🇻🇪 Venezuelan Cuisine

Dulce de Lechosa

Candied Green Papaya

Prep Time 20 min

Servings 10

Difficulty Easy

Calories 184 kcal

Green papaya strips slow-simmered in clove-spiced panela syrup until translucent and jewel-like — Venezuela's traditional Christmas dessert.

Ingredients

1 large green papaya (about 2kg)
500g panela, grated
4 cups water
6 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
Juice of 1 lime

Instructions

1 Peel green papaya, remove seeds, and cut into thick strips or chunks.
2 Soak papaya strips in lime water for 1 hour to firm them up. Drain.
3 Dissolve grated panela in water over medium heat. Add cloves and cinnamon sticks.
4 Add papaya strips to the syrup. Bring to a gentle simmer.
5 Cook on low heat for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally, until papaya is translucent and syrup is thick.
6 Cool completely. Serve at room temperature or chilled. Keeps for weeks refrigerated.

Did You Know?

Venezuelan grandmothers judge each other's dulce de lechosa by the translucency of the papaya strips — if you can't see through them, it's not cooked enough.