Cutting a mango can be a bit of a challenge because of the pit. But with a few tricks, it’s not difficult at all. We’ll show you how to serve the fruit properly.
How do I know if a mango is ripe?
When you cut open a mango, it should be nicely ripe. You can tell a ripe mango by the fact that it gives way slightly when you press the peel and has an intense scent. However, the color is not an indicator of the degree of ripeness, as there are also varieties that remain completely green.
If the mango is not yet ripe, you should give it a few days to ripen. For example, you can wrap them in newspaper and put them in a sunny place – this is the fastest way for them to ripen.
Cutting the mango: the mango hedgehog
With this trick, the mango can be easily cut into bite-sized cubes and the mango hedgehog looks great at the same time. It is important that you do not peel the mango beforehand. Here’s how you do it:
Wash the mango.
Cut the flesh from the pit on the left and right: mango pits are flat and the shape of the mango gives you an indication of how the pit lies inside (mangoes are also slightly flatter on one side). Place the knife about 1-2 cm to the right or left of the middle and cut down one side.
Use a knife to carefully score horizontal and vertical lines into the flesh. Be careful not to cut through the shell!
Turn the mango half over so the mango cubes are facing up.
You can either remove the remaining pulp around the core with a knife or “gnaw off”.
Cut the mango into thin slices
For desserts, cake decorations or on the fruit plate, it looks particularly nice if you cut your mango into fine slices. This is quite simple:
Wash and peel the mango. This can be done either with a vegetable peeler or with the help of a glass. Check out our other article for more mango peeling tips.
Cut the pulp from the pit on the left and right as described above.
Place the mango half flat-side down and use a sharp knife to thinly slice.
You can use a knife to remove the remaining pulp from the core as best you can.
