When it comes to summer fruits, mango is the reigning queen. Just one whiff of those tangy, tight cheeks and it’s like you’ve been whisked away to a tropical island.
As well as being tasty and nutritious (one mango alone has three times your recommended daily intake of Vitamin A and Vitamin C) the stone fruit is wonderfully versatile.
You already know it makes a killer brekkie smoothie and even better yoghurt accompaniment to your “healthy” weeknight dessert so why not throw it in the dinner mix too?
Mangoes pair well with white meat like chicken and fish and are best served chilled, so look to include it in salads and seafood dishes.
However if you’re not quite ready to incorporate the whole fruit into your dish, Robert Marchetti, creative food director of QT Hotels recommends starting with a dressing.
“Peel, slice and blend ripe mango, pour into ice-trays and freeze. Toss a couple of frozen cubes into a salad, mix, and as they melt, they will provide the dressing,” Marchetti told The Huffington Post Australia.
Alternatively, for something a little fancier, “peel and dice green mango flesh and cover with a high-quality, lemon infused olive oil. Refrigerate overnight. The next day, blend to a paste and use as a savoury dressing,” Marchetti said.
Founder of The Healthy Chef, Teresa Cutter uses a mango salsa drenched in lime juice, red onion, chilli and coriander to go with her “naked” fish tacos -- a healthy version of tacos where iceberg lettuce cups are used instead of the corn shell.
Other mango fans look to pair the fruit with snowpeas, spinach, cherry tomatoes and prawns.
Check out the selection of savoury mango dishes below.
Ingredients
- 3 cups arugula (rocket)
- 1/4 red onion, sliced
- 1 mango, seeded and cut
- 2 California avocados, sliced*
- 1 jalapeno, slivered
- 1/2 English cucumber, sliced on a bias
- 2 tbsp fresh orange juice
- 2 tbsp champagne vinegar
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine the arugula, red onion, mango, California avocado, jalapeno and cucumber. Toss gently to combine.
- In a small bowl, combine the freshly juiced orange juice and champagne vinegar. Slowly stream in the olive oil while whisking together to form an emulsion. Season with salt and pepper.
- Drizzle some of the dressing over the salad and toss.
- Taste and add more dressing if needed being careful not to add too much.
*the blogger uses Californian avocados for their creaminess, an Aussie alternative is Hass.
Ingredients
- 720 g (25 1/4 oz) firm fish fillets - allow 1 decent sized fillet per serve
- bunch coriander (cilantro), chopped or alternatives such as parsley or chives, Thai basil, shiso leaf
- 1 punnet (250 g / 8 1/2 oz) cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 red onion, finely diced
- 1 avocado, chopped
- 2 mango or pineapple, chopped
- 4 limes 100 g (3 1/2 oz) baby spinach or micro greens
- 1 small ice-berg lettuce
- 1 Chilli, seeded and chopped
Instructions
- Combine mango, 2 x lime juice, + 2 tablespoons, coriander, chilli and red onion. Set aside.
- Cook fish in a pan or BBQ for approx 3 minutes per side until cooked through.
- Make sure to season a little with sea salt and pepper.
- Once the fish is ready, place onto a serving plate and break up into chunks.
- Separate the lettuce leaves by plunging iceberg completely into cold water.
- The water helps separate the lettuce as you carefully remove each leaf.
- Stuff each leave with a little spinach, cherry tomato, avocado, fish and top with mango salsa.
- Garnish with extra coriander and wedges of lime.
Enjoy.
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 4 large slices of wholemeal (or Miche) sourdough bread
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
- 2 tablespoons pepita seeds
- 2 large handfuls snow peas
- 1 large mango
- 300g small golden or mixed heirloom tomatoes
- 2 heads of baby cos lettuce
Dressing
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons verjuice
- salt and pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon mixed dried Italian herbs
- small handful of fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Tear the bread into bite-sized pieces and spread out on a baking tray.
- Slice the garlic cloves thinly and sprinkle over the bread with 1 tablespoon of oil.
- Toss the bread, garlic and oil together and bake in a hot (200C) oven for 10min or until golden and crisp.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
- Toast the sunflower and pepita seeds in a hot dry frypan for a couple of minutes (until just turning golden) then allow to cool.
- Remove the tips from the snow peas, blanch for a minute in boiling water, and refresh immediately in ice cold water.
- Cube the mango flesh.
- Wash the baby cos lettuce and tear into bite size pieces.
- Half or quarter the tomatoes (depending on their size).
- Prepare the dressing but combining the 2 tablespoons of oil, verjuice, salt, pepper, dried herbs and finely sliced basil leaves in a small glass jar.
- Ensemble the salad by combining all the ingredients in a large bowl.
- Emulsify the dressing by shaking the jar then pour over the salad.
Toss and serve.