Relish the Raw Mango

When the season calls for it, you dive right in. Into the uniqueness of the mango in its unripe form. It’s the raw mango — what we in India know all too well as kacchi kairi

We were strolling around the forests of our farmhouse property checking in on the progress of the myriad of fruit trees and marvelling at the wonders of nature, those endless wonders. Colours of yellow and green burst forth in this landscape and while we began gathering up the yellow – those soft and ripe mangoes ready for the devouring – we couldn’t help salivate at the thought of an aam panna and a chutney that we could conjure from the green – the raw mango. Kacchi kairi is what it is – unlike any other and filled with childhood memories of a chatpata flavour enhanced with the spiciness from flecks of red chilli powder.

Think of a refreshing mango cooler, sweet and sour in taste, with a mint leaf to garnish and add flavour… that’s the aam panna, which, FYI, goes really well with vodka, too. Tried and tested! This is summer in a glass for us in India who love the taste of raw mango, with the additional benefits of its cooling properties to beat the heat. With temperatures rising year after year thanks to the man-made pressures of global warming on our planet, all the more reason to juice the raw mango to its fullest. Cut it into cubes, toss it up and make it the star of your salad; dry it to free it from moisture and use it in a tangy/spicy pickle to go with your rice and dal; grind it into a launji (chutney) to accompany your dosa; serve it in a kadhi – perfect for the summer – with steamed rice and bird’s eye chilli to spice things up. We Indians love spice even in the summers, don’t we? However, play it cool during the season, experts advise. Overall, we have to incorporate more soothing foods in our diet whether it be yogurt and its derivatives, sugarcane juice, lemon juice, coconut water, etc, ice-creams, too, and of course, raw mango.

The versatility of kacchi kairi is one of its many attractions, its health benefits another. While the juice of the unripe mango is palate-pleasing with a zing, you know you’re doing your body good by preventing dehydration brought about by intense heat. It helps restore the minerals in your body which tend to get depleted the more we sweat in the heat. Your energy levels are boosted and your body cools down with every sip of an aam panna. Heart health is maintained by the presence of niacin in the mango which works on lowering blood cholesterol levels. The liver and the intestine are also fortified with the intake of the kairi. Chew on a few slices and the juice works to reduce the presence of bad bacteria in the gut. Gastro issues are hence, reduced, with the inclusion of kairi in your diet during the summer. It works as an inflammatory agent, hence. Ah yes, the Vitamin C in raw mango improves elasticity in blood cells and helps promote the formation of red blood cells in the system, too.

With the heat also comes skin issues, as we are all well aware. Pimples, heat boils, rashes, what not. Then you have hair fall, dry hair and the like, all seasonal issues that we try to rectify with chemical “miracle workers”. But when you have more natural means like the raw mango, why not? It’s a treasure trove of nutrients such as vitamin A, D, B6. When you sprinkle some amchur powder into your pickles, curries, soups even, it helps gets rid of harmful toxins from the system. The skin automatically clears up and the hair gets a little vitality, a little more bounce overall.

Was it the Spice Girls who sang it? “Too much of something is bad enough…”Right they were, for an excess of raw mango will only bring you discomfort. Throat irritation due to the sourness, gastric problems as it can be heavy to digest, and a cold, too. Do not follow your ‘one kairi a day’ with a glass of water and certainly not cold water as it will only add to the irritation.

Most of us love our mangoes post lunch, be it the sucking mangoes (Dusheri) or the Alphonso (Hapus), or the many other variants of the aam family, but due to the sugar content, it is best restricted to one a day, they say. When compared to the kairi, the sugar content is higher. A study published in the Indian-based Rasayan Journal of Chemistry revealed that though unripe mango has 23.5% significantly less water content than a ripe mango, which contained 82.9%, it has less sugar, more proteins, and more minerals. This possibly makes the kairi healthier than the aam.

So, go ahead and try these recipes we curated for you and beat the intolerable heat the natural, raw way.