It's Summers and the one thing which every Indian loves during summer are juicy, tasty mangoes. Mangoes have been part of Indian culture and traditions since ages. India is the place where the best mangoes are cultivated and it's from here that mangoes are exported to other countries. Mangoes can beat other fruits when it comes to taste, that is the reason Mangoes are called the king of fruits.
Mangoes have been part and parcel of Indian culture since long. In some cultures, it is also included in religious and traditional customs like pooja, gatherings etc. Besides this, mangoes are not just enjoyed as fruit but also raw mangoes are equally enjoyed by Indians. These mangoes both ripe and raw is used in recipes and thus a list of recipes can be counted from different parts of the country. Some of the famous recipes are Aamras, Aam Panha, Kairi chutney, Aam Burfi, Aamrakand, Mango sherbat, Mango smoothie, Mango sorbet , Kairi sabzi, Kairi raita and so on.
Aam ras as the name suggests is mango pulp. The word "Aam Ras" is derived from Hindi word Aam and Ras which means mango and juice respectively. Aam ras can be made from either raw mangoes, ripe mangoes or semi ripe mangoes. Traditionally Aam ras is made from Aapus or Aamba which is known as Alphonso mangoes, which is the sweetest mango among all the mangoes.
Aam or the mangoes have been used as cooler since ages. It helps protect from the heat strokes and quenches thirst during hot summer days and acts as instant cooler. This eventually coincides and is available during the summer times in India which are extremely hot. The best time to consume mangoes is the month of May since it is the period when the naturally ripe mangoes are available in market. The mangoes which reaches before it might not be rightly called as naturally ripened. These days hazardous chemicals are used to make the mangoes look like ripened ones but it might result us leaving with bad results on health, so beware of mangoes which looks polished from outside since naturally ripened mangoes don't look polished and has a wrinkle like look from outside. Do wash the mangoes nicely before consuming. Some people do consume Mangoes with it's skin since the mango skin is also considered to have medicinal benefits according to some researchers and texts.
Now let me start with the procedure of preparing Aamras. Pick some good quality, naturally ripened Alphonso Mangoes and few semi ripened Payiri Mangoes. I am using Payiri mangoes too, since traditionally aamras used to be prepared using both mangoes which makes it taste unique without making it too sweet to consume which bores after few minutes.
Am attaching a photograph to show how exactly a Alphonso and Payiri Mango looks like.
Here the above pic shows both Alphonso and Payiri variety of mango respectively. Traditionally Aamras is prepared using both variety of mangoes so that the cuisine doesnt end up being too sweet which spoils the joy and taste.
Ingredients:
Alphonso Mangoes - 4 to 6 (naturally ripened pulpy ones)Payiri Mangoes - 1 or 2 ( semi ripe)
Milk - 1 cup
Sugar - as required
Cardamom Powder (Elaichi powder) - 1/2 teaspoon (freshly ground)
Nutmeg Powder (Jaiphal powder) - 2 pinches (frshly ground).
Method:
- Pick some good quality naturally ripened alphonso mangoes and semi ripe payiri mangoes from Market. The naturally ripened mangoes look wrinkled from outside unlike chemically ripened which looks polished from outside. May is the best month when you can find naturally ripened best quality mangoes in Market. Beware of chemical ripened mangoes since it is extremely hazardous to health.
- Soak them in water for atleast two hours. This makes them pulp come out easily.
- Remove from water and press and soften the mangoes lightly with hands to loosen the pulp.
- Remove and peel the tip of the mangoes with fingers and press further to remove out the mango pulp in a bowl. Further squeeze the pulp from the seeds and remove all the pulp from the seeds.
- If payiri mangoes doesnt come out that easily then chop the skin and seperate it from the seeds by cutting them. Take both the mangoes in a bowl .
- Blend the mango pulps into a blender or hand blend it with a machine. Blend them till it is soft and completely smooth.
- Add sugar depending the amount of sweetness you need and again blend nicely till it gets mixed with mangoes.
- Now add the milk and blend again nicely. Milk to enhance the taste and give a nice consistency to the pulp. Blend well till a nice smooth mixture is obtained.
- Finally sprinkle the cardamom powder and nutmeg powder and mix slightly.
- Serve them with Hot puris for lunch.
I have already posted recipe of puri in my blog and i will once again post it next time for a reference.
Preparation Time: 2 hours and 20 minutes (including the soaking time).
Making Time: 20 minutes.
Serves : 8 persons.
Shelflife: 2-3 days if refrigerated nicely in tight container.
Serving Suggestion : Serve hot with puris.
Note:
- Pick only naturally ripened mangoes which look wrinkled from outside unlike chemically ripened which looks polished and is hazardous to life.
- Don't go for very raw payiri mango. Pick semi ripened ones.
- I have added cardamom and nutmeg powder to enhance the taste. You can skip them if needed.
- Add sugar as required. Taste the pulp and add as per needed.
- If you have problem with milk then you can avoid it. Even skimmed milk can be used for this recipe.
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