Mango Contest - May & June 2010

• The scientific name of mango is Mangifera indica
• It belongs to Anacardiceae family. It is a tropical evergreen tree the fruit of which requires a long hot period for setting properly.
• Its origin dates back to 4000 yrs in the fertile valley of Indus and Southeast Asia.
• Mostly the fruit is preferred to be eaten fresh than any other fruit in the world
• The fruit is deliciously rich in vitamins, minerals, dietery fiber, potassium and anti-oxidants. It contains enzymes that are tenderizing and are similar to papain found in papaya.
• This enyme has a stomach soothing property which acts as a digestive aid and is somewhat responsible for the feeling of contentment on eating the fruit
• Mangoes provide more carotinoids than other fruits.
• Unripe mangoes are kept in paper bags for few days so that it can entrap the naturally produced ethylene gas which helps in the ripening of the fruit.
• Mangoes are widely used in cuisine.
• Green, unripe mangoes are used in making chutneys, preserved as pickles, sun-dried powder / chunks known as aamchur, morabba and even cool summer drink (panha)
• Mostly yellow ripe mangoes are liked to be relished fresh. However the extract of ripe mango is used as a juice or lassi or aamras by mixing the juice with yogurt and sugar. Even it is made into an ice-cream which is liked very much. The ripe fruits are also cut into thin layers, dessicated and made into jellies / bars.
• Finally mango is a perfect fruit and truly - the king of fruits.

 

Writing about mangos make me proud :thumbsupsince it’s our national fruits and its history dates backs up to 4000 B.C. The word mango is derived from Portuguese manga, which is derived from Malay manga, which was actually a derivative of the Tamil ‘manaky’.

Our India is the world largest producer of mangoes leading :cheers China, Mexico and Thailand.

A single cup of mango contains 107 calories and provides 25% of vitamins A essential for a day. They also include healthy quantity of potassium and are rich in pectin, a soluble fiber content which helps in controlling blood cholesterol levels:wow

The mangoes are not safe to be refrigerated tsk and could be stored at 55 degree F for up to 14 days.

The usual way to slice mangoes is termed as "hedgehog" styles.

These mangoes play vital in many religions and are depicted that growing mango tress are for the deliverance of souls.

:ideaMango Butter and Oil in cosmetology
Mango Butter is an extract obtained after the fractionation process of the unshelled mango seeds. This Mango Butter consists of high contents of fatty acids which are best used within many cosmetic formulations. It is a soft solid at room temperature. They has a unique natural emollient properties, high oxidative capacity, heals wound and high regenerative ability activity due to its high unsaponiablity. They are conventionally been used for skin softening, soothing, and moisturizing. They have protective effect against UV radiation and to renovate and reduce deterioration of skin cells. They are best treatment for wrinkles and lines which could vanish within 4 to 6 weeks of daily use.
The mango oil collected during the production of mango butter is highly viscous oil and melts on contact with skin. It is mainly used for making baby creams and other moisturizing products.

 

OM SAIRAM :Bow​

MANGO PACHADI

An unique, all 6 taste in a dish


Food is generally classified into 6 tastes:
Sweet (Thithippu),
Sour (Pullippu),
Salt (Uppu),
Bitter (Kasappu),
Pungent ( Uraippu) and
Astringent (Thuvarppu)

The Traditional Cuisine recommends that you include all of these six tastes in each main meal you eat. Each taste has a balancing ability and including some of each provides complete nutrition, minimizes cravings and balances the appetite and digestion.
Ø Sweet (Milk, butter, sweet cream, wheat, ghee (clarified butter), jiggery, sugar, rice, honey,)
Ø Sour (Limes and lemons, citrus fruits, yogurt, mango, tamarind)
Ø Salty (Salt or pickles)
Ø Bitter (Bitter gourd, greens of many kinds, turmeric, fenugreek, Neem flower)
Ø Pungent (Chili peppers, ginger, black pepper, clove, mustard)
Ø Astringent (Beans, lentil, turmeric, vegetables like cauliflower and cabbage, asfodetia or Hing, cilantro)

