An Exploration of the Gastronomic Potential of the North American Pawpaw—A Case Study from the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival

Abstract

The pawpaw (Asimina triloba) is a tropical-tasting fruit from a tree indigenous to North America’s temperate climates. Pawpaw has a sweet, sour, and often bitter taste, which is a combination of banana and mango flavor. Fresh fruits are rarely available for retail purchase other than at farm sales or farmers’ markets. Frozen pulp is commercially available but supply is often limited due to increased wholesale demand. The purpose of this paper is to analyze seven years of entries from the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival using case study methodology to provide a basis from which to track trends, make recommendations, and discuss gastronomic opportunities of the pawpaw. Analysis of the data indicates that pawpaw is a versatile fruit that has been incorporated into a wide variety of beverages, savories, sauces, condiments, sweets, and desserts. Pawpaw pairs well with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, especially certain ales, sour beers, innovative cocktails with rum, coffee and tea drinks, and smoothies. Pawpaw is easily incorporated directly into salsas, dips, salad dressings, and frozen desserts that do not require cooking. In cooked savory dishes, sauces, and condiments, pawpaw should be added at the end of preparation. Pawpaw can be used in a wide range of baked and fried sweets and desserts.

1. Introduction

The North American pawpaw (Asimina triloba) tree, hereafter referred to as pawpaw, is the official native tree fruit of the state of Ohio (USA) and is an anomaly because it is the only temperate fruit tree from the tropical Annonaceae family [1]. In other words, it grows in climates that experience winter, producing a unique fruit with tropical characteristics. Confusingly, there are other fruits that share the name pawpaw, most often the papaya (Carica papaya), so care should be taken to ensure proper identification between these fruits. Pawpaw harvest occurs once a year, from mid-summer to early fall, depending on location, which limits its access.

The pawpaw industry is nascent and very local. A recent report [2] indicated that the average pawpaw producer is very small, with an average orchard size of about two dozen trees and an annual production of just over 90 kg (200 lbs) per year. Of those who process fruit, 90% process their own production or fruit they have collected from wild trees, and 85% use farms or farmers’ markets to sell fruit. There are two market forms of pawpaw, fresh whole fruit and frozen pulp (skinless, seedless). Frozen pulp can be difficult to purchase at the retail level as producers report that they provide wholesale pawpaw fruit to breweries for beer (62%), dairies for ice cream (46%), and processors of jams (38%) [2].

Therefore, the main contribution of this paper is to analyze retrospectively seven cases, i.e., seven years of entries (recipes) from the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival using case study methodology to provide a basis from which to track trends, make recommendations, and discuss gastronomic opportunities of the pawpaw.

1.1. Characteristics of Pawpaw Fruit

Pawpaw fruit is identifiable based on certain characteristics such as skin color (generally green), shape (rounded, oblong, peanut, or almond-shaped), texture (not firm but rather watery and custard-like), and seed alignment within the fruit (in rows). A typical pawpaw fruit is shown in Figure 1. However, many characteristics are highly variable and depend on species, of which there are many dozens, in the way that different apple varieties can be similar but have different characteristics. An analysis of pawpaw fruit data from over 50 varieties grown on a prolific pawpaw farm in Ohio over an eight-year period showed that pawpaw fruits range from as little as 10 g per fruit to 244 g per fruit, although the most productive cultivars on the farm produced fruit that ranged from 72 to 172 g [3]. Some fruits are significantly larger and can exceed 600 g per fruit, which has been observed at the yearly Biggest Pawpaw contest at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival, of which the varieties Potomac™ (four) and Lehman’s Delight (five) account for nine of the last 13 Biggest Pawpaw winners at the festival. The color of the edible flesh can range from creamy white to yellow to orange. Pawpaw fruits have a high respiration rate and are climacteric, so they transition from unripe to ripe to overripe very quickly, like bananas, as opposed to non-climacteric fruit like citrus, which does not become over-ripe in the same way [4]. As pawpaw ripens, sweetness and flavor intensify. When overripe, the pulp turns brown and the flavor further intensifies, often presenting a caramel-like character. While this can be seen as a benefit for some, most view this transition as affecting quality negatively. Pawpaw pulp has a sweet, sour, and often bitter taste, with a complicated flavor that is a combination of banana, mango, and other fruit characteristics to varying degrees based on variety [5].

1.2. Pawpaws in History

Based on fossil evidence, Asimina triloba may have existed in North America for more than 50 million years, [6] and Americans may have long cultivated the pawpaw. Professor Hormoza has written an excellent and detailed history of the pawpaw that includes many interesting facts, such as its inclusion in the registry of the Cambridge University Botanic Garden (England) in 1736 and how it probably nourished the Lewis and Clark expedition and other famous early Americans [7].

