There are about 1100 varieties of mango cultivated in the world and most of these come from India. This fruit is also grown in Mexico and throughout South America as well as in other regions with a tropical climate. Depending on the season and the country they come from, mangoes are available in a wide range of colors, shapes and sizes. To pick a good one, you need to better understand the characteristics of the popular strains and learn what to look for. Read on to learn more.
Steps
Part 1 of 4: Choosing the Right Mango
Step 1. Touch and feel the whole fruit
Ripe mangoes are slightly soft to the touch just like avocados and peaches, but they aren't soft enough to let your fingers sink into the peel.
On the other hand, if you don't plan to eat the fruit right away, you should buy one with a harder skin and allow it to ripen at home. This topic will also be dealt with later
Step 2. Check the appearance of the mango
The ideal one has a shape similar to the rugby ball, so choose ones that are well full, fleshy and rounded, especially near the stem. Ripe fruits sometimes have brown spots or spots, but they are completely normal.
- Don't choose flat or thin mangoes as they will likely be fibrous. Avoid buying shriveled or withered-looking specimens because they will not ripen.
- Ataulfo variety mangoes, however, are often very soft and wrinkled before they are perfectly ripe, so learn to recognize the various cultivars before deciding. In the next section we will analyze the differences.
Step 3. Smell the fruit near the stem
Ripe mangoes always emit a strong sweet, fragrant and fruity scent right near the stem. The smell should be similar to that of melon, but also to that of pineapple with a note of carrot. Also remember that the perfume is intoxicating and sweet; if the aroma is tempting and resembles the flavor you would like to taste, you are on the right track!
Since mangos have a naturally high sugar content, they can ferment to a sour, alcoholic scent, which means they won't ripen any further. Do not purchase these specimens, as they may be overripe
Step 4. Finally check the color
In general, the color of the mango is not the best indicator of its degree of ripeness, since in nature the varieties can be yellow, green, pink or red, also depending on the season. The color therefore does not necessarily indicate whether a mango is ready to taste. Instead, learn to recognize the different varieties and inform yourself in which seasons they are available for conscious purchase.
Step 5. Recognize the varieties
Since mangoes are present in various slightly different colors and flavors, which change according to the season and the growing area, it is essential to learn to recognize the different types to better appreciate their consumption. There are six different types of mangoes.
Part 2 of 4: Choosing the Mango Variety
Step 1. If you love creamy and sweet flavors, choose Ataulfo
This will vary with very small seeds and a greater amount of pulp in relation to the size. The fruits are bright yellow in color, but have a small size and an oval shape. Ataulfo are ripe when the skin turns golden and develop "wrinkles" when they are at the peak of ripeness. It is a cultivar of Mexican origin available from March until the entire month of July.
Step 2. Francis mangoes have a sweet, full and spicy flavor
Their skin is bright yellow with green hues. Their shape is rather oblong or resembles that of the letters "S". They are ripe when the green shades fade and the yellow takes on a golden hue. This variety is grown on small farms in Haiti and is available from May until the end of July.
Step 3. Choose Haden variety fruits to find an intense and rich flavor with aromatic accents
The fruits belonging to this variety are green with yellow hues and small dots. They are medium or large in size with a round or oval shape. You can tell that a fruit is ripe when the green hues start to turn yellow. Haden mangoes come from Mexico and are only available on the market in April and May.
Step 4. Keitt mangoes are sweet and fruity
Their oval shape and dark green skin with pink hues are unmistakable. Once ripe, Keitt mangoes do not change the color. They come from Mexico and the United States and are available in August and September.
Step 5. The Kent variety guarantees a sweet and intense flavor
The fruits are oval, rather large with dark green skins and red hues. Kent mangoes are ripe when the peel starts to turn yellow or the spots spread across the surface. Kents are grown in Mexico, Peru, Ecuador and you can find them in stores from January to May and from June to August.
Step 6. If you love mild yet sweet flavors, choose the Tommy Atkins variety
These fruits have a dark red skin with some green, orange and yellow shades. They have an elongated shape like an oval. The only way to test their degree of ripeness is to touch them because the color remains unchanged. Tommy Atkins grow in Mexico and other regions of South America and are available March through July and October through January.
Part 3 of 4: Collecting the Mangoes
Step 1. You can harvest the fruit around 100-150 days after flowering
For most varieties, every bud you see on a healthy tree will produce a fruit. In correspondence of the buds you will see a small dark green fruit appear that will gradually grow over three months. Check the tree after 90 days to see if the mangoes are starting to ripen.
Step 2. Wait for the fruits to change color
After about three months, the mangoes begin to change color to the final hue expected from the ripening process and become quite soft. You will notice that some fruits will fall to the ground. This is the signal that you can start the harvest.
