If you haven’t spent at least one summer afternoon in your childhood sucking down chaunsa mangoes, we suggest you go buy some, take the day off, and treat yourself to some cold delight while staring into the distance thinking of nothing else but the next mango.

It’s mango season! All hail the king of fruits. We are one of the world’s largest mango exporters and no one loves mangoes like Indians do. Chaunsa, Langda, Banganapalli, Pairi, Dasheri, Totapuri and of course Alphonso, are just some of the hundreds of types of mangoes we grow. Eat them sliced and cold, as aam ras with hot puris, with chilled milk as a milkshake or even in a curry, there are plenty of ways to enjoy this gorgeous fruit. 

While the ripe fruit is delicious, the raw version has its own fanbase. Thin sliced pieces of green mango tossed in chilli powder, chaat masala and salt will have your teeth tingling but you’ll keep reaching for more. This side quest into childhood apart, green mangoes are most popular for pickling and if you like having pickle on hand but dislike the packaged ones (high salt content, hello!!), here’s a super quick pickle recipe. It’ll take longer for you to chop the raw mangoes than it will to make the pickle that literally goes well with anything – curd rice, dosas, uttapams, kadhi rice and even parathas.

Here’s what you’ll need to make this pickle that’ll have you getting the entire family to peel, core and chop kilos of it. 

  • 1 kg raw mango
  • 4 heaped tablespoons of red chilli powder
  • 1 heaped teaspoon of haldi
    2 tablespoons of methi seeds
    2 tablespoons of mustard seeds
  • 3 heaped teaspoons of salt
  • Half a cup of fresh curry leaves
  • 1 ½ cups of mustard oil
  • Peel the raw mangoes and chop them into small pieces. 
  • Put the chopped mangoes in a large glass bowl. Ensure the glass bowl is big enough for you to stir the chopped mangoes comfortably without spilling any. 
  • Add the chilli powder and haldi to the chopped mangoes.
  • Stir and coat the mangoes with the spices. Do this gently as you don’t want the mango pieces to get mashed. 
  • Cover it and leave for about 1-2 hours.
  • Heat the oil on low heat in a heavy bottomed kadhai. Don’t let the mustard oil smoke. It’ll add a bitter taste to the pickle.
  • Add a few mustard seeds to check the oil. If it splutters, it’s hot enough!
  • Add the mustard seeds, the methi seeds and finally the curry leaves. Once the curry leaves become crisp, pour this hot oil on the spice-coated raw mango.
    Immediately add the salt and stir well while the oil is still warm, coating all the pieces nicely. 
  • Don’t cover.
  • Leave open to cool down completely.
  • Once cool, transfer to a clean, air tight jar and store in the fridge. 

Some tips to remember

  • Always use a glass bowl to marinate the raw mango. This is to prevent the spices from staining a plastic bowl and also to prevent plastic leaching into the pickle because of the hot oil. 
  • Never add the salt with the spice, because it could make the mangoes sweat and affect the taste of the pickle.
  • You can keep this in the fridge as long as there is oil in the pickle. 
  • If the oil becomes less, heat up some mustard oil and add just a tad of the curry leaves and mustard seeds and pour it on the pickle to freshen it up.
  • You must peel the mangoes as the skin is very thick and can be difficult to chew.
  • The skin of green mangoes could be a bit bitter and that can ruin the pickle.