1.3. Pawpaw Composition

Pawpaw is a nutritious fruit, but not significantly more so than other fruits. The moisture, protein, carbohydrate, lipid, and ash content of pawpaw fruit pulp were reported accurately in the 1963 USDA Handbook #8 (Composition of Foods), but have not been included in USDA materials since that time. For decades, the compositional information for pawpaw fruit came from a 1982 study in which its nutritional analysis was reported for the whole fruit, i.e., pulp and skin together [8]. Because this study has been cited over 40 times in the scientific literature and countless other times in articles and fact sheets, the nutritional content of pawpaw fruit pulp has been over-reported because the skin generally is not consumed. This is the basis for the still-common but not factual claims that pawpaw pulp is high in certain vitamins and minerals or that it is a complete protein, which it is not because it lacks the amino acids arginine, cysteine, methionine, and tryptophan.

The nutrient content of pawpaw pulp (without skin) has been reported in three recent studies [9,10,11] and the results are in agreement. One of these studies included a team member who is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist who determined for the first time that the appropriate serving size of pawpaw is 120 g, which is one-half cup or the pulp from a whole pawpaw that is about as big as a human fist. These studies suggest that pawpaw is rich in fiber (19–25% of US Daily Value per serving) and potassium (5–6% of US Daily Value per serving), and is comparable in other nutritional areas to banana and mango, although banana has more potassium and mango has more Vitamin C. Until such a time as the pawpaw can be included in the USDA Food Data Central, the authors have created a pawpaw entry that can be accessed publicly by searching for “Pawpaw (Asimina triloba)” in Cronometer (www.cronometer.com, accessed on 7 March 2024). The nutrition information for pawpaw pulp is shown in

Table 1. Nutritional Information for North American Pawpaw Pulp Based on Aggregate Values from Recent Analyses [9,11].

Nutrient	Unit	100 g	1 Serving (120 g)
Proximates
Calories	Kcal	84.5	101.5
Calories	kJ	355	425.5
Moisture	g	76.8	92.2
Protein	g	1.1	1.35
Total Lipid	g	0.5	1.2
MUFA	g	0.06	0.07
PUFA	g	0.06	0.07
Saturated FA	g	0.05	0.06
Ash	g	0.4	0.5
Carbohydrates	g	21.2	25.5
Dietary Fiber	g	5.15	6.2
Total Sugars	g	14.7	17.6
Sucrose	g	10.4	12.5
Glucose	g	2.4	2.9
Fructose	g	2.0	2.3
Vitamins
Vitamin A	IU	82	98
Vitamin C	mg	3.0	3.6
Minerals
Calcium	mg	10	13
Iron	mg	0.3	0.3
Magnesium	mg	10	12
Potassium	mg	220	264
Sodium	mg	1.0	1.2
Essential Amino Acids
Cystine	mg	n.d.	n.d.
Histidine	mg	44	53
Isoleucine	mg	13	15
Leucine	mg	38	45
Lysine	mg	30	36
Methionine	mg	n.d.	n.d.
Phenylalanine	mg	28	33
Threonine	mg	24	29
Tryptophan	mg	n.d.	n.d.
Valine	mg	24	29
Non-Essential Amino Acids
Alanine	mg	67	81
Aspartic Acid	mg	47	57
Glutamic Acid	mg	58	69
Glycine	mg	29	38
Proline	mg	163	196
Serine	mg	35	42
Tyrosine	mg	16	20

n.d. = not detected in either study.

.

Pawpaw also contains other important functional components. It has been reported that pawpaws are a rich source of procyanidins (condensed tannins), the antioxidative compounds that are also found in grapes and red wine, cocoa and chocolate, and tea [12]. Separate research has reported that pawpaw contains a mixture of cell wall polysaccharides that includes pectin and hemicelluloses that are typical for similar flowering trees [13]. Despite this knowledge, it is unlikely that pawpaw would be added to the list of “pectin-rich” fruits because its tropical cousin Soursop is not considered a high- or even a medium-pectin fruit [14].

2. Methods

This retrospective analysis was performed using case study methodology. Qualitative methods and descriptive statistics (frequency, mean) were used to evaluate the cases. Each case was considered to be one of the seven Pawpaw Cookoff events conducted between 2016 and 2023 (there was no Pawpaw Cookoff in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic) at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival, during which any festival attendee or food vendor could enter a recipe into the event. The records for each case consisted of the recipe as submitted by the entrant and the category that the entrant self-selected for the entry. The records have been warehoused electronically in some form since 2016, but there are no surviving records prior to that date.

