Little Yellow Mangoes Sighted in Broadway Argyle Area

Little Yellow Mangoes Sighted in Broadway Argyle Area

Shopping for green papaya and assorted curry pastes yesterday, I spotted one of the first sure signs of spring: inexpensive cases of little yellow mangoes in several Asian markets in the Broadway/Argyle area.

I was in kind of a hurry, so I paid 12 bucks for a case (I think there were maybe 12 mangoes in the case, maybe more, but my oldest daughter and some male friends launched into them before I had a chance to do a precise head count). As I recall, the price for these babies comes down some over the next few weeks, but to my mind, these are just fine damn fruit: lusciously sweet, but with that turpentine-y mango smack we like, very meaty, with a relatively tiny seed, these little lovelies are available for only a limited period, and they will no doubt soon make their appearance at Hispanic stores (e.g., Carniceria Jimenez) as well (the ones I bought are from Mexico, but last year I noticed they appeared in Asian stores before Hispanic stores…perhaps just an anomaly).

Highly recommended.

For all the southsiders, they're available now at Pete's Market, on 47th and Kedzie. We bought some yesterday, and plan to enjoy them tonight.

Cermak Produce and Tony's both had good supplies of Manila mangoes in the last week.

Hi,

The month of May is peak season. I was once at Udupi Palace where I got into a heavy food conversation with the lady at the next table. She advised on the side of the mango boxes are boxes where they check off mangoe varieties. She said the best for making chutney's was the variety 'Kent.' We've had this discussion on the other board a few years ago. Maybe Zim and/or somebody else can comment on their experience with mango varieties and their suitability for eating out of hand or cooking.

There are two ways I have heard this fruit pronounced: man-go or main-go, which is correct?

Thanks!

Regards,

Hard to know just what mango this is. There are hundreds of varieties, many of them created at the University of Florida and many available locally from Tampa/Orlando south.

What UC Davis is to grapes (among other produce) UF is to mangoes (ditto).

Mango trees, live oaks, and roadside stands selling mangoes in the shade of live oaks, are some of the things I miss about Florida sometimes. Lovelier trees you hardly see.

Check this out.


http://tfphotos.ifas.ufl.edu/070102.htm

Talk about food porn. I know you'd pay to see more of Hayden.

Lots of interesting links within the page above, including one to a series of nice portraits "with mangoes."

The smaller yellowish ones are often sold here as "Champagne," and come from Florida and Haiti. I had not seen or heard of anything other then the commoner cultivars coming from Mex. -- large, greenish, travel hardy, and as often is the case with fruits of robust constitution, not very good. For chutney, I can see the acidic firmer fruits doing a good job, though.

A common peeve of mine about tropical fruit from Mexico (as opposed to the Caribbean/S. Florida) is that the fruit we get from south of the border follows the "bigger (and blander) is better" formula. This is keenly evident not only in the mangoes, but even more so in the papayas and guavas. The stuff we get from Mexico is usually grotesquely large and almost unrecognizable in taste, for me at least. I have no doubt that better, smaller and tastier varieties thrive in Mexico, likely in the South and East where things are more tropical and less like an extension of California's Cornucopia of Mediocrity, the Central Valley.

Where was I, oh yeah. Thanks for the tip. It is finally mango season again. Many of the better varieties go later.

JeffB wrote:I had not seen or heard of anything other then the commoner cultivars coming from Mex. -- large, greenish, travel hardy, and as often is the case with fruits of robust constitution, not very good.

Around these parts, we get a small yellow mango from Mexico called "mango de manila". One of the best eating mangoes, IMHO, when picked and ripened properly.

Bill/SFNM

Looks like the little ones from Mexico are marketed here as Manilla also, according to a post above. Note my jab at CA produce was directed only at the big industry of the Central Valley. I wasn't dissing the fog-kissed artichoke and asparagus fields, the vineyards etc., etc. More like iceberg lettuce and rock hard avocados...

