#Mangoficent: Tickle your taste buds with these treats

Mango, the fruit with a pulpy and juicy texture and more than 30 varieties, has the most versatile characteristics. Right from being a part of a main course to a side dish, to dessert or drink — it can rule any menu. As mango season is officially here, we present to you the most mangolicious food preparations, and expert tips from their creators to zest out its best flavours.

“Mango is not only the most versatile but also the most accepted fruit across the country. It has a sweet and tangy taste, which balances out the dish’s flavour. It can be used in salads, dips, toppings, puddings, etc. We always prepare mango specials during its peak season. Mango on pizzas, mango dips with hummus, and quesadillas are our specialty,” says chef Ashish Singh, corporate chef, Cafe Delhi Heights.

Mango is rightly called the king of fruits. It is filled with nutrients, immunity-boosting vitamins and minerals. “Mango is low on calories yet high on nutrients — particularly vitamin C, which aids immunity, iron absorption, cell growth and repair. It’s a perfect blend of taste and health, and one can add it to their diet in several ways — blend it into smoothies and shakes, dice it and mix it into salsa and enjoy as a dip, cut and toss it into a summer fruit salad or a quinoa salad. You can also add mango pieces to greek yogurt, muesli or oats. Top burgers, pancakes or seafood with grilled mango. Enjoy it in pickle form, or chutney. Make it a part of your desserts like mango cheesecake, mango mousse, shrikhand,” says Tarun Sibal, chef and co-founder, Street Storyss, Bangalore.

There are more than a thousand mango varieties in India. However, only about 30 varieties are grown on a commercial scale in different states. “In southern India, raw mangoes are cut [into slices] and eaten with rock salt and chilly,” says Akash Nakra, corporate chef, Vietnom, who likes to prepare seasonal mango curry. He adds, “They can also be grilled and consumed as a snack. Mangoes are great meat tenderisers, and can add tangy flavours to it as well.”

Each variety of mango has its unique property, not just in terms of shape, size and colour, but in taste, flavour and texture as well. Some are more sweet and pulpy than others, and it depends on the tropical and climatic conditions across the Indian continent. Chefs love to use specific varieties to churn out a particular flavour. Nakra says, “I prefer using Safeda for salads, chutney, jams and aam panna; Totapuri for pickles and alphonso extensively for desserts. Also, ripened mangoes are perfect for smoothies and shakes. Kesar should be used for juices and to make aamras.”

For Sibal, it’s all very relative when it comes to mangoes. He says, “I actually adjust my recipes according to the fruit’s availability. The amount of mango used in a recipe will depend on the variety and how sweet or ripe it is! I love using Dusheri for making my ice- creams as it is overtly sweet and has a deep colour. It hardly requires additional sugar. I also do a raw mango som tam, just when the season is beginning, and Sindoori gives a perfect blend of sweet and tart and has an amazing taste to it. For my signature mango, grilled tofu and paprika salad, I use Sindoori.”

Recipe

Mango and Grilled Tofu Salad

Ingredients:

Mangoes (ripe) – 2

Carrots – 2

Cucumbers -2

Mixed Greens – 1 bowl (arugula, mixed lettuce, mint, sweet basil, fresh coriander)

Tofu – 80 gms

Sweet Paprika powder – 1 tsp

Fresh ground pepper – 1 tsp

Salt – ½ tsp

Ingredients (dressing)

Zest of 1 lime

1/4 cup lime juice freshly squeezed (about 2 limes)

Sweet Paprika Powder – 1 tsp

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp olive oil

Freshly ground pepper

1 tsp honey

Method

Cut the mangoes into wedges

Cut the tofu into wedges, season it with salt and paprika

Grill the tofu on both sides with some olive oil on medium heat and keep it aside

Take out carrot and cucumber ribbons and add them to cold water so that they remain crisp

Add the mixed greens to the ice-cold water

Mix all the ingredients of the dressing in a jar and shake well

Pat dry the leaves, carrots and cucumber ribbons and mix together

Add salt, pepper, paprika, mangoes and tofu. Add 3/4th dressing to the mix

Arrange it on a plate with tofu and mangoes on top

Garnish with mint leaves and paprika powder

Drizzle some of the remaining dressing on top

By chef, Tarun Sibal