This study examines multiple cases to provide a comprehensive exploration of similarities and differences; however, there are several limitations that this type of research presents. Perhaps the most significant limitation is measurement bias. The Ohio Pawpaw Festival is a late-summer festival, not a research site, so no care was taken to collect the information according to standard or consistent protocols to be used later for research purposes. The records were sometimes entered on paper and transferred to spreadsheets after the event, sometimes entered using survey software, or a combination of both. Measurement bias also was introduced in the entry process when the categories in which entrants chose to place their entries had no inclusion criteria, so they were self-selected by the entrants, causing similar pawpaw-containing items prepared by different entrants to be entered in different categories, such as sauces entered as a stand-alone sauce or as a component of an entry in a different category. Examples include guacamole, hot sauce, or curry sauce, which were entered either as a sauce/condiment or a savory, or caramel sauce, which was entered as a sauce and a sweet/dessert.

3. Results and Discussion

There are many festivals in the late summer or fall that celebrate the harvest, some of which may feature the pawpaw, but festivals dedicated specifically to the pawpaw are less common. Although an index of these festivals is beyond the scope of this paper, other pawpaw festivals in the USA are cataloged on a permaculture website (https://heppy.org/paw-paw-festival/, accessed on 7 March 2024), but it is not known if this is an exhaustive list. Most of these festivals are rural, one-day events, although the York County (Pennsylvania) Pawpaw Festival is a two-day event and the Ohio Pawpaw Festival is a three-day event. In Europe, there is a one-day “Exotic King Festival Indijanske Banane” in Donja Bistra, Croatia, dedicated to the pawpaw, which is referred to in Croatian as “Indian Banana”. There also is a one-day Autumn Days Festival in Bucharest, Romania, which recently featured sampling of pawpaw products [15]. The work presented in this paper is based on the results from the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival, the largest pawpaw festival in the world.

3.1. The Ohio (USA) Pawpaw Festival

The Ohio Pawpaw Festival (www.ohiopawpawfest.com, accessed on 7 March 2024) has been held every September since 1999 (except for 2020) in Albany, Ohio (USA). The Ohio Pawpaw Festival, a one-day novelty festival in 1999 with few attendees, has grown significantly over the years and now is a three-day event that exceeded 10,000 attendees for the first time in 2019. A significant draw at the festival is the many pawpaw-flavored food and beverages for sale, which companies that vend food or beverages at the festival are mandated to offer as a condition of their participation. Pawpaw beer is prevalent at the festival, which has been a feature of every festival since 2002, when Pawpaw Wheat Beer was developed by Kelly Sauber, then the brewmaster at a local brewery. Wine, hard cider, and distilled spirits are not sold because the festival does not have a license to do so. Non-alcoholic beverages such as “Pawpaw-ade’s” and “Pawpaw Smoothies” are common items for sale by food vendors, but pawpaw-themed coffee and tea are not, probably because the festival is conducted in September and the weather usually is warm.

3.1.1. The Biggest and Best Pawpaw Contests at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival

The festival conducts yearly Biggest Pawpaw and Best Pawpaw contests. The Biggest Pawpaw is awarded each year to the pawpaw that weighs the most. Pawpaw producers take the Best Pawpaw contest very seriously and use it to promote their pawpaws. There are limitations to the contest, however. Due to the quick-ripening nature of the pawpaw, the contest informs as much about fruit that is perfectly ripe on the day and time of the contest. These limitations may explain why there has been no single variety that has dominated, but rather 17 different varieties have earned the Best Pawpaw award since its inception.

3.1.2. The Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival

The festival conducts a yearly Pawpaw Cookoff, an event wherein recipes that feature pawpaw are entered into one of four categories (Beverages, Sauces and Condiments, Savory, Sweets and Desserts) and winners are awarded. Prior to 2019, a single Pawpaw Cookoff was conducted that included a separate “professional” category for items submitted by the for-profit food vendors at the festival. Starting in 2019, two separate cookoffs have been conducted at the festival, one for the professional for-profit food vendors on the first evening of the festival, and a second later in the festival that is open to the public. There is a benefit to conducting a separate cookoff for the professional for-profit food vendors, who are required to offer at least two options that contain pawpaw on their menu, because the winning vendors are able to promote their items throughout the festival. Entrants in the public Pawpaw Cookoff must provide recipes for each item, which become the property of the Pawpaw Festival and can be used with permission for activities such as this paper, cookbooks, social media, etc. Entrants in the for-profit professional cookoff are not required to disclose their proprietary recipes.

