How to cut a mango

Ever wondered how to cut a mango without risking your fingers—or wasting any fruit? Over the years, I’ve mangled more than a few attempts and have resorted to sucking the mango flesh off of the pit, juices dripping down my chin. But, like anything else in the kitchen, learning to cut a mango simply takes practice. And mangoes are totally worth the effort—a perfectly ripe mango is the closest nature comes to candy. With a little determination and this step-by-step guide, you’ll be slicing mangoes like a pro in no time.

1. Choose a ripe mango

When learning how to cut a mango, it’s first important that you select a good one to cut! You should always judge the ripeness of a mango by feel and not color. It’s tempting to think that redder, more golden-hued mangoes are more ripe, but the way to tell is by gently squeezing the fruit. When there’s a slight give, the mango is ripe. It should feel firm but not hard. Don’t choose a super squishy one! Sometimes you can also tell that a mango is ripe because it has a really fruity aroma, particularly if you put your nose to the stem end of the tropical fruit.

2. Peel the mango

Hold the mango in one hand. With the other hand, take a vegetable peeler and gently peel away the skin of the mango vertically, from top to bottom.

The mango can be a bit slippery once it’s peeled, so be careful when cutting. If you have a cut-resistant glove (or even a clean dishwashing glove), it might be nice to wear it on the hand you’ll use to hold the mango for extra grip. Or, simply put a paper towel under your hand while you’re gripping the fruit.

3. Cut lengthwise and separate the two wide, flat sides of the mango

When you’re holding the mango upright in your palm, you’ll see that there are two flatter, meatier sides (a.k.a. the mango cheeks). Use your fingers to feel gently for where the pit ends (this can be a bit of trial and error). Once you’ve located the pit, lay the mango on your cutting board and proceed to cut the two cheeks off of the pit with a chef’s knife. Cut from the top down (where the stem would be) and slightly curve your knife around the pit to get off as much meat as possible. Voila! Now you have two lovely mango halves.

There will, however, still be a bit of meat attached to the pit. Take the same approach, starting from the top down and slicing off the remaining meat. It won’t be as neat as each mango half, but the fruit will still be just as tasty (perhaps as a chef’s treat to enjoy then and there).

4. Slice (or cube) your mango

Now that you’ve got all of the fruit off of the pit, you can begin slicing the mango halves. Depending on whether you’re adding the mango to a specific recipe or enjoying it plain, you’ll want to cut it into different shapes. Either way you’ll find a small paring knife works best for this task.

source:-www.epicurious.com