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Papaya Leaves and Petates

The same expertness is required of West Indians in preparing their suckling pig in clay. Thickly plastered with his earthy blanket, piggy lies in a bed of hot ashes with a well-regulated fire going over him all day, for he must be well done. When his skin has begun to scorch, as one knows by intuition, the clay covering is cracked off, skin comes with it, and the perfume of sage-seasoned pork is an appetizing start for the barbecue feast.

Another West Indian barbecue trick, shared with Brazil, and recently introduced in Florida, is to wrap any meat, no matter how tough and forbidding, in papaya leaves and then either bury it in hot ashes or roast it over coals. The papaya leaves contain vegetable pepsin which softens and predigests the meat without affecting its flavor, and it turns out meltingly tender in very short order.

Also, there is the incomparable South Sea Island style, as popular among Chileans as it is with the Tahitians who invented it. In this, appropriate fruits, roots, grains and vegetables, many of them unknown to us, are wrapped separately in big leaves or in petates, which are mats woven of fresh palm fronds, and these are laid on top of the meat to steam in its juices. Everything is tamped down with more leaves. Hot stones and coals are heaped on, and finally a close cover of earth. Enough of the essence of the fruits and things seeps down as the savory meat steam wells up, so everything comes out of the hole with a richness of flavor that no other method can equal. It's well worth trying next time you find yourself near a hole in the ground and a well-stocked farm with the farmer away, for almost anybody can make some kind of a petate out of plenty of green corn husks. 1