AnneVdV wrote:For all the southsiders, they're available now at Pete's Market, on 47th and Kedzie.

At Pete’s, I was going to buy a case of 20 for $6.99 until I realized they were even cheaper when purchased individually!

Rene G wrote:At Pete’s, I was going to buy a case of 20 for $6.99 until I realized they were even cheaper when purchased individually!

A case for around 6 bucks. That's the price I remember from last year. I don't think there were as many as 20 in the case I bought yesterday, and I expect to find better prices over the few weeks (I forget when they stop coming, but I believe they'll be available through April, at least).

I do prefer to buy them individually (sometimes the cases contain a dud).

Hammond

the little yellow ones are showing up all over town, they are also marketed occasionally as "champagne mangos" i've seen quite a few at morelia market on N. clark, though not on devon as yet. from what I understand even though often labeled manila mangos, these are from mexico (I thing one subregion got the marketing rights for "champagne" anothe for "honey manila" - I think that these are really Ataulfos). mangos are highly terrain dependent and specific areas (especially in india) are famous for their mango varieties, like ratnagiri, chausa, alphonso, desheeri

In terms of which are best, well that's a highly subjective judgement. I've seen a number of arguments among indians about which they favor. Among those commonly available around here I tend to go with the "champagnes" but my mom with a copla decades more mango experience than I prefers the kents when they are ripe.

Cathy2 wrote:There are two ways I have heard this fruit pronounced: man-go or main-go, which is correct?

mango = "mang" (as in mangle) + "o" (as in "Oh!")
edited in (the missus berated me on the earlier one): "mang" + "go" so the 'g' is distinct (but not stressed)
[stress on first syllable or on neither]

"main-go" - this may be used below the Mason Dixon line

Zim wrote:the little yellow ones are showing up all over town, they are also marketed occasionally as "champagne mangos" i've seen quite a few at morelia market on N. clark, though not on devon as yet. from what I understand even though often labeled manila mangos, these are from mexico (I thing one subregion got the marketing rights for "champagne" anothe for "honey manila" - I think that these are really Ataulfos). mangos are highly terrain dependent and specific areas (especially in india) are famous for their mango varieties, like ratnagiri, chausa, alphonso, desheeri

In terms of which are best, well that's a highly subjective judgement. I've seen a number of arguments among indians about which they favor. Among those commonly available around here I tend to go with the "champagnes" but my mom with a copla decades more mango experience than I prefers the kents when they are ripe.

The non-standard labelling is to me a cause of much confusion. Also the inconsistent taste of mangoes* has, sadly, reduced my enthusiastic purchase of my favourite fruit. Mangoes, like many other tropical fruits, need to ripen on the tree to develop full flavour and sweetness (as do tomatoes). This is not very convenient for shipping/storage/shelf life. Too often, I have found mangoes that look quite pretty and yellow/red with very little flavor and sweetness. Sometimes mangoes in the same box are very different (depends also on the 'variety' in the box).

As Zim notes, different regions produce different varieties, and as the 'Mango season' progresses, the different varieties peak at their appropriate times. The length of this 'peak season' for the particular variety is also variable - from as long as months to as little as two weeks; this affects how widespread the sales distribution is. Thus some varieties are regional delicacies and may be unknown in other parts of the country. The names Zim mentions are, IIRC, north indian varietals; Alphonso being the most famous. I do not know what mango varieties are available in Latin America, particularly what makes it way to the US and Chicago. I am tempted to systematically document the 'Mango season' (Thanks for the heads up, DH!).

My rant above pertains to 'ripe' mangoes. When the ripeness/sweetness is disappointing, I end up dicing up the mango for a salsa.

Mangoes are also very tasty when green and unripe (again, there are pariticularly great green mango varieties, and not so good ones) - fantastic with a dash of salt and chile powder or for pickling.