The Pawpaw Cookoff was conducted seven times between 2016 and 2023 (there was no Pawpaw Cookoff in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic), with the average number of entries ranging from 18 to 47 per year (

Table 2. Total number and percent in each category of Pawpaw Cookoff entries for the period 2016–2023.

		Category
Year	Total # of Entries	Beverages	Sauces and Condiments	Savory	Sweets and Desserts
2016	36	22%	28%	17%	33%
2017	47	26%	30%	11%	34%
2018	32	22%	19%	22%	38%
2019	34	9%	32%	29%	29%
2020	Pawpaw Cookoff cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021	20	5%	25%	10%	60%
2022	23	13%	22%	22%	43%
2023	18	22%	17%	6%	56%
2016–2019	149	20%	28%	19%	34%
2021–2023	61	13%	21%	13%	52%
Total	210	18%	26%	17%	39%

). Interestingly, the number of entrants has decreased in the three cookoffs after 2020. From 2016 to 2019, the average number of entrants was 37 per year, ranging from 32 (2019) to 47 (2018). After 2021, the average number of entrants decreased to 30 per year, ranging from 18 (2013) to 23 (2022).

The majority of Pawpaw Cookoff entries for the years 2016–2023, shown in Table 2, were entered into the Sweets and Desserts category (39%), compared to those entered into the Sauces and Condiments, Beverages, and Savory categories (26%, 18%, and 17%, respectively). This pattern was similar in the years before and after 2020, but the distribution of cookoff entries among the categories shifted toward Sweets and Desserts after 2020. Prior to 2020, the means for each category ranged from 34% (Sweets and Desserts) to 19% (Savory). After 2020, Sweets and Desserts entries rose by 18% to 52%, while each of the other three categories exhibited a corresponding 6–7% decline. Rather than attempt to explain or justify this shift in this article, readers are encouraged to peruse the myriad articles on the changing habits caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which includes this recent review [16].

3.2. Gastronomic Potential Based on Culinary Uses of Pawpaw in the Pawpaw Cookoff

There is limited research describing the gastronomic potential or specific culinary uses of pawpaw pulp, and there is perhaps only one cookbook dedicated to the fruit [17]. Research conducted at Ohio University (Athens, OH, USA) showed that pawpaw pulp was an acceptable fat-reducing agent in muffins [18] and shortened cakes [19]. At Kentucky State University (Frankfurt, KY, USA), strongly favorable taste ratings were obtained for pawpaw ice cream, pawpaw cake with lemon icing, and pawpaw custard [20]. This research also found that participants under 40 years of age who had not tasted pawpaw before preferred the sweeter products like cake and ice cream. In Bucharest, Romania, several pawpaw-containing products were sampled, often in combination with other less utilized agricultural products such as sea buckthorn and chokeberry [15]. Romanian consumers rated pawpaw cake with either sea buckthorn or chokeberry more highly than chocolate cake with pawpaw, whereas pawpaw ice cream with honey and sea buckthorn fruit reduced the taste ratings compared to pawpaw ice cream with honey. Sweetened cottage cheese with pawpaw rated very highly for flavor compared to yogurt and pawpaw combinations.

What follows is a discussion of the gastronomic potential and specific culinary uses based on learnings from the 2016 to 2023 Ohio Pawpaw Festivals. The data include over 200 pawpaw-containing items in total, and offer a rich and diverse universe from which to interpret choices and suitability for pawpaw in foods and beverages. It is important to note that one must assume that the pawpaw used in the Pawpaw Cookoff entries was produced from pulp at peak ripeness and either used as fresh pulp or immediately after thawing previously frozen pulp. In other words, there is no way to know if an entry contained fruit that was immature, perfectly ripe, or past its prime when entered.

3.2.1. Beverages Made from or Containing Pawpaw

Over the data collection period (2016–2023), the beverages entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff accounted for 18% of entries (Table 2), with a low of 5% (2021) and a high of 26% (2017). As shown in

Table 3. Percentage of entries and examples of winning entries from subcategories of the Beverages entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio (USA) Pawpaw Festival from 2016 to 2023.

Beverages Sub-Category	% of Entries	Examples of Winning Entries
Wine	29	Sangria
Beer/Mead/Hard Cider	22	Belgian Dark Beer, Göse Beer, Wheat Beer,
Non-alcoholic (other than Coffee or Tea)	20	Agua Fresca, Lassi (yogurt-based smoothie)
Coffee or Tea	17	Chai Latte (tea), Latte (coffee), London Fog Tea
Other Drinks Prepared with Alcohol	12	Camp Juice (amaretto), Mai Tai (rum), Mule (vodka), Pina Colada (rum), Rum Punch (rum)

, the beverages entered can be classified into five subcategories, three alcoholic (Wine, Beer/Mead/Hard Cider, Other Drinks Prepared with Alcohol), which account for about two-thirds of the entries, and two non-alcoholic (Coffee/Tea, Other Non-alcoholic Drinks), which account for about one-third. The winning entries in the Beverage category generally have been non-alcoholic or drinks that are prepared with alcohol, as opposed to wines or beers.

