All About Mangoes

One of the best books a culinary nerd could get is Baron's The Food Lover's Companion. Grocery shopping often raises more questions than answers, and shopping for produce or spices, there are often new vocabulary and unfamiliar ingredients. The Food Lover's Companion is the best place to go for definitions, history, uses, preparations and tips of how to buy certain ingredients. 

Just to show the range of information available in this perfect "foodpedia," mangoes will be the feature of this blog. A simple enough fruit, it is in many ethnic fare, is available most all year round in most markets, and perplexes many people because of its exotic reputation. 

Mangoes, like many other tropical fruits originated in India, where the tree that bears the fruit is regarded as sacred. Mangoes now are grown in many tropical areas and warm climates like Florida and California. Their peak season is May through September, but are available most of the year thanks to food globalization. When looking for mangoes it is best to look for unblemished skin with a color ranging anywhere between green and red. There are many varieties, but the most common start out green and turn orange or red when ripening. Mangoes are ripe when their skin yields to gentle pressure, like a pear. Because of this, it is important to think about when you want to use the fruit when buying it. Once ripe, mangoes will not last in a fruit bowl past a few days, while at the same time, unripe they are difficult to cut. The flesh needs to be soft to cut around the large flesh-colored seed that is in the middle of the mango. It is similar to the core of  a pineapple, in that it is hard to cut through but doesn't look like the seed of a stone fruit or an apple.

Mangoes are extremely high in vitamins A and C. It also has natural enzymes that make it great for tenderizing meat. The fruit is probably best known for its place in the popular Indian relish, chutney, but really has limitless uses. From smoothies, to fruit salads, salsas, and relishes to simply dicing and eating straight out of a dish. A great tip for hot summer days or sore scratchy throats is to keep some frozen mango chunks handy for lozenges. As long as the fruit was ripe when cut, it should soften quickly and not be too hard to chew. It is a great cool soothing treat, and the enzymes in the mango can help with throat drainage that comes with allergies or a cold. 

Tart, sweet mangoes pair well with all tropical fruits (pineapple, papaya, etc.) but also go extremely well with kiwi or tart berries. The combination is sweet, but not too sweet, and can accompany any meal from breakfast to dessert. Below is a great mango salsa recipe. Heat can be adjusted by taking out the seeds of the hot peppers, or adding more/hotter peppers.

Mango Salsa

Ingredients:

1 mango, finely diced (see video below for tips)

1 jalapeno pepper (red or green)

1/2 of yellow or orange bell pepper

1/2 cup green onion, finely diced

drizzle honey

splash of white wine vinegar or rice wine vinegar

Simply combine ingredients and let sit for 1-2 hours. For a more blended salsa, use a food processor. It is great on top of fish or chicken, or with chips.

Below is a helpful link for preparing mango:

How to  cut a mango into pieces, chunks or use a mango peeler/corer.