DH, you mention a 'turpentine-y" smack. I'm not sure if I understand correctly, but this may be due to 'artificial' ripening, typically by gassing with ethylene. Sometimes the mango skin has a mild bitter/pungent smell/taste (vaguely reminiscent of asafoetida), or you may hear a phrase with the mention of "carbide" - this would be from the use of calcium carbide to produce the ethylene to 'ripen' the fruit. Unfortunately, this 'ripening' is good for looks, but does little for the taste of the fruit.

*For mango lassi in most reastaurants, a canned pulp is used. I noticed a large stack of Kesar Mango Pulp (Nirav brand) at Sabri Nehari recently

**edited in: Thanks for the links to the photos JeffB. Now if I can figure out a way to get all the different names for the same type, that would be awesome.

sazerac wrote:DH, you mention a 'turpentine-y" smack. I'm not sure if I understand correctly, but this may be due to 'artificial' ripening, typically by gassing with ethylene. Sometimes the mango skin has a mild bitter/pungent smell/taste (vaguely reminiscent of asafoetida), or you may hear a phrase with the mention of "carbide" - this would be from the use of calcium carbide to produce the ethylene to 'ripen' the fruit. Unfortunately, this 'ripen' is good for looks, but does little for the taste of the fruit.

A certain turpentine-y flavor is not uncommon among mango; a University of Florida source notes, “Ask ten people who have lived for years in the tropics and nine of them will tell you that the turpentine mango is delicious, and they don't mind the turpentine flavor at all, in fact that they like it (http://fcit.usf.edu/florida/docs/m/mangos.htm).

I’m one of the people who like it…then again, I’m also fond of the taste of asafetida (also called "devil's dung," http://www.foodsubs.com/SpiceInd.html), which has inspired me to modify my LTH tagline.

David Hammond wrote:A certain turpentine-y flavor is not uncommon among mango; a University of Florida source notes, “Ask ten people who have lived for years in the tropics and nine of them will tell you that the turpentine mango is delicious, and they don't mind the turpentine flavor at all, in fact that they like it (http://fcit.usf.edu/florida/docs/m/mangos.htm).

I’m one of the people who like it…then again, I’m also fond of the taste of asafetida (also called "devil's dung," http://www.foodsubs.com/SpiceInd.html), which has inspired me to modify my LTH tagline.

I'm not disputing any taste. I was just trying to understand what was meant by 'turpentine' (since that word evokes different associations for me).

Anyhow, at Pete's Market (47th & Kedzie) we picked up some "manilla" mangoes (also labelled as "Susie" with the quotes on some stickers on the mangoes) - the box also labels them as "Ataulfo".

I was quite dismayed when I saw the pile of mangoes at the store. Most were green. Plucked way too early. In the interest of documenting the progression of the seaon and availability I did (reluctantly) pick up a few of what I thought were the ripest* . I also picked up one very green one.
I had a yellow one for breakfast - mango-ey, a bit tart, not sweet (although not unsweet - if that makes sense), firm orange flesh (not fibrous). IMO, picked too early to ship too far (sigh). The bottom of the box indicates "23 Marzo 2005" - I'm assuming this is the packing date (this box also bears the stamp "Lot 001"). I await future lots further into the season when hopefully the shipping time is reduced.

*yellowest, and by smelling the point were the stalk is attached. None were really sweet smelling (you'll know from the smell if they are ripe), so I picked what didn't smell green.

Edited to add pics and this note:
The reddish green one is different. At Pete's I was told this was simply called mango (no variety name) - #4959. It was somewhat mangoey, somewhat sour. Was good in a salsa.

sazerac wrote:Anyhow, at Pete's Market (47th & Kedzie) we picked up some "manilla" mangoes. I had a yellow one for breakfast - mango-ey, a bit tart, not sweet (although not unsweet - if that makes sense), firm orange flesh (not fibrous). IMO, picked too early to ship too far (sigh).

sacerac,

I picked up eight of the manila mangoes yesterday at El Nuevo Mundo (5901 Roosevelt Road, Cicero). What you describe accurately reflects my experience with them: not nearly as sweet as the ones I picked up on Argyle and much smaller (also, appropriately, less expensive: 4 for a buck). I did not get any green ones, but I think you're right that they were probably picked a bit on the early side.