Wines accounted for 29% of entries in the Beverage category at the Pawpaw Cookoff, the most popular of the pawpaw-themed beverages entered; however, wine rarely was a winner in the contest. In recent history, only Sangria made from red wine with added pawpaw pulp has won in the Pawpaw Cookoff. The majority of wines entered into this category are produced from fruits other than pawpaw and flavored with pawpaw pulp, although some wines produced solely from pawpaw fruit have been entered.

Pawpaw-themed alcoholic drinks other than beer and wine have accounted for 12% of entries in the Beverage category at the Pawpaw Cookoff, the lowest of any in the Beverage category. Despite the lower number of entries, these drinks have routinely won awards. Many of these entries pair fresh pawpaw pulp with rum in a way that adds to a traditional rum cocktail, e.g., Pina Colada, Mai Tai, or rum punch. There has been a smattering of “pawpaw-tini’s” with pawpaw garnishing a vodka-based martini. Bourbon-based drinks such as a Manhattan and Old Fashioned have been entered, but have not won. An original beverage worth mentioning was “Camp Juice”, which combined amaretto, apple cider, and pawpaw pulp.

The scope of the discussion concerning pawpaw beer can and should be much broader than that confined to those entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival because, unlike the other categories of pawpaw food and beverages for which there are few cookbooks and recipes are scattered across the internet and social media, there are user-provided reviews for hundreds of pawpaw beers centrally located at beer rating websites. The websites, such as BeerAdvocate (www.beeradvocate.com, accessed on 7 March 2024), UNTAPPD (https://untappd.com), and RateBeer (www.ratebeer.com), reveal that the vast majority of pawpaw beers are small batch and sold by the glass or growler at local breweries, as opposed to those packaged in cans or bottles for retail sale. The Ohio Pawpaw Festival alone offers 10 or more different pawpaw beers for sale by the glass each year.

Beers made with pawpaw can be categorized in several ways, but the most extensive system was developed by The Beer Judge Certification Program, Inc. (BJCP), a worldwide organization that created and utilizes a standardized process to evaluate, rank, and provide feedback about beer. The classification system has almost three dozen unique styles, each with 2–10 unique substyles, so this level of detail is well beyond what is needed for this analysis. However, a detailed scan of the hundreds of pawpaw beers listed on the beer rating websites determined that most (if not all) pawpaw beers can be classified into one of five general style categories, each based on one or more BJCP styles (Figure 2). This scan revealed that the vast majority (87%) of pawpaw beers are ales that can be classified as American ales, pale ales, or IPA’s (40%), Belgian ales (27%), or sour ales (20%).

Analysis of the results of the beers entered into the beverage category of the Pawpaw Cookoff since 2016 supports these trends. Beers account for 22% of the entries in the Pawpaw Cookoff and the beers that won in the Beverage category at the Pawpaw Cookoff came from the predominant pawpaw beer categories of sour (e.g., Göse), ale (e.g., Wheat Beer), and Belgian (e.g., Belgian Dark).

Most brewers use 0.5–1 kg of pawpaw pulp per 4 L (about 1–2 lbs per gallon), depending on the style. Fruit ales are very common and pawpaw can add a distinctive flavor to ales that works in combination with the bitterness provided by the hops. The yeasts used in these ales, American, English, or New World, often provide a subtle fruitiness of their own that is accentuated by the pawpaw. Pawpaw ales can be sweet or dry depending on whether the sugars are fully fermented. Certain Belgian styles have an inherent fruity character due to the yeast used, so pawpaw can accentuate this aroma and flavor. Pawpaw also can provide the fruitiness to European Sours and American Wilds to balance their sour character. Common criticisms of pawpaw beers are the lack of pawpaw aroma or flavor and that the aroma and especially flavor declines over time.

Non-alcoholic beverages accounted for 37% of entries in the Beverage category of the Pawpaw Cookoff (Table 3). Most of the coffee and tea entries are frappes, cold brews, lattes, and iced teas. Pawpaw often is incorporated into coffee and tea drinks in the form of a pawpaw-infused simple syrup. The non-alcoholic beverages that are not coffee or tea are generally smoothies of various compositions and interesting names. It is relatively straightforward to incorporate pawpaw pulp into these items.

