Mango (Mangifera indica L.)

Synonyms

Used plant part

Unripe fruit.

Plant family

Anacardiaceae (cashew family).

Sensoric quality

Sour and tart, with a slight, resinous overtone.

Main constituents

Citric acid and related compounds are responsible for the sour taste. Several terpenes (ocimene, myrcene, limonene), aldehyds and esters have been found in the dried unripe fruits. Furthermore, unripe mangos contain proteolytic enzymes.

Origin

South and Southeast Asia.

Etymology

Tamil (a South Indian language) man cay "mango tree" is a probable source for the fruit's name. The genus name Mangifera ("bringer of mango") contains Latin ferre "carry, bring" (see also asafetida), cf. Lucifer "bringer of light" or Christopher "he who carries Christ".
Hindi amchur (also transcribed aamchoor) means the dried spice, whereas aam is used for the ripe fruit, as are the other Indian names given above. Sanskrit madhuulii refers to the sweet taste (madhu "sweet").
 

Mango is one of the most popular tropic fruits and enjoyed by everyone who ever had the opportunity to eat a fresh, ripe mango in the production countries. It is, though, surprising that the unripe fruit gives a remarkable spice much used in Northern India (but, to my knowledge, nowhere else).

The stone removed, the fruit is cut in slices, dried and afterwards ground to a pale grey powder. This powder is used frequently instead of tamarind, the other important sour element in Indian cuisine; mango powder is, however, much weaker than tamarind and has a subtle, resin-like taste. It is mainly used when only a hint of tartness is desired or when the dark brown colour of tamarind is to be avoided. Mango powder is generally more popular with vegetables than with meat, but is frequently found in tikka spice mixtures for barbecued meat.
 

To prepare the famous barbecued meat of Northern Indian cuisine, an Indian clay oven (tandoor) is required, but substitution by a Western baking oven is acceptable. Meat to be grilled is seasoned with a mixture of several spices (cumin, coriander, fresh ginger and garlic and mango powder, but little or no chiles) with red food colouring and plain yoghurt. After some hours, it is quickly roasted in the very hot tandoor. Mango powder here serves not only as a tart and sour spice, but also as a meat tenderizer.

Ripe Mangos are a popular fruit and may be used for stewed fruits, fruit jam, fruit cakes and many other standard fruit applications; they can, however, even used for savoury dishes. Indonesian fruit salad (rujak) combines fresh fruits (not too ripe mango, pineapple, papaya, in Java frequently cucumber) with a pungent sauce of palm sugar (won from coconut or other palm trees), fresh red chiles and salt; on Bali, a hint of shrimp paste (trassi, see also Indonesian bay-leaf on Balinese cookery) is never omitted. The result tastes even more delicious that the recipe looks strange!

Méxicans sometimes use ripe mangos or other tropical fruits for their fiery salsas (see long coriander). Even if it is hard to believe, the extremely hot habanero chile goes very well with fruit aroma.

Several other plants are used to give a sour (tart or fresh) taste to the food; it is convenient to distinguish between fruity, sweet-sour plants on one hand and purely sour spices on the other hand. In the first class, besides ripe mangos orange and pomegranates and other ripe fruit must be mentioned. Greater importance, however, must be attributed to the representatives of the second class.

Among these, lemon is probably the most important and extensively used in Latin America and the Eastern Mediterranean region, where also sumac is common. An essential sour ingredient throughout the tropics is tamarind; its acidity is well balanced (neither pungent nor tart) and is particularly suited for spicy or even fiery food. Juice of lime (and a close relative, kaffir lime) is popular in South East Asia (Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines).

When speaking about sour food additives, vinegar (though not a spice) should not be forgotten; made from various alcoholic sources (palm wine, rice wine, brandy, fruit wines, mostly from grapes or apples; industrially the most common source is wood), it is known and held in favour all over the world. Depending on source material, manufacturing process and storage, vinegar may be monodimensionally sour (as white South East Asian rice vinegar) or may develop a complex, rich and wonderful taste like the famous and rightfully high priced aceto balsamico (balm vinegar) from the Italian town Modena, which is aged for years in open barrels of fragrant wood. See dill on the topic of herb-flavoured vinegar.