I also spotted smaller "six pack" plastic cases of mangoes that I think were called something like Mango Maguey; these looked more like the ones I got on Argyle.

Hammond

Being a little disappointed with the first lot of (manila) mangoes (see previous post - now edited to include pics), but whetted on the sour tang, my wife and I sought some green mangoes on Sunday afternoon. We knew we could get some at North Water Market in Devon, but thought I would try some of the other possible places on the way.

First stop: Broadway supermarket. No mangoes to be found

Second stop: Trung Viet SuperMarket (4938 N. Broadway). There were mangoes, including the 'manila' , but the green mangoes seemed riper than desired. We noticed jackfruit (another fruit I love) @ $3.50/lb, but that thing must have been a 20 pounder - too big for the two of us. The cut and plastic wrapped pieces and the frozen alternatives didn't look appealing. We passed. I did also see durian @ 99¢/lb.

Third Stop: Edgewater Produce (our first time there; I saw it mentioned here)
Lots of mangoes. #4312 (manila). I noticed that mangoes other than the 'manila' were marked 'susie' (this was the 'simply' mango, #4959, pictured with the manilas)
Different packaging, but from the same place in Mexico. A quick inspection of the bottom of the cartons revealed dates from March 8 to March 31. Many of them still had a plastic wrapping - probably to get them to yellow. Picked too early I decided, although some of them looked quite appealing.
No green mangoes.

Fourth Stop: Devon
We walked around a bit, stepping in and out of a few places

Farm City Market and some other large supermarket (on the opposite side of the street) - lots of #4312 (manila). Dates in the same range as we found in EP. No green mangoes

Patel Bros. - The green mangoes were not so green.

North Water Market: We bought a 4 or 5 green mangoes. A little pricey at $1.49/lb but some seemed nice and green enough to pick up.

We did step into Ambala. Walking a bit further west, we chanced upon Ted's Fruit Market (mentioned I saw later here). We were drawn to the mangoes displayed outside. These were not #4312, but nice fragrant red yellow #4051s
Some boxes had them checked as "Tommy" which is what they look like.

The cartons indicated they were from Guatemala, lot number and other markings similar to those on boxes of Mexican origin - but no date. However the fragrance and the fact that each carton was $2.98 (12 per carton) quickly had us going in. The fruit inside, was great too - so it wasn't just the boxes in the sun that seemed ripe and fragrant. Since many boxes had more than 12 and many less, we picked a box that had the most ripe ones and substituted some and got them home. I was very impressed with the quality in whole store - next time on Devon I'll definitely go there as well for the produce and to the deli section where we saw the dill pickles and sauerkraut in barrels.

Back home we cut the green mangoes. The greenest or palest yellow were good with salt.


While I took some pictures, my wife quickly got dinner going.
Green mango and fish curry (a quick and simple Fish Moilee - a dish from Kerala, India). I didn't realize how quick she was going to be and I was just about able to get a picture before the fish went in.


The tangy mango and fish with the slightly hot slightly sweet coconut milk gravy with turmeric and ginger, was great with some rice.


The ripe mangoes (#4501; Tommy) were good. These mangoes are thin skinned, very juicy fleshed and slightly fibrous - the seed is quite fibrous. I wanted to sample a few before I posted, in case there were duds, but we've had about 6 and none were really sour.


edited to add link

hey sazerac,

what recipe are you using for your moilee (if you are following one)? I've always stuck with KM Mathews stuff in regard to kerala stuff, though there is a nice ripe mango curry recipe from Kerala in Jaffrey's flavours of India

Meen (=Fish) Moilee (pronounced "Molly", rhymes with Polly)


From the archives of my wife's mind, this is the recipe and procedure followed for the dish pictured in the prior post.