3.2.2. Sauces and Condiments Made from or Containing Pawpaw

Over the data collection period (2016–2023), sauces and condiments entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff have accounted for 26% of entries (Table 2), with a low of 17% (2023) and a high of 32% (2019). Because the categories are self-selected by the entrants, the Sauces and Condiments category can appear to be non-uniform compared to the other categories (Beverage, Savory, Sweets and Desserts) because similar items prepared by different people can be entered as sauces and condiments or can be entered as a component of dishes in the Savory or Sweet and Dessert category. Examples include guacamole, hot sauce, or curry sauce entered either as a sauce/condiment or a savory, or caramel sauce entered as a sauce and a sweet/dessert.

As shown in

Table 4. Percentage of entries and examples of winning entries from subcategories of the Sauces and Condiments entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio (USA) Pawpaw Festival from 2016 to 2023.

Sauces and Condiments Sub-Category	% of Entries	Examples of Winning Entries
Salsa or Hot Sauce	26	Island Salsa, Picante, Salsa, Verde Salsa
Sauces or Condiments not in Another Category	23	Pawpaw Curd, Salted Caramel, Raspberry Pawpaw Curd, Red Curry Sauce
Jam, Jelly, Preserves	21	None
Dip or Salad Dressing	13	Guacamole, Shrub Dressing (sweet and sour sauce), Tahini, Vinaigrette
Barbecue Sauce	9	None
Mustard	8	None

, the Sauces and Condiments can be classified into six subcategories, Salsa/Hot Sauce (26% of entries), Jam/Jelly/Preserves (21% of entries), Dip/Salad Dressing (13% of entries), Barbeque Sauce (9% of entries), Mustard (8% of entries), and other sauces or condiments not in another category (23% of entries). The winning entries in the Sauces and Condiments category generally are salsas, dips, salad dressings, and other sauces. Jams, jellies, preserves, barbeque sauces, and mustards accounted for 38% of entries in the Sauces and Condiments category but do not appear to win frequently, even though several varieties of these items are available commercially.

The pawpaw salsas are tomato-based, except for Verde salsas, and usually incorporate pawpaw pulp at a level equal to the total amount of tomato and other vegetables. It is relatively straightforward to incorporate pawpaw pulp directly into salsas. The picante and hot sauces are pepper-based, to which the pawpaw is added for flavor and sweetness after the flavor and heat of the peppers have been extracted by an acid, i.e., vinegar, citrus juice, etc. In both instances, the addition of pawpaw pulp can mitigate the heat and provide a pleasant sweetness and tropical flavor.

Dips, salad dressings, and other sauces have been frequent winners in this category, but jams, jellies, preserves, barbeque sauces, and mustards have not. Common dips and salad dressings to which pawpaw has been added include guacamole, tahini, sweet and sour, and vinaigrette. Sweet sauces and condiments, such as caramel or salted caramel sauce, spiced pawpaw butter, and pawpaw curd, also have been winners. All of these sauces and condiments are prepared before pawpaw pulp is added as a finish, creating a fresh, upfront pawpaw flavor that balances the sauce or condiment.

Conversely, cooking or heating the pawpaw pulp appears to be the difference between the above-mentioned sauces and condiments and jams, jellies, preserves, barbeque sauces, and mustards. Cooking or heating the pawpaw pulp seems to trigger a decline in fresh pawpaw flavor, causing the pawpaw flavor to fade into the background or disappear altogether.

3.2.3. Savory Items Featuring Pawpaw

Over the data collection period (2016–2023), the Savory items entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff accounted for 17% of entries (Table 2), with a low of 6% (2023) and a high of 29% (2019). As shown in

Table 5. Percentage of entries and examples of winning entries from subcategories of the Savory category entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio (USA) Pawpaw Festival from 2016 to 2023.

Savory Sub-Category	% of Entries	Examples of Winning Entries
Other	22	Oat Breakfast Bar, Sack Lunch *
Tex Mex	17	None
Appetizer	17	Guacamole
Bread	10	Bread
Starch	10	Pawpaw Rice
Entrée	10	Kebabs, Tilapia
Salad	7	Waldorf Salad
Soup	7	Vichyssoise

* Sack Lunch is composed of Pawpaw Chicken Salad Croissant, Vegetables with tahini pawpaw dip, and fruit with pawpaw caramel dip.

, the savory items entered can be classified into seven categories, Tex Mex (17% of entries), Appetizers (17% of entries), Breads (10% of entries), Starches (10% of entries), Entrées (10% of entries), Salads (7% of entries), Soups (7% of entries), and those not in another Savory category (22% of entries). As mentioned in the discussion of Sauces and Condiments, the categories are self-selected by the entrants, so items entered by different people, such as guacamole, can appear across categories. The winning entries in the Savory category have spanned all of the categories, with the exception of the Tex Mex category. Tex Mex is a distinct category and is usually interpreted as a fusion of American and Mexican cuisine. Examples include tamales, tacos, and carnitas. Starches, on the other hand, usually feature rice or noodles.

