By common repute the papaw tree has the power of rendering tough meat
tender. Some say that it is but necessary to hang an old hen among the
broad leaves to restore to it the youth and freshness of a chicken. In
some parts of South America papaw juice is rubbed over meat, and is
said to change "apparent leather to tender and juicy steak." Other folks
envelop the meat in the leaves and obtain a similar effect. Science, to
ascertain the verity or otherwise of the popular belief applied certain
tests, the results of which demonstrated that all the favourable
allegations were founded on truth and fact. A commonplace experiment
was tried. A small piece of beef wrapped up in a papaw leaf during
twenty-four hours, after a short boiling became perfectly tender; a
similar piece wrapped in paper submitted to exactly similar conditions
and processes remained hard. Few facts are more firmly established than
that the milky juice softens--in other words hastens the decomposition
of--flesh. Further, the fruit in some countries is cooked as a vegetable
with meat, and in soups; it forms an ingredient in a popular sauce, and
is preserved in a variety of ways as a sweetmeat.
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