INGREDIENTS:
Ripening Stage Mangoes – 3 medium size
Jaggery – Powdered equivalent to the size of cut mangoes in a bowl.
Tomato - 2 big
Small Onion – 100gms
Tumeric powder – to sprinkle
Fenugreek Powder – ½ Teaspoon
Chilli powder or Garam Masala – 2 table spoons
Oil – little
Mustard Seeds – a teaspoon
Neem flower – Cleaned and dried – a handful
Hing – to sprinkle
Salt – ½ Tea Spoon
SERVING: 6 persons
Preparation time: 30 min

First preparation

· Powder the jaggery without lumps and spread it in plate.
· Wash and dry the mangoes, cut the mangoes of size approx 2X2” with the skin intact and the seed removed.

Cooking preparation

· Place the copper bottom wide mouthed utensil (KADAI) in the Gas stove and pour the oil and let the muster seeds splutter
· Add the finely chopped onion, Tumeric powder, Fenugreek powder and tomatoes and stir still it mixes into a blend, when blended add washed and cleaned Neem flowers. (Preserve neem flowers dried in season for usage in non season)
· Sprinkle Hing / Asafodetia, Garam Masala or Chilli powder, salt and stir the mix
· Now add the Cut mangoes with skin intact and add little water to cook soft, close with a lid for 5 minutes and check again.
· In the mean while, heat the powdered jiggery in a sauce pan for 2-3 minutes and drain in a separate bowl to remove the dust or mud which separates at the bottom,
· Once the mangoes are cooked, pour the jageery and stir the mix and allow it to boil to have a uniform blend. Keep in law flame till it is thick
· Add Coriander leaves for decoration and leave it to cool.
· The dish can be even refrigerated; when luke warmed it can be served as a pudding.

THIS IS AN UNIQUE DISH consisting of all 6 tastes mentioned in the beginning with MANGO, it is generally served on special occasion to sentimentally have all six tastes in abundance throughout the year. It is a Special dish on UGADI

:wow​

It has the sour taste of mango, sweet taste of Jaggery, hing or asfotedia as you all know has a different smell and unique taste. Hot with chilli powder or garam masala, bitterness pokes out at the last bite of the serving and of course no dish is complete with the taste of salt.

:yes: A GREAT MOUTH WATERING SEASONAL RECEIPE
ENJOYED BY ALL AGES

Thanks for giving an oppurtunity to share and participate

OM SAIRAM

 

i dont know if this counts for the contest, but let me share some very special 'facts' about mango..or shall i say Mangifera indica..
this is first hand info about mangoes.. i dont know how to verify this
medically or physiologically or ....
Every time we have mangoes in our house, be it the green ones forced to become blondes overnight, or the real juicy fruity sweety mangoes plucked golden from the trees before a bird can get to it...me and my hubby end up having more enjoyable 'bedtime'...
now you know why i cant medically verify it.

 

Happy Mango season to all.
I don't know if the information i've shared qualifies for the contest or not but I'm sharing these facts about the mango season and its various stages, strong bonding in farmer's lives in my native place and around.
Mango!!!! Brings out as many memories as the number of varieties it has. And i just can't resist telling you all the stories.
I grew up in rural parts of Maharashtra untill we moved to Pune so I've seen the real mango filled summers in western Maharashtra as well as the famous Kokan.

We were more than dozen kids in a joint family and during summer vacations we used to run to farms as soon as we finished breakfast. There were plenty of Mango and other trees around our farms. We used to spend entire afternoons on, around and below the trees and favourites were Mangoes. I still remember the smell of those first buds wow.