Items to which the pawpaw was incorporated during cooking were less often winners despite their originality and high quality in other areas. Examples include savory entries such as Appalachian Fusion Pork Belly w/Pawpaw Rice, Curry Chicken Noodles, Fried Carnita Wrap with Pawpaw Blueberry Reduction, and Pawpaw Meatballs with Pawpaw Barbecue sauce, in which the pawpaw was cooked into the rice and noodles, reduction, and sauce, respectively. This is an example of the previously mentioned phenomenon, whereby cooking or heating the pawpaw pulp seems to trigger a decline in fresh pawpaw flavor, causing the pawpaw flavor to fade into the background or disappear altogether.

Across the Savory category, adding the pawpaw pulp at or near the end of preparation as a finish or garnish produced items that were more likely to be winners. For example, both “Pawpaw Tilapia” and “Pawpaw Kabobs” were hot items to which pawpaw is added as the dish was being served, as a dollop on top of the fish and brushed on the kebabs just before serving.

3.2.4. Sweets and Desserts Made with Pawpaw

Over the data collection period (2016–2023), the Sweets and Desserts entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff accounted for the majority of entries (39% of entries), and the number of entries grew from 34% before 2020 to 52% after COVID-19 (Table 2). In fact, the fewest entries in the Sweets and Desserts category of the Pawpaw Cookoff happened in 2019 (29%), the only year that this category did not predominate, and the most entries occurred in 2021 (60%), the year after the festival was canceled due to COVID-19. As shown in

Table 6. Percentage of entries and examples of winning entries from subcategories of the Sweets and Desserts entered into the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio (USA) Pawpaw Festival from 2016 to 2023.

Sweets and Desserts Sub-Category	% of Entries	Examples of Winning Entries
Cake or Muffins	26	Glazed Donuts, Princess Cake, Tres Leches Cupcake
Frozen Dessert	18	Frozen Custard, Ice Cream, Parfait, Ice Candy
Mousse or Pudding	18	Pudding
Cookie	16	None
Specialty	16	Butter Pastry, Eclairs, Fruishi *, Pretzel Dessert, Thai Sticky Rice, Dessert Tamale
Candy	4	Truffles
Cheesecake	4	None

* Fruishi is sweet pawpaw sushi in egg roll wrappers.

, the sweets and desserts entered can be classified into seven subcategories, Cake or Muffins (26% of entries), Frozen Desserts (18% of entries), Mousse or Pudding (18% of entries), Cookies (16% of entries), Specialty Desserts (16% of entries), Candy (4% of entries), and Cheesecake (4% of entries).

Compared to the other categories, entries in the Sweets and Desserts category of the Pawpaw Cookoff have been many and varied (

Table 7. Selected Sweets and Desserts entries in the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio (USA) Pawpaw Festival from 2016 to 2023.

Category	Items
Cake or Muffins	Berliner Jelly Doughnut, Black Walnut Cake Bars, Cinnamon Fried Bread, Cream Filled Vanilla Cupcakes, Delight Cake, Dump Cake, Energy Bites, Frozen Custard with Jam, Funnel Cake, Glazed Doughnut, Pina Colada Cupcakes, Princess Cake, Slow Cooker Upside Down Cake, Spice Muffins, Spiced Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting, Swirl Cake, Tres Leches Cupcakes, Upside Down Cupcakes
Frozen Dessert	Ambrosia, Halo-Halo (Filipino Mixed-Fruit Desert), Ice Candy, Parfait, Frozen Pleasure, Ice Cream with Pawpaw Sauce, Cheesecake, Sorbet
Mousse or Pudding	White Chocolate Macadamia Delight, Mousse, Pudding with Cream Cheese Icing, Tiramisu, Sweet Dip, Sweet Potato Fries with Pawpaw Icing, Creme Brulé, Frozen Custard with Caramel, Custard with Jam, Panna Cotta, Chiffon Pie
Cookie	Gingerdoodle, Newtons, Thumbprint Cookies, Brownies, Blondie, Sugar Cookie, Macaron, Spiced Cookie Sandwich
Specialty	Chocolate Tamales, Waffle on a Stick, Lava Spring Roll, Thai Sticky Rice, Thai Waffle and Sauce, Fruishi, Chocolate Spring Roll, Baklava, Cream Puff, Raspberry Cream Puff, Éclair

). The entries in this category often reflect regional or international flavors. Examples include Tres Leches Cupcakes, Halo-Halo (Filipino Mixed-Fruit Desert), and Thai Sticky Rice.