In a nonstick pot over Medium Heat, add
1 Tbsp Canola Oil* (you may need more for a non non-stick vessel)
Add 1 medium onion, sliced thin
1.5 inch piece ginger, minced
2 stems of curry leaves, approx 20 leaves**
saute for 2 -3 mins. , then add
4 thai chillis, slit lengthwise (no, not deseeded) - serranos would be fine too, adjust according to your taste. If you want the curry (gravy) spicier add the chillis with the ginger and onion, so they have more time to flavor the oil and thus the gravy***.

Saute 2 mins more till the onions are just translucent (not browned)
add 1/2 tsp turmeric powder and stir, 10 - 20 seconds, then add
4/5 can coconut milk, cream removed****
reduce to low, bring to a low simmer (not boil, you want to 'cook' the raw coconut milk without it 'breaking'). After about 7 mins., add
1 green mango , sliced and not peeled (see edit2 below)
salt - approx 1/2 tsp we used sea salt. This can be adjusted to taste later as needed
Continue on low simmer about 5 mins. - the mangoes will be half cooked at this stage. Add rest of the coconut milk cream, stir, then add
approx 1.5 lb firm white flesh fish we used tilapia*****.
Stir. Cover the pot leaving a small vent, continuing on low simmer approx 7 - 8 mins. The fish should be just cooked though and the mangoes would have completely cooked through (the skin will be a brownish green/olive green)
Adjust salt. Turn off heat.


Enjoy with rice.



*'Traditionally' in Kerala, India the cooking medium is coconut oil, but we're not really being that traditional using a non-stick pot anyway. And canned coconut milk. Nevertheless, this preparation is very 'authentic'.

**You can get a styrofoam trayful for 99¢ at North Water market. This recipe uses about 1/10 of that amount. You can freeze the rest in the tray, plastic wrapped until further use...

***The slightly delayed addition lets the flavor of the chilis but not too much heat come through (you could always bite on the chilis later, if you so choose). This allows for people with varying degrees of tolerance enjoy the dish.

****Do not shake the can before opening. After opening, the thicker cream on top can be removed with a spoon, to be added later. You could use less than a whole can.

*****You could use cod or some other fish. Also Pomfret would be great. Instead of fillets cut up, steaks with bones would have been more flavorful. Avoid oily fish (like mackarel, although it is commonly used in Kerala cooking)

edit:You can rub the fish with the turmeric, let it rest a wee and then fry, and then add this to the gravy, instead of adding the turmeric and fish separately. This would taste quite different. My wife prefers the version posted as the fish retains more of its original flavor/sweetness and the turmeric flavours the curry.

edit2: When tomatoes are in the market, which is at a different time than green mangoes (in Kerala, India), they are used instead for their sourness.

Sazerac, thanks so much for the recipe, I had a couple quick questions:

sazerac wrote: 2 stems of curry leaves, approx 20 **
saute for 2 -3 mins.

I assume you mean two stems and the curry pata attached to those stems?

sazerac wrote:
*'Traditionally' in Kerala, India the cooking medium is coconut oil, but we're not really being that traditional using a non-stick pot anyway.

I noticed in the Mathew book that's there's a lot of use of gingelly oil (which is a light sesame oil). Which they sell at Kamdar in fairly large portions. How important do you think this is for taste? Is it as essential as mustard oil for bengali stuff or more optional?

zim wrote:Sazerac, thanks so much for the recipe, I had a couple quick questions:

sazerac wrote: 2 stems of curry leaves, approx 20 **
saute for 2 -3 mins.

I assume you mean two stems and the curry pata attached to those stems?

Yes. Approx. 20 curry pata (=leaves), or what is attached to the stems (I've edited my earlier post)

zim wrote:

sazerac wrote:*'Traditionally' in Kerala, India the cooking medium is coconut oil, but we're not really being that traditional using a non-stick pot anyway.