We used to pluck raw mangoes for pickle and granny made the best pickle i've ever tasted with her secret spices while we run away with some pieces from the thalis. She would then fill the biiiiig jars and keep them away from our reach and remove only a small jar every day and we would pick one piece each time we entered kitchen for anything. Poor granny would shout at us 'is it a snack?' smile and then fill it again for dinner :bonk

We shared most of the trees with distant relatives as the trees and farms were Virasat of our past generations and now we were different families. Jani jab baat Mangoes ki hoti hai koi apna paraya nahi hota. But we still loved each other after the Mangoes topic is over and are always together. Bachha party was assigned the great task of saving Mangoes till they are ripe to be plucked on a day decided and then divided as per the share (No less than Ambanis believe me) We would make strategies a hockey team should learn from. That was the first time we learnt the importance of man to man marking and match fixing, buying out players for a turn on our Jhoola :cheers or some snacks as they say 'Everything is fair in love and war for Mango'. We used to play, sleep, eat only around the mango trees. There was no less politics in distribution than in assembly seats. Giving smaller or sour mangoes to opposite party or some here and there in counting. When finally the mangoes arrived they were given a special room with special bedding. They were distributed according to ripe state. Now we would rarely leave for farms. We used to sit in the room and eat dozens of mangoes every day no need of any other food. Dirty clothes and hands (sometimes whole body for lil ones), stomach upset, ulcers around lips for not washing them well before eating was ok we were not going to school!

But some Mangoes would ripe on the trees and drop down in the morning we call it 'Paad'. Whoever gets them first is the owner. I'm not sure how many of you have tasted the mangoes that ripe on the tree but take my word its the yummiest. Once we were at Masi's place for vacations who shared there Mango trees with her co sister. We would run to the farms as soon as we got up without even brushing. One of our elder cousins would get up early and bring them for us. But dushman party which started to reach earlier than us and so we didn't get any of those mangoes. We were no less two of our cousins started sleeping under the trees .

There was a tradition in our part someone from the family would go to married daughter's place with a bag full of Mangoes as gift even though she had mango trees in her farms. The mangoes from dad's farms taste better anytime don't they?

As summer is wedding season, all the girls or boys to be married are called for lunch or dinner at relative's homes we call it 'Gadangan'. Do I have to tell you poor guys would end up eating different varieties of mango made food all those days :hide:? A few would specifically request for some other food at the time of invitation.

Noone sold mangoes those days as almost everyone had trees of their own. And if someone comes home, granny would give them handsfull of mangoes just like that saying taste ours. Yes we felt bad :rant so what we had a room full of them they were all ours. We worked so hard for them. There were few ladies who would come to our home with their grandkids just like that :crazy and would side talk about mangoes without mentioning directly while the kids kept drooling at the Mangoes around. And our extra nice granny would give away a handfull of mangoes. We didn't do or say a thing there but would get them back once the duo is out of granny's sight don't ask how?
Oh I miss those days and Mangoes

Let me share a game we played. We would dry the mango seeds and store them. The game is like this all the players would give agreed number of seed and they all would be piled in a circle and there is another bigger circle around it. A player stands at a distance of few feet behind a line and throws a stone at those seeds. The number of seeds he manages to get out of the first circle into the second one are his all those which go out of the second circle are returned with a fine of equal number of seeds from his store or those he won. If you don't get less than three its next player's turn. Once they are all over game finish. The skill is aiming correctly and throwing in such a way that they get out of first cirle but not leave the second. It need much patience, aim and control as well. Oh we enjoyed it really.
Thanks for reading my stories feels so good to share.
Vaidehi
will come back with some recipes and varieties...

 

parvathy samboo

The Month may starts we can smell mango all over go to market area any vendor areas it is so delightfull to see the cute yellow, red and green shining
friut and it is also effortable to all catogaries of people choosing the varities.
I feel the dinner is not complete without a mango, when u come back from work the yummy mango milk shake so soothing.The green mango pickles for bhel, Mango rice and eat it plain kacha meeta with salt and chilli powder
mindblowing. Also ambapatt wow! no words to say
I dont think there will be at least one family who will not buy mangoes, and when we go to the fruit drink joint we can each os us ordering ony mango milk shake.
Ofcourse all fruits have its own speciality, but mango is double special to me.
And it is got its medicenal value also.Mango leaves used as welcoming sign for the house and removes all negetive energy of the house.
We can keep on saying so many more things about mango, but for timie being these are my views about the great fruit.

