Mango season has arrived to tempt, tantalise and thrill us with its delicious fruit again. Rhea Dhanbhoora tells you how to get the best out of the season…
In the midst of the sweltering summer heat, there’s one thing we can be grateful for — the arrival of the king of fruits. The plump, juicy fruit, with its tangy center is here to entice us with its succulent sweetness at last. As the heat rages on outside, mangoes are here to cool us down. Whether you choose to crush it into a summer cooler, make a dessert off it or dig directly into one, we’re all overjoyed that mango season is finally here. Read on for a few tips on how you can get the best out of the sunshine fruit this summer...
RECIPES
If you’d rather turn those mangoes into delicious desserts and drinks, you need the perfect recipe.
Sweet Treats
Pooja Dhingra from Le 15 Patisserie shares with us her Mango Tart recipe, which makes a 6” tart so we can enjoy the King of Fruits in all its splendour...
Ingredients
- 250 gms tart dough
- 200 gms heavy cream, whipped
- 2 mangoes
- For the French tart dough
Ingredients
- 250 gm flour
- 1 tbsp castor sugar
- 100 gms butter
- 1 egg, lightly beaten Method
- Sift the flour through a large sieve in a large bowl.
- Rub the butter in with your fingers until the mixture is even coloured and resembles fine bread crumbs.
- Make a well in the center and pour in the egg.
- Lightly knead until the dough binds together, adding the water as necessary.
- Bring the dough together with your hand, put it on a work surface and shape it into a ball. Do not overwork the dough or the pastry will be tough.
- Roll out the dough to 0.5mm thickness and fit into a tart pan.
- Bake the tart in a preheated oven at 180°C for 10-12 minutes.
Assembling
- Chop one mango into small pieces. Thinly slice the second mango.
- Mix the chopped mangoes with the whipped cream and scoop in to the tart, spread evenly.
- Arrange the sliced mangoes on top and serve cold.
Drink it Up
Keenean Tham, Partner of Trilogy tells us, “Summer being the season of mangoes and mango being the ‘King of Fruits’, it was only natural that Trilogy would have fabulous summer cocktails all made out of this delicious fruit.” Trilogy shares its Raw Mango Martini recipe with us...
Raw Mango Martini
Ingredients
- 60 ml mango flavoured vodka
- 50 gms boiled raw mango
- 20 ml raw mango syrup
- 10 ml lime juice
Method:
Muddling and shaking method is what is quintessentially used to make this drink. Muddling is a simple mashing technique for grinding herbs smooth in the bottom of a glass. You can purchase a wooden muddler in a bar supply store. First muddle the raw mangoes. Then put all the ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker, shake well, pour and serve in a martini glass. For garnish, dab the rim of the martini glass lightly in salt, place a slice of raw mango on the rim and serve.
Chef Vijay Pandey from Oakroom Premier gives us his recipe for a quick raw mango margarita to cool us down...
Mango Margarita
Ingredients
- Raw Mango syrup
- 60 ml Tequila
- 50 ml lime juice
Method:
- Mix the above ingredients into syrup
- Mix this syrup in crushed ice and shake well
MENUS AND MORE Mango season means restaurants and resorts all over the city will be opening their doors to the likes of mango festivals and menus. Take a look at where you can go for some mango specials this year…
Mango Main Course Fest
Saptami is organising a Mango Fest with a special menu prepared by executive chef Sudhir Pai. The menu consists of salads, main course, dessert and mango based drinks. Sudhir Pai tells us, “Hotels normally have mango promotions around desserts and drinks, however, we’ve tried to give our guests several options including main course.” Dishes include mango based salads, chameen manga curry, pomfret mango, mango zacher torte, mango cheesecake as well as drinks such as mango milkshake and mango lassi.
When: Up to May 15 from 12.30-3.30pm and 8-11pm
Where: Saptami, Holiday Inn Mumbai International Airport, Sakinaka Junction,Andheri (East)
Contact: 40851800
Mango Mania
Café Mangii is also celebrating with an exotic array of mango inspired cocktails, gourmet food and delectable desserts to enable you to get your fill of this delicious fruit. Specials include the age-old Indian favourite Kairi Pannah as well as the Mango Riser and Alphonso Smoothie. They also have several mango preparations on offer including Mangii Crepes, pan fried Bombay Duck served with Mango Chilli Aioli, raw Mango salad and desserts such as Mango Sabayon and an eggless Alphonso cheesecake.
