#100 Mango Salsa

 

This is another simple and delicious way to enjoy mangoes as an accompaniment to meats, breads and other vegetable dishes. Mango salsa is a variation of Salsa Fresca. Mangoes were likely used  as an ingredient in salsas as early as the time of the Aztec, Incan and Mayan times. The fruit is said to have been cultivated in South Asia for thousands of years before it reached East Asia and other parts of the world. It is the national fruit of my home country, the Philippines, also of Pakistan and India, the latter is  the world's top producer of this delicious fruit, Mexico places 5th.  It's a delicious fruit loaded with vitamins A and C, very low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium, high in dietary fibers and vitamin B6. Ripe mangoes are used to make drinks, ice cream, cakes, and other desserts. I used semi-sweet ones for this dish. Unripe mangoes are used to make sauces, pickles, chutneys, etc. Back home, the most sour young mangoes are eaten sprinkled with rock salt, or dipped in soy sauce with sugar and hot fresh chili or bagoong, a Philippine condiment made of fermented fish or shrimp or both and salt. Mouth watering to someone like me who enjoys sour food! Unbearable almost. :) This salsa recipe is great, I omitted the onions when I made it, but I recommend to put even a little because it will add more flavor. I ended up doing that in the end.

Yield: Serves 4

MANGO SALSA

Ingredients:

2 large mangoes

1/2 cup diced bell pepper (green or red)

1/4 cup red onion

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon minced jalapeno

1 tablespoon lime juice

salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Scoop out meat of mangoes and chop  into small pieces.
2. Combine mangoes with the rest of the ingredients.
3. Cover and chill until ready to use.

This was served with Jamaican Jerk Chicken. Delicious!