Have you ever had a longing for a mango only to discover that the ones you bought at the shop were not quite ripe? Did you give up and believe you were doomed? Fortunately, there are methods for ripening your mango so that you may consume it as soon as possible.
Paper bag or newspaper
One method for hastening the ripening of mangos is to place them in a paper bag or wrap them in newspaper. You’ve heard of this avocado technique, but it also works with mangoes. If you leave the bag or newspaper collection on the kitchen counter overnight, it should be ripe in the morning.
Ethylene is released when mangoes are wrapped in a paper bag. This is an odorless gas that accelerates ripening. Every day, you learn something new.
Rice and popcorn
Drown those immature mangoes in popcorn kernels or raw rice! It’s the same idea as the paper bag method.
You might anticipate results in as little as a day with this strategy! Mangoes ripen so quickly that you’ll have to examine them after 6 or 12 hours.
You don’t want them to linger there too long because they’ll overripen.
Others recommend keeping mangoes in a cardboard box loaded with hay. I haven’t attempted this because I don’t have access to hay.
The Microwave Technique
Unripe mango is tough and bitter. You can soften and sweeten them in seconds by tossing them in the microwave. Here’s how to go about it.
But pay attention, because this part is crucial. Make careful to pierce your mango with a fork. This will allow the mango’s vapor to escape. If you don’t do this, you’ll have no mango and perhaps a dirty microwave!
Wrap your punctured mango with kitchen paper and microwave it for 10 seconds on high. Take it out and squeeze it. If it’s still difficult, give it another 10-second blast until you get the desired uniformity.
Cook it with sugar
This is entirely dependent on how you want to utilize your mango; however, heat and sugar will break down the cell walls. If you cannot wait, consider stewing unripe mango pieces in a skillet with some water and a tablespoon of sugar. If you wish to produce a fruit preserve, this should remain longer than a fresh mango, allowing you to offer it whenever you choose.
Other Ways to Ripen a Mango More Quickly
Place the mangos in the hottest part of the home.
To begin, place them in a warmer location in your home, such as on top of your refrigerator.
I normally keep them in my office because it’s the house’s warmest room and they mature faster there.
Place them in the sun.
Place them on a window sill.
You may place them on a window shelf to obtain additional sunlight.
Place the bag in the sun, covered with a towel.
Place the mangoes in a bag in the sun, covered with a towel. This will hasten the ripening process even further.
Warmer temperatures will hasten the ripening process. However, it is dependent on whether you have sunny weather or whether you can create a warm climate in your home.
However, how rapidly they ripen is also affected by how unripe they were collected. Some of them will not ripen no matter what you try!
In the same bag, place an apple or a banana.
Finally, add an apple or banana to the bag with the mangoes to hasten the ripening process.
This will cause gasses to be released, allowing the unripe fruit to ripen at the same rate as the mature fruit. *Note: When ripening, check on the mangoes regularly to ensure that condensation does not harm them.
How to Ripen Mangoes After They’ve Been Cut
Sometimes you cut a mango thinking it is ripe, only to discover that it is still unripe after you cut it. If you leave this sliced mango alone, it will not fast ripen and decay. To ensure that a cut mango ripens as rapidly as possible, do the following: Wrap the chopped part of the mango with glad wrap and set it in a paper bag with a banana. In a few days, the chopped mango will ripen.
How Do You Tell if a Mango Is Ripe?
The squeeze test
The simplest method is to squeeze it gently. Unripe mangoes have a rock-hard texture. A ripe mango is soft, plump, and has a little give to it. If the mango becomes too unsteady, it’s time to consume it. It is on the verge of being overripe.
Take a whiff.
The scent of a ripe mango can also indicate its ripeness. Examine the mango surrounding the area where the stem was removed. It should be ready to use if it smells somewhat sweet. If there is no fragrance at all, it is not yet ready.
The color test is ineffective.
Don’t let the color deceive you. I’ve had green mangos that were tender and delicious. I’ve had brilliant red mangos that were rough and stringy as well. Mangoes are one of the few fruits with skin that remains the same color no matter how ripe. The only way to find out is to touch, smell, or taste…
How to Store Ripe Mangoes
Refrigerate the mango to prevent it from becoming ripe. Do not put it in the fridge before it is ready since the cold temperature will harm it and interrupt the ripening process.
Now that you’ve learned everything there is to know about mangos, go ahead and start ripening them.
How may the ripening process be stopped or slowed?
Another common query is how to stop mangoes from ripening further or how to slow down the ripening process.
Assume your mangoes have ripened. But then you decide you don’t want to eat it right immediately… Or you want to eat it in a day or two, or you got too many mangoes and won’t be able to eat them all, or you’re too busy to cut them?
Then here’s a tip that could come in handy:
Refrigerate the mangoes for up to a week to protect them from turning bad!
I had these ripe mangoes (shown below) in the fridge since I bought so many that I couldn’t eat them all.
And this procedure does retain them at the same level of maturity for a short period, possibly no more than a week. They’ll start to go mushy and brown by then.
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