 

Hi ILites


Mango squash(stored for a year)

1. Mango pulp:6 cups
2. sugar:4 cups
3. water:4 cups
4. citric acid:1/2 tsp
5. kms:1/4 tsp

• melt the sugar with equal quantity of water .
• the syrup should be of 1 thread consistency.
• Then add the pulp and stir for 5 mins cool down and add the citric acid and KMS and store in a air tight container.
• can be used in any season.

 

Facts known to me about mangoes...

1. The mango is not only the most delicious of fruits but also a great nourisher of the body.

2. The mangoes which are cut into slices are richer and better in sugar and nourishing value.

3. They are also rich in vitamins A,C and G, as well as being known for their laxative and diuretic qualities.

4. Mangoes, as a rule , should be eaten ripe as unripe and sour mangoes are acidic and cause indigestion.

5. Grafted mangoes are good. Country mangoes are bad for health,especially skin diseases and leprosy.

6. Raw mangoes can be kept fresh and crisp for atleast 6 days if immersed in cold water.This water has to be changed daily.

7. Immersing them in cold water , hastens the process of peeling and makes the process rather neat too.

8. Unripe mangoes if kept immersed in a tin of wheat flour will ripen faster than when kept in the open.

9. The Mango tree plays a sacred role in India;some believe that the Mango tree can grant wishes.

10. In the Hindu culture hanging fresh mango leaves outside the front door during Pongal and Diwali is considered a blessing to the house.

11. Mango leaves are used at weddings to ensure the couple bear plenty of children .

12. Dermatitis can result from contact with the juice that drips from the stem end when mangoes are harvested.

Few recipes that I do using mangoes

Shahi mango banana curry
mango burfi
mango coconut chutney
mango curry(sweet)
mango shake
Aamrakhand
Mango jam
Mango sheera
Mango kasaundi
raw mango preserve
mango sweet chutney
sweet mango pickle
mango rice

Hope I get selected for this contest
All the best to other contestants.

 

Here I come with one of my crazy recipes with Mangoes.
This can be used as a spread to bread (that's how my American friend eats it) or with chappathi.

Raw mango- 1 big shredded
Carrots--2 big shredded

Add 1 tsp oil in the pan, wait till the mustard seeds splutter and saute these two along with salt and keep aside.

Roast the following and grind it.

Urad dhal--4 tbsp
Channa dhal--1 tbsp
sesame seeds--1 tsp
curry leaves--1 sprig
green chilles--1 or 2 according to taste
Coriander seeds--1 tsp.

Mix the paste with the mango+carrot and enjoy.

sriniketan

 

Goan Mangoes : The Portuguese Legacy

All my fellow Indians would be very much aware of the many majestic churches and Carnival floats that attracts tourists from all over the world to Goa as part of its unique Portuguese influence but thats not all!
Mangoes have an even more unique story to tell here.
There are more than a 100 varieties of mangoes that are supposedly said to have originated in Goa and they all share a common trait with Goan Christians: their surnames!
It is believed that it was the Portuguese who first introduced the method of 'grafting' in India.
Apart from religious activities, the missionaries devoted themselves wholeheartedly to creating some of the finest varieties of mangoes in the world using this technique. As the local Goans who converted to Christianity got their surnames from these missionaries so did the new varieties of mangoes!!!
Abreu, Colaco, Barreto, Figueiredo, Afonso, Fernandina, Ferrao, Monteiro, Furtado, Rebello, Santana are a few such varieties.
So the next time you hear a similar Goan name please take a moment to appreciate the baffling and myriad ways in which the east meets west in in my beloved homeland!