I noticed in the Mathew book that's there's a lot of use of gingelly oil (which is a light sesame oil). Which they sell at Kamdar in fairly large portions. How important do you think this is for taste? Is it as essential as mustard oil for bengali stuff or more optional?

Gingelly oil would impart its own flavor. However, I do not consider it "essential" and prefer to use minimal amounts of oil anyway.

On Mustard Oil for bengali cooking - this is 'traditional' but again I do not consider it 'essential' (with the exception of some specific dishes).

Mustard oil is available in many stores in Devon. In case you are tempted to buy, read the label carefully. Many are marked, For Massage Use Only (unfortunately, in a much smaller font). I know of friends who are Bengali who have bought it and used it for cooking*. I would strongly advise against it. This oil is of inferior quality (just from its low fragrance/smell), and may be harmful if ingested.
[pics edited in]: Found next to the Gingelly oil (untoasted sesame oil), in a store on Devon

Do read the label carefully!

Do feel free to use this oil for massage - especially slightly warmed with a clove of garlic in it. Very therapeutic: it'll drive your enemies away and you'll find out who your friends are.

*While they didn't report any ill effects, they have since stopped this practice.

sazerac,

I am very grateful for your review of some variations of my favorite fruit -- and that recipe is magnificent.

Less than a novice cook of Indian food, I'm interested in the fact that you leave the skin on the mango when you cook it. Why would you do that? It seems as though it would impart a bitter taste. Is it to hold the fruit together during cooking?

Hammond

I think we need more threads like this. I can more easily buy a fine piece of meat than a near-perfect fruit (or veg). I bought some exceptional watermelon last week and some almost great corn-on-the-cob two weeks before. I should have shared.

David Hammond wrote:sazerac,

I am very grateful for your review of some variations of my favorite fruit -- and that recipe is magnificent.

Less than a novice cook of Indian food, I'm interested in the fact that you leave the skin on the mango when you cook it. Why would you do that? It seems as though it would impart a bitter taste. Is it to hold the fruit together during cooking?

Hammond

The missus advises:
Yes, the skin is left on to hold the fruit together. It also provides a contrast in texture when eaten together with the soft fish or just the soft mango flesh itself. The skin should not be bitter, however, you do not have to eat the skin.

My wife taught me to eat the raw mango itself, cut into long slices, unpeeled with salt and chile powder. The skin has a nice crunchiness. Please scrub and rinse the skin well.

Ramon wrote:I think we need more threads like this. I can more easily buy a fine piece of meat than a near-perfect fruit (or veg). I bought some exceptional watermelon last week and some almost great corn-on-the-cob two weeks before. I should have shared.

Not too late to share. Fresh corn is fantastic, and I'd like to know when and where it comes in. Corn, IIRC, loses its sweetness by half every twentyfour hours.

sazerac wrote:My wife taught me to eat the raw mango itself, cut into long slices, unpeeled with salt and chile powder. The skin has a nice crunchiness. Please scrub and rinse the skin well.

It never occurred to me to eat the skin of the mango. I will try this with the next one I get. Edibile skin is very good news, as peeling mangoes is kind of a pain and very wasteful (so much of the tasty fruit sticks to the skin).

I would think that the skin of the little yellow mangoes would be particularly tender and non-bitter.

Hammond

sazerac wrote:The missus advises:
Yes, the skin is left on to hold the fruit together. It also provides a contrast in texture when eaten together with the soft fish or just the soft mango flesh itself. The skin should not be bitter, however, you do not have to eat the skin.

My wife taught me to eat the raw mango itself, cut into long slices, unpeeled with salt and chile powder. The skin has a nice crunchiness. Please scrub and rinse the skin well.

