Curry mango is a side, not a main: green or half-ripe mango cooked with its skin in a spiced, sweet-and-sour curry until the flesh is tender and the sauce is thick and glossy. A spoonful beside curry goat, dhal and rice or roti brightens the whole plate.
Whole spices go in first: geera (cumin) and methi (fenugreek seeds), fried in oil until they darken. Take care with the methi, which turns bitter if it burns.
Many cooks chop straight through the mango seed with a cleaver. If your mangoes’ seeds are hard, cut the flesh away from the seed in large pieces instead.
The recipe
Curry Mango
Prep
20 min
Cook
40 min
Total
1 hr
Serves
8
Times and quantities are our best estimates. This recipe is still being kitchen-tested, so trust your eyes and taste as you go.
Servings
Ingredient amounts are scaled. Cooking times and pot size may need adjusting too.
Ingredients
Tick items off as you gather them.
Method
Prepare the mangoes
Wash the mangoes well and leave the skin on. Cut the flesh into pieces about 2 inches (5 cm) across, either chopping through the seed with a heavy knife or cleaver, or cutting the flesh away from it if the seed is hard.
Cook the curry
Mix the curry powder with the ¼ cup (60 ml) water to make a paste.
Heat the oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the geera and methi and fry for 30 to 60 seconds until they darken and smell toasty. Don't let them turn black.
Add the garlic and pepper and stir for 30 seconds, then add the curry paste and amchar masala and stir for 2 minutes until it darkens.
Add the mango and stir for 2 to 3 minutes until coated.
Add the salt and the 2 cups (480 ml) water. Cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring now and then, until the mango is tender and the skin is soft.
Stir in the sugar and simmer uncovered for 8 to 10 minutes, until the sauce is thick and glossy.
Taste and balance: more sugar if it is too sour, more salt if it tastes flat. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Serve it with
Curry goat, curry chicken or dhal and rice
Roti, especially dhalpuri
Substitutions
Methi: leave it out if you don't have it; the curry will be a little less aromatic.
Sugar: half-ripe mangoes need less; very green, sour mangoes may need more.
Storing and reheating
Refrigerate in a covered container and eat within 1 week.
Serve at room temperature or warm gently.
Cook's notes
Wear gloves when handling the sliced pepper, or wash your hands well afterwards.
The skin softens as it cooks and is eaten; the mango is meant to be chewed off the skin and seed.
