It's a bird. It's a plane. It's a MANGO!

So, I've been reading lots about the great benefits of eating mangoes. Apparently, it has been designated as an official "superfruit;" so named for its incredible health value. Mangoes are also rich in prebiotic dietary fiber, vitamin C, and other essential vitamins and minerals. (Props to Wikipedia for the mango info.)

In addition to actually being good for you, and, perhaps most importantly, mangoes are also darned tasty. I purchased my mangoes on a recent trip to the local Sam's Club. As I stared at a huge selection of mangoes, I wondered how to choose my mangoes. From previous reading, I knew that a ripe mango would be slightly soft if squeezed lightly. But I wanted to pick out six mangoes so that I could enjoy them throughout the coming week. Finally, after dithering far longer than really necessary, I selected three ripe mangoes and three that were still very firm.

After arriving home, I cleaned each mango gently (you don't want to bruise their skin, as it may create brown/black spots that can reach all the way into the fruit inside) and then set about the complicated task of slicing one. The oblong seed pod of a mango is a complicated thing...and I'm waaaaay too stubborn to buy one of those goofy mango slicers (that, as Alton Brown would point out, is a uni-tasker, and has no place in my kitchen -- unless it's a fire extignuisher). So, since this was my first whole mango, I eventually decided that a slightly messy cut was just part of the learning process. And so, accordingly, I went after the thing with my largest, sharpest, pointiest knife. Note to Self: When going after things with one's largest, sharpest, pointiest knife, one should be careful to remove one's fingers from the immediate area. And so, after some minor first aid, I had two halves of a mango laying in front of me on my board. Unfortunately, as I had feared there would be, there was still a lot of mango attached to that darned seed pod thing. And so I began (a lot more carefully this time) to slice away sections of mango until I decided there was no more that I could possibly remove with a knife. Then, just because I wanted the "whole mango experience," I gnawed on the seed a bit and ate some mango off it directly. YUM!

So, after I tossed a thoroughly gnawed seed pod thing (that's it's technical name) into the trash, I addressed the remaining halves of mango, as well as the smaller slices I had cut from the sides of the mangoes. Each slice was laid on my board and the peel carefully sliced off. Then, I sliced each chunk into smaller, bite-sized pieces. That evening I enjoyed mango for dessert. The next day I also had mango as part of my lunch at school.

As I worked my way through my six mangoes this past week, I reflected on the fact that I was really enjoying a new and novel fruit: it's texture is unlike other fruit I commonly eat and the extraction of the fruit is certainly a bigger challenge than say, an apple. However, mangoes are unqiue in that they have so many uses, both sweet and savory. Although I ate my first six mangoes straight; that is, as a fruit and not as part of a larger recipe, I plan to buy more mangoes. I foresee mango salsas, sorbets, sauces...hmm...I'm sure there's an application that doesn't start with an "s," but darned if I can think of one right now. I guess I'll just have to start with these. Stay tuned for more with mangoes.

P.S. Never write your blog while watching a Good Eats marathon -- you'll find yourself speaking like Alton Brown.