I am very fortunate in being almost totally allergy-free. I am, however, allergic to mango skin, which apparently contains oils related to poison ivy and poison sumac. Like most people with this allergy, I can eat all the mangos I want--I just have to avoid contact with the skin, either by peeling them with a fork and knife, or, better yet, passing them off to someone else to peel.

Great story about this allergy, which is very common in Hawaii, here

From your article:

The gruesome rash is the same type of reaction many people on the Mainland have when they brush up against poison ivy, poison sumac or poison oak, which, like mango trees, are in the sumac family.

I remembered reading never to burn poison ivy because it helps to transmit the problem:

Missouri Department of Conservation wrote:Spraying is recommended over burning because poison ivy oil vaporizes when hot, carries in smoke and can cause a severe rash.

Woodall Publications wrote: Smoke from burning poison ivy carries the urushiol with it and can cause serious rashes inside of peoples noses, throats and lungs.

I've been exposed to both Poison Ivy and Poison Sumac. I never equated Mangoes, which I handle and eat with no problems. Just reading that article makes my skin crawl!

Thanks Ann for the information!

Mango allergies continued:

... But what if that sweet slice of sunset had some of the oil-soaked peel on it? I wouldn't get a rash on my digestive tract because there's no skin there, Person says, but when it passed out the other end, bummer! I might get puritis ani, the same dreadful rash on the anus. Plus a rash around my lips, mouth and anywhere the plant oils touched skin.

Does that mean an allergic person is forced to endure a rash, which can take up to three weeks to subside, if she comes into contact with mango oil? Not necessarily, says Dr. Stuart Rusnak, who heads the Hawaii Asthma & Allergy Disease Management Center. Rusnak says that if you thoroughly scrub the area of contact with a tough detergent like Joy, you probably won't break out into a rash.

I recently tested this suggestion on myself.

I had my boyfriend, Steve, rub some sap from the peel of an overipe, oozing mango onto my forearm. I let the sap soak in for five minutes, then scrubbed the area vigorously with Joy soap and rinsed with warm water. It worked! Days later, nothing happened. No redness, itchiness or swelling. Time to go for it. ...

Just in the last year, I had a discussion with someone who said they got rashes around their mouth after eating a mango. It's nice to know a thorough cleaning after contact will minimize this reaction.

Again, Ann, thanks!

David Hammond wrote:It never occurred to me to eat the skin of the mango. I will try this with the next one I get. Edibile skin is very good news, as peeling mangoes is kind of a pain and very wasteful (so much of the tasty fruit sticks to the skin).

I would think that the skin of the little yellow mangoes would be particularly tender and non-bitter.

Hammond

In my post on eating the skin of the mango, I meant the green mango.
Personally I like my mangoes ripe amd sweet; I generally prefer sweets to sours. My wife likes raw mangoes with salt quite a bit, and therefore I have found them thrust into my mouth;now it has grown on me a bit. Especially if the mouthfuls alternate with jicama + salt, chile powder.


I do not eat the peel of ripe mangoes. I find it bitter and sometimes a bit astringent. Although sometimes if no one is looking, I do pick up a mango and peel it with my teeth, scraping as much of the flesh off the skin. This would depend on the mango and how bitter the skin is. Don't have to wait to peel the mango to eat it that way. A bit messy but slurpilicious.

A note on reactions to mango:
In India the mango is considered a food that 'heats' the body, and I find eating too many does results in 'heat boils' or pimples.
(Yogurt would be a 'cooling' food)

Do people eat ripe mangoes with the skin? Yes (but not I).
An incident from when I was about ten years old about eating mango, skin and all:
My best friend came to visit. We were asked if we wanted mangoes. I choose mine, gave it to my mother to peel and cut. My friend picked up his and proceeded to bite into it.
"Can I peel it for you?" my Mother asks as my dad and I look at him with some incredulity (I had never seen anyone eat a ripe mango with the skin on, probably neither had my dad).
"No,(slurp, bite, slurp), no thanks," my friend devours the mango skin and all.

