still attached to the trees, high up on their long, slender trunks and limbs. 

In this particular Paw Paw grove, the trees were probably about 15 feet tall, with few lower branches, likely due to the partial shade of the area and the crowding of the trees.  Other Paw Paw trees I have witnessed since can be shorter and wider, when the growing conditions (light and space) support that.  Also, Paw Paw trees in “the wild” tend to grow in tight groves, as individual trees often sprout from the same lateral root systems, which means transplanting wild Paw Paw trees is usually unsuccessful, as the lateral roots would have to be cut to remove the tree from the ground. 

​Anyway, back to the grove, we soon found out that 10-year-old boys could shake those long slender tree trunks, and Paw Paws would begin falling to the ground.  It was not long before we had a full grocery bag (that certainly took both of us to carry through the swamp back to the house) while the woods began growing dim at sunset.  There was only one issue.  The Paw Paws were fairly ripe at this time of year, and the Paw Paws in the lower half of the bag were pretty much Paw Paw mush by the time we got to the back porch (guided by that yellow bug light we could always see from the woods).  However, I don’t think our moms were all that inspired to use them at this point, although I’m not really sure they knew of any Paw Paw recipes anyway. LOL

---

That brings us up to the real point of this article, and armed with the power of the internet now, there are a whole host of ways and recipes you can use the Indiana Banana online!  And even if you don’t find Paw Paw specific recipes, they are so comparable in consistency to bananas or persimmon pulp that you could just substitute Paw Paw pulp for either of those other fruits.

​
​
So how do you process Paw Paws?  I can at least tell you how I have done it. When picking (or picking up) the Paw Paws, I try not to bruise them too much, as they can turn brown in those bruised areas quickly.  If you happen to use the “shaking the tree” method, which I often do to beat the raccoons to the harvest, the Paw Paws might be the slightest bit unripe yet. However, they will ripen on the kitchen counter just fine.  If I have some that are more ripe than others, I put those in the refrigerator to slow down the ripening, while allowing the ones on the kitchen counter to “catch up”.  That way, I can obtain the 2 cups or more of pulp that most recipes call for.

---

1

2
​
​
3

I start by peeling the Paw Paws, which can be a bit challenging when ripe and slippery.

​Then I basically squeeze out the large seeds by hand (there are many) and separate them from the pulp (a messy job). I also often wash and dry the seeds to share with others or propagate them in the woods myself (although I think I can stop doing that now due to the number of trees on the property). 
​
I then take the golden Paw Paw pulp and push it through a wire strainer to remove any undesirables, and it also helps smooth out the consistency of the pulp.  At this point, you can use it directly in a recipe, store it in the refrigerator for a couple of days, or freeze it in airtight containers for later use.  One unusual thing I have found is that the pulp will set up similarly to pudding in the refrigerator overnight, without any additional processing, and it actually tastes pretty good just “raw”.

I have made Paw Paw bread before, using a banana bread recipe as a guide, but this year, I came across a Paw Paw pudding recipe that was very similar to the recipe for persimmon pudding (and since I love persimmon pudding), I thought I would give it a try.  It actually turned out pretty good, but I must admit, my favorite is still persimmon pudding (a future article, maybe). 
​
I’m not the best photographer, but I tried to capture the process from picking to finished pudding, seen below, to give you an idea of what was involved.  However, the real emphasis of this article is to spotlight one of the many native Indiana trees, and its importance as a food source for animals and humans (which was most assuredly used by native Americans at the very property where they are still growing).  Pretty cool to think about!  …and as far as concern about taking too many from wildlife, there are literally hundreds of Paw Paw trees in these woods, and the native critters usually get most of them before I do …but I like to think they wouldn’t mind sharing anyway 😊

---

Pictured: My buddies, Stan (Left), Kent (Right), and me (Middle) …and no, this is not Mayberry, but those are striped bell-bottoms. LOL

---