Thanks to a product that we all have at home, you get juicy, sweet mangoes in half a day.
When the cold sets in and the days get shorter, an exotic fruit continues to bring sunshine to our dullness: the mango. In yogurt, in warm compote or simply cut into cubes, it warms the plate and the mood. In the middle of winter, it catches the eye on the market stall. You take three, seduced by their sweet scent, with the idea of a still warm mango-vanilla dessert in mind. Back home, disappointment falls at the first cut. The flesh is pale, the texture too firm, the taste absent. You test the second, then the third: same observation. Three mangoes purchased, three unripe mangoes. Good news: there is a simple trick that will ripen them in just one afternoon.
This technique comes from India: in the country that produces the most mangoes in the world, we enjoy this fruit without being asked. As explained a documentary broadcast on France 2, “Indians consume 21 million tonnes each year”. In New Delhi, there is even a huge market, which exclusively sells these fruits so popular with locals. There, we find them of all sizes, more or less sweet depending on the variety. “In fact, there are as many mangoes in India as there are cheeses in France”adds the journalist. There, it is available in drinks (lassi for example), salads or even curries. So to make them ripen, the Indians tested all the methods. One of them works every time!
To ripen a mango that is too hard in half a day, you will need… rice! For the rescue mission, here is how to proceed. First place the whole fruit in a salad bowl, then cover it with uncooked rice. “Thus, the ethylene that this fruit contains is not released and remains maintained in the mango thanks to the rice,” explain an article of She at the Table. This gas, produced in large quantities by mangoes, acts as a natural plant hormone. By keeping it inside the fruit, its ripening is stimulated: it will therefore ripen much faster!
We knew that rice went well with mango. In the mango sticky rice for example, a Southeast Asian dessert, fresh mango is served with sticky rice and coconut milk. But we didn’t suspect that a combination of ingredients could turn into a rescue mission!