- When you see a few ripe specimens, all others with a similar shape are ready to harvest, as they will reach full ripeness within a day or two even on the kitchen counter. If you are going to sell them, you should collect them well in advance.
- Mangoes ripened on the tree are much better than those picked unripe and then ripened indoors. Act as you see fit and as comfortable as possible but, if possible, try to leave them on the plant as much as you can before picking them. In this way they will undoubtedly be much tastier!
Step 3. Shake or hit the tree
The simplest way to collect all the fruits, even those at the top, is to shake the plant and take as much as possible. If you are brave, you can also stand under the branches with a basket and catch the fruits “on the fly” before they fall so that they don't bruise; however, it is better to collect them from the ground since the impact will not be so abrupt.
- When some fruit begins to fall spontaneously, then you should start harvesting before the other specimens rot. You shouldn't have to wait for them to fall out on their own to start catching them.
- Young or fragile trees should not be shaken, but you should hit the branches with long wooden sticks or ropes. If you are concerned that the trunk of the plant is thin, do not shake it.
Step 4. Use a fruit basket or improvise one
Since mangoes are very delicate fruits, some pickers prefer to use a more sophisticated technique, using a basket. Basically it is a long stick with metal pliers at one end, perfect for picking fruit from tall trees such as apple, pear, plum and mango trees. Use the rake tips of this tool to peel off the fruits and drop them into the basket. This is a very efficient technique for harvesting taller mangoes, and if you have a decent sized orchard, the basket is a great investment. You can buy it in gardening and agricultural supply stores although, with the right tools, you could even build one.
Buy the longest and lightest pole you can find (or the suitable length to reach all the branches of the tree). Use a small metal bucket, such as the one you use to hold golf balls or garden tools. Secure the bucket to one end of the pole using very sturdy tape. To create a pair of "claws" at the end of the pole, take apart a rake and attach its teeth to the edge of the bucket
Part 4 of 4: Ripening and Cutting Mangoes
Step 1. Leave the fruits on the table in a cool place
If the mango is not yet ripe enough, you can leave it on a shelf in a relatively cool room, it will only take a few days. For most of these fruits, two to four days are enough to become soft and ready to eat.
- Mangoes that were picked when they were still particularly unripe require more patience and, at times, may never ripen as much as you would like. If the fruit isn't ripe after five or seven days, it probably never will.
- In the warmer months, the process is much quicker and mangoes could go from unripe to nearly rotten in just a few days. If it is hot and the temperature of the house is not controlled by an air conditioning system, carefully monitor the fruits, in the end they will be excellent.
Step 2. When the mangoes reach the degree of ripeness you want, store them in the refrigerator
Store them in the cold when they are soft to keep them in this state for a couple of days before eating them. The very cold mango, among other things, is a delicious snack.
Thanks to the cold, the ripening process slows down, so the fruit will not rot and will be edible for another 4 days maximum, which could not happen at room temperature where the mango continues to ripen. However, if you plan to eat it in a short time, you don't have to put it in the refrigerator
Step 3. Before slicing a mango, wash it
Although most people do not consume the peel of these fruits for its bitter taste and chewy texture, it is still worth washing, especially if it is supermarket-bought mangoes. Chemicals, germs and other impurities can accumulate on the outside of mangoes while they are displayed on store shelves, so it is best to wash them with water and rub them with your hands. Also prepare a clean surface to cut them on.
- The peel is perfectly edible and is rich in some elements capable of controlling the molecular receptors called PPAR which, in turn, control cholesterol, glucose and which, it seems, contain anticancer properties. Wash the mango well and taste it!
- If you want to taste the peel, eat the mango as if it were an apple, or peel it and focus only on the pulp.
Step 4. Cut the sides of the core
The best way to slice a mango is to hold it vertically, with the thinnest part, the one with the stem, facing up. Go through the pulp with a sharp knife starting right on the side of the stem and cutting along the inner core. You should feel something hard moving the blade to the side. This means that you are following the process perfectly. Repeat on the other side of the stem and then cut the pulp on both sides of the fruit.
Eventually you should end up with a hairy pit with a lot of pulp still attached. Don't forget it
Step 5. Make cross incisions in the pulp on each side
One of the most precise ways to remove the fruit from the peel, at this point, is to use a knife and draw several cutting lines orthogonal to each other. Depending on the size of the fruit, you may want to make 1.5-2.5cm bites.
It is best to carry out these operations using a cutting board, although you may think it is easier to hold the fruit in your hand. The blade is able to pierce the peel without difficulty and, if you hold the mango in your hand, you could get stung or even get a bad wound
Step 6. Turn the peel outwards and remove the bites of pulp
Once the various incisions have been made, pull the peel outwards so that the squares divide between them and it is easier to detach them from the base. Drop them carefully into a bowl or eat them straight from the fruit. Enjoy your meal!