4. Current Challenges Affecting the Gastronomic Utilization of Pawpaw

The scope of this paper does not warrant a detailed description of horticultural challenges and post-harvest factors that have heretofore limited the commercialization of pawpaw fruit. The long duration of harvest and the necessity of identifying and harvesting ripe fruit by hand are challenging for pawpaw producers. Pawpaw’s uncontrollable ripening phase leads to browning and tissue softening that reduce quality within days after harvest. Because of this, fresh, whole pawpaw fruit must be shipped quickly and with significant packaging to protect the fruit, adding cost to an already-expensive fruit. These factors create a very short period of peak ripeness of pawpaw fruit, which will necessarily affect products to which pawpaw is incorporated.

Access to pawpaw fruit is limited. The industry currently is not very large and the yearly crop can be affected significantly by adverse weather events. In the most productive years, opportunities to purchase fresh, whole fruit at the retail level are limited almost exclusively to localized farms and farmers’ markets. Because most of the processed pawpaw pulp currently is consumed by wholesalers, especially breweries, many producers have chosen to forego retail sales in leaner years.

Another issue is the general unfamiliarity with the qualities of different varieties of pawpaw. Consumers of apples have no problem understanding that some apples are small, green, and sour, whereas others are large, red, and sweet, which makes choosing the appropriate variety for specific culinary applications much more predictable, even for those not trained in the culinary arts. There are a small number of varieties of pawpaw that have been patented or trademarked, with the advantage of being marketed with consistent quality indicators. However, there are dozens of non-trademarked varieties and many discover pawpaws in the wild. Most pawpaw consumers only are beginning to learn about the differences between the varieties. From a culinary point of view, recognizing the different quality characteristics and how they will affect an item prepared with pawpaw is an important consideration.

5. Recommendations and Conclusions

Analyzing the entries from seven years of entries from the Pawpaw Cookoff at the Ohio Pawpaw Festival provides a basis from which to make some recommendations and general conclusions about the gastronomic potential of pawpaw. The data clearly indicate that the pawpaw is a versatile fruit that has been effectively incorporated into a wide variety of beverages, savories, sauces, condiments, sweets, and desserts. The results provide the basis for several recommendations.

Pawpaw pairs well with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Beers with subtle or not-so-subtle fruity notes from hops or yeast, such as sours, some Belgian styles, and certain ales, are predominant. Pawpaw can be used to create innovative cocktails with distilled spirits, especially rum. A pawpaw-infused simple syrup is recommended to incorporate pawpaw directly into coffee and tea drinks, but for smoothies of various compositions, pawpaw can be incorporated directly in a relatively straightforward manner.

When preparing cooked savory dishes, sauces, and condiments, pawpaw pulp should be added at the end of preparation as a finishing flavor because cooking or heating the pawpaw pulp during preparation of the dish causes diminishment in fresh pawpaw flavor. Adding pawpaw after the recipe is created as a garnish in cooked savory dishes or a finish in jams, jellies, preserves, barbeque sauces, and mustards will reveal a fresh, upfront pawpaw flavor in the recipe. Pawpaw easily is incorporated directly into salsas, dips, and salad dressings that do not require cooking.

Pawpaw can be used in a wide range of sweets and desserts. Pawpaw pulp can be incorporated directly into frozen desserts of all types with universal success. Pawpaw has also been shown to be a versatile ingredient in different baked goods, including fried items such as donuts and baked items such as cakes and cookies. There are anecdotal reports about adverse allergenic-type reactions from pawpaw-containing baked goods; however, this effect appears to be individualized. Pawpaw is not recommended with desserts that contain chocolate, if the winning results of the Pawpaw Cookoff are to be used as a guide. Common culinary wisdom suggests that the bitterness of dark chocolate is mitigated by a sweet fruit like pawpaw. However, the inherent bitterness in pawpaw may not lend itself to a relationship with chocolate, at least not one that produces a favorable taste profile.

There are obvious limitations to the recommendations drawn from the compilation presented in this work. For one, it is assumed that the pawpaw pulp was produced from pulp at peak ripeness and used fresh or frozen and used immediately upon thawing. In other words, it is not known if a non-winning item is due to the item itself or because of a less-than-ideal pawpaw. However, 25 years of the Ohio Pawpaw Festival and the seven years of entries in the Pawpaw Cookoff do provide a basis from which to conclude that the pawpaw is a versatile ingredient that can be incorporated into a wide variety of foods.