Mangoes Can Dress Main Dish Or Used In Dessert

Service To look at a mango - its shape rather dowdy, like a swelled potato, neither too long nor too round - one would not expect sensuality.

Unripe, its skin is smooth and green; the fruit is expectedly tart, firm and only faintly aromatic. It is at this stage that cooks make chutney from mangoes.

As mangoes ripen, their skin becomes tinged with red and yellow, and they become soft to the touch. Cut one open and you’ll smell a strong aroma that’s both sweet and piquant. They ooze juice. At this stage, they are good for eating and cooking.

The center seed is large and flat. The flesh next to the pit is stringy. For eating, I prefer to cut the fruit lengthwise and slice it from the pit. Then, using a small knife, cut a crisscross pattern in the flesh, leaving the skin intact, and turn the fruit halves inside out. The flesh will protrude like little square teeth.

I like to eat mangoes in this way because it allows the greatest access to the flesh which is closest to the skin. That flesh has an altogether different aroma and acidity from the flesh that’s closer to the pit. The combination of these two variations on the same theme thrills me like no other counterpoint in the food kingdom.

Mangoes marry particularly well with pepper and other hot, spicy things, especially curries; they are intriguing when paired with salty condiments, such as bacon or prosciutto. Experiment using these ideas with poultry, seafood and white meats.

You can tell overripe mangoes by their extreme mottled skin and mushy texture. They’re at their sweetest, but lack the acidic pucker and piquancy of the perfectly ripe version. I use these for making fruit ice or dessert sauces.

Peppered Scallops Sauteed With Mango

1 large mango, peeled, seeded and sliced

1-1/2 pounds small (dime-sized) bay scallops or large (half-dollar size) sea scallops, halved

3/4 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt to taste

1 teaspoon finely minced shallots

1/3 cup medium white wine, such as gewurtztraminer

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Warm mango slices in microwave oven. Arrange on 4 plates and keep warm.

Pat scallops dry and place in bowl. Add pepper and toss well.

Heat oil in large skillet over high heat. When very hot and oil almost smoking, toss in scallops without crowding pan, in batches if necessary, and cook 30 seconds without stirring. Then vigorously shake skillet and cook 1 minute longer. Sprinkle with salt. Using slotted spoon, remove scallops to plate (they should be only partially cooked).

Return skillet to medium heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add wine and any juices that have collected on plate with scallops and cook until reduced by half.

Return scallops to pan. Reduce heat to low. Whisk in butter. Taste for salt and add as desired. Spoon scallops and sauce over mango slices and serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 305 calories, 13.9 grams fat (41 percent fat calories), 29 grams protein, 11 grams carbohydrate, 81 milligrams cholesterol, 278 milligrams sodium.

Breast of Chicken With Prosciutto and Mango

1 large ripe mango

1/2 cup chicken stock or low-sodium chicken broth

1 tablespoon fresh lime or lemon juice

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (1-3/4 to 2 pounds total)

Salt

2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, chopped

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces

2 tablespoons finely minced green onions

Pit and peel mango, dice flesh and set aside.

Bring stock and lime juice to simmer. Add chicken and salt to taste. Cover and cook without boiling until center of breasts are springy to the touch, 5 minutes or more, depending on size and thickness of chicken. Remove chicken and set aside.

Cook liquid, uncovered, until reduced by about three-fourths, 7 to 9 minutes. Add mango, prosciutto and any juices that have collected on plate with chicken. Whisk in butter until incorporated.

Return chicken to pan and heat through. Arrange chicken on platter. Spoon sauce over top. Garnish with minced green onions and serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 439 calories, 28.3 grams fat (58 percent fat calories), 38 grams protein, 7 grams carbohydrate, 144 milligrams cholesterol, 582 milligrams sodium.

Mango Ice

3 pounds very ripe mangoes

2 tablespoons lime juice

3 tablespoons sugar

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup orange-flavored liqueur

1/4 cup dark rum

Peel and seed mangoes. Puree mango flesh, lime juice, sugar, water, liqueur and rum in food processor until smooth.

Transfer puree to large metal work bowl and place in freezer 30 minutes. Mix puree well with wire whisk and place in freezer 30 minutes longer. Repeat process, whisking well, until mixture is a thick, soupy mass of icy crystals.

Transfer to plastic container and place in freezer another 30 minutes before serving.

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 223 calories, 0.7 grams fat (3 percent fat calories), 1 gram protein, 50 grams carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 6 milligrams sodium.