When: April 20 – May 31
Where: Café Mangii, Shop No 1, Trans Ocean House, Hiranandani Business Park, near Fabindia, off Adishankaracharya Marg, Powai
Contact: 25705136/37
Mango Kiosks
Hypercity outlets all over the city have special Mango areas at all three of their outlets in the city where you can sample recipes, coolers, squashes, pickles and more made out of mango. They will also be promoting Mango Slice (in collaboration with Pepsi Co.) and setting up a special Mango kiosk. They also have organic mangoes on offer as well as a box of six mangoes available with their private label Fresh Basket.
No matter what sort of mango you’ve got a hankering for: kesar, pairi, badami, totapuri, lalbaug or the oh-so-popular alphonso, you can find it here.
When: April 30 onwards
Where:Hypercity outlets across the city
Mango Harvest Festival
Holiday destination in Sindhadurg, Culture Aangan, presents a Mango Harvest Festival package for their guests this season. Situated 150km away from the Goa airport, the place is ideal for a little summer break. The mango harvest festival gives you the chance to experience a mango orchard with mangoes ripe for picking. Head down to Sindhadurg for a complete treat to the senses.
When: May 1 – 30
Where: Sindhudurg which is located one hour from Goa.
Contact: Rashmi at 9821483765
Beat The Heat
Beat the heat this season with The Resort’s delicious mango mocktails and desserts such as Kids Play, a mix of vanilla ice cream, raspberry and fresh mango juice, Mango cooler, fresh mango juice and a garnish of khus syrup, mango mousse cake with fresh cream, classic mango ice cream and more. We suggest you bring along the kids for this special treat.
When: Ongoing
Where: 11 Madh-Marve Road, Aksa Beach
Contact: 28816383
Mango Workshops
The nine Nature’s Basket outlets across the city will offer Alphonso mangoes cut up in cubes to visitors so that you can sample your wares before you purchase. There are also several mango dessert workshops to look forward to as the month goes on and recipe cards for people to pick up. Head down to your nearest outlet to get more information.
When: Ongoing
Where: Nature’s Basket outlets across the city
what’s your type?
Alphonso: Definitely one of the best type of mangoes, they are sweet and rich in flavour. They’re grown mainly in Western India but could burn a hole in your pocket if you’re not careful.
Rajapuri: These are big mangoes with a lot of juice, an excellent source of vitamins A and C, mostly grown in Gujarat.
Kesar: These are ideally found in Gujarat, oblong with a red blush and ideal for pulp and juice.
langda: These are procured from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Orissa and other parts of India. The pulp is incredibly sweet and is one of the best.
Dasheri: The fruit is yellow and small, elongated and grown in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab. The flesh is fibreless.
Totapuri: These mangoes are from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. They are large, oblong and golden yellow with a pointed base. They are mainly used for shakes.
Badami: The Badami Mango is sweet and can be consumed raw but is also used for shakes. It retains freshness for a long time and tastes best cold.
MUST TRY MIXES
- Mango Granola Parfait at Cocoberry outlets across the city
- Mango Ice Cream at Naturals outlets across the city
- Mango Milkshake Opposite Central Plaza, Charni Road
- Mango Souffle at Eden Bakery, Lokhandwalla
- Mango Kalakand at Camy Wafers outlets across the city
- Mango Cream at Haji Ali Cream Centre
Looking for places to buy juicy mangoes at the best rates? Here are a couple of places apart from your local market that you should check out this season…
- Hypercity
- Godrej Nature’s Basket
- Big Bazaar
- Star Bazaar, Lokhandwalla
DID YOU KNOW…
- The name mango is derived from the Tamil word mangkay or mangay.
- In India, it is believed that the mango tree can grant wishes.
- Hanging fresh mango leaves outside the front door during Ponggol and Diwali is considered a blessing to the house.
- Mango leaves are used to ensure that couples who are getting married bear plenty of children.
- Burning of mango wood leaves and debris can emit toxic fumes.
- This one may shock you. A certain shade of yellow die was attained by feeding cattle small amounts of mango leaves and harvesting their urine. It has since been banned of course, since the practice is harmful.
- India is the world’s leading mango producer but doesn’t export much, we consume most of it.
- The fruit is distantly related to cashews and pistachios.
- Contrary to popular belief, the mango doesn’t need to be refrigerated. It lasts up to two weeks at 55°C.