After he left my dad asked me, "So what kind of friend do you have? Is he a cow or what?"

That's possibly why I've never really had the urge to eat the skin of ripe mangoes, even if the skin wasn't too bitter.

But DH, do please post your experience with eating the skin. Maybe even pictures

sazerac wrote:A note on reactions to mango:
In India the mango is considered a food that 'heats' the body, and I find eating too many does results in 'heat boils' or pimples.
(Yogurt would be a 'cooling' food)

But DH, do please post your experience with eating the skin. Maybe even pictures

The Wife spent some time teaching in Guatemala, and related to me that Guatemalans also adhere to a belief in "cool" and "hot" foods: avocadoes are cool, and chilies, of course, are hot. I honestly find it very unusual that mangoes are considered "hot" food in India (that yogurt is cooling is no surprise at all).

I will definitely post about my skin eating experiences (I assume your devil emoticons indicate that you would also like to see pix of my inflamed esophagus, rashes, etc…we’ll see).

Hammond

David Hammond wrote:I will definitely post about my skin eating experiences (I assume your devil emoticons indicate that you would also like to see pix of my inflamed esophagus, rashes, etc…we’ll see).

As I recall, the Friday of my mind would have been satisfied with the expression on your face as you bit into the peel. However if you do post pictures of places where the sun don't shine, I hope they will have compelling educational value.

David Hammond wrote:The Wife spent some time teaching in Guatemala, and related to me that Guatemalans also adhere to a belief in "cool" and "hot" foods: avocadoes are cool, and chilies, of course, are hot. I honestly find it very unusual that mangoes are considered "hot" food in India (that yogurt is cooling is no surprise at all).

It is interesting that the concept of 'heating' and 'cooling' foods exists Guatemala (and probably other places as well). The 'hot' and 'cold' doesn't refer to the effect of food on the tongue, but on the constitution; interestingly, milk and cream are 'hot', mango (also jackfruit) is hot, yogurt is 'cool' with buttermilk being even cooler (hence the drinking of lassi in the Summer months). Also I have read that mace is not used in the Summer months as it may result in nosebleed. These are probably derived (with/without distortion) from ayurveda - a system of 'medicine' that dates back a long while.

A while ago I picked up a copy of The Ayurvedic cookbook : a personalized guide to good nutrition and health by Amadea Morningstar with Urmila Desai (ISBN: 0914955063) from the library. This has an extensive list of ingredients that are classified and how they affect your own constitutional class (there being 4 categories and a guide to classify oneself).
There are a lot of indian (vegetarian) recipes in the book that are marked by season and classification. However, thanks to my wife, I am not overly dependent on recipes for indian homestyle cooking which made up most of the book and I returned it. Besides, while vegetarianism is an interest concept, it is not practical as I eat meat.


Back to the Mango topic. This past Sunday, I was at Petes (S. 47th/Kedzie) and found more manila (#4312) @ 2/98¢, 'mango' (#4959) @ 98¢ each and also the tommy (#4501) @ $4.98/box o' 12. The manila was also available in boxes ($4.98 ). All were sourced from Mexico and the manila boxes were dated (base of box) April 11. However all the mangoes in boxes were green in color, not inspiring. Even the #4051. These were not marked tommy or anything else, but were the same (only green and more expensive) as the guatemalan ones I got the week before at Ted's.
Interestingly these boxes of #4051 (Mexican origin; Pete's) did not have any date at the bottom. I was hoping that all the mexican sourced boxes were dated. Is this an 'optional' practice?

I wonder also if the produce from Guatemala is shipped by air as opposed to shopping by road which I'm assuming the Mexican produce is. This might explain why the Guatemalan mangoes were riper, since they would be picked later and shipped faster. Hopefully someone can advise on this.

What variety are the #4959 s? A week before most of these were in "marathon" brand boxes (all over town) - not they seem to be a little larger (and marked 'sweeter' and are more expensive). This is pictured along with the manila in this post above