Papaya. There is great discussion about the difference between papaya and paw paw or papaw. Essentially, they are all the same thing. It just depends where you are. The size of a large avocado, it has soft-textured, fragrant, apricot-coloured flesh with small black seeds which must be stripped out. It is a great breakfast fruit. If you have an unripe papaya which you wish to ripen overnight, pierce it with a sharp knife several times. It should be cut lengthways as this facilitates the removal of the seeds.
Gram flour. The fine, pale yellow chickpea (US: garbanzo bean) flour made from channa dhal (the ones which resemble yellow split lentils). It is used to make pakoras and for binding dishes such as kebabs as well as making excellent batter.
Snake gourds are bright green, thin-skinned gourds which can grow as long as 2 meters (6 ft). Since they have a tendency to curl they can frequently be seen with rocks tied to them to keep them straight. They should be rubbed with salt to remove the downy surface of the skin and can then be cut open, the central core of seeds removed and then cubed or sliced for adding to stews and rasams. They do not have a great deal of flavour.
