Ingredients
Mango
- 3green mangoes
- hard and unripe
- peeled and sliced
The dressing
- juice of 3 limes
- 4garlic cloves, crushed
- 1scotch bonnet pepper
- finely chopped, or to taste
- a large bunch of chadon beni
- culantro, chopped
- or coriander
- 2 teaspoonssalt
- black pepper
Sometimes added
- 1 teaspoonsugar
- a little vinegar
- chopped onion
To serve
- in a paper cup
- or a plastic bag
- from a cart
Directions
- Salt and pepper balance both of them. Use rather more of it than the recipe says. It is extremely hot and quite fruity. Wash hands, boards and knives thoroughly. Pick mangoes that are hard to the touch. They should have no give at all.
- Peel the mangoes with a knife or peeler. It must all come off completely. Slice the flesh off the flat stone. Cut it into thin strips or slices. Thin slices take the dressing better.
- Cut them thinner than feels necessary. Green mango stone is soft and pale. Cut close around it with a knife. Wash the chadon beni thoroughly. Chop it all very finely indeed.
- Chop it as finely as you possibly can. Squeeze the lime juice into a large bowl. Add the crushed garlic to it as well.
- Add the chopped scotch bonnet. Add the chopped chadon beni to it. Add the salt and black pepper. Stir it all together thoroughly. Add the mango slices to the bowl.
- Toss them thoroughly in the dressing. Every single slice should be coated. Use your hands or else two spoons. Work it all through them properly. Cover the bowl and let it stand. Give it at least twenty minutes.
- Taste it and adjust the salt as needed. Add more lime if it is not sharp enough. Add more pepper if you want more heat. It should be sharply sour first. Spoon it into cups or into bags. It keeps for a day refrigerated.
Technique
- The mango must be hard and unripe with no give at all: ripe mango is too sweet and turns to mush in the dressing, and the sourness of green mango is the whole point of the dish.
- Chadon beni is culantro, Eryngium foetidum, a long serrated leaf that tastes like a much stronger and more persistent coriander and is unrelated to it; coriander is the nearest substitute but considerably milder, so use rather more, and it will still not be quite the same. The name comes from the French chardon béni, blessed thistle, reflecting Trinidad’s French heritage.
- Two teaspoons of salt is not too much: it draws juice out of the mango, which pools and mixes with the lime and garlic into a proper dressing, so let it stand at least twenty minutes before eating.
Substitutions
- Coriander stands in for chadon beni, used more generously since it is milder.
- Pineapple, cucumber, pommecythere and plum are all chowed the same way.
Variations
- A teaspoon of sugar takes the hardest edge off the sourness without sweetening it.
- Some like it crisp and freshly made and others softened after longer standing.
- It is sold from carts in cups or bags and the dressing drunk from the cup after.
History
Green mango tossed with salt, pepper and shadon beni, sold from carts and eaten as a sharp snack.
Frequently asked questions
What is Mango chow?
Mango chow is a snack from Trinidad and Tobago: green mango in lime, garlic, pepper, chadon beni. Green mango tossed with salt, pepper and shadon beni, sold from carts and eaten as a sharp snack.
How long does Mango chow take to make?
Mango chow takes 15 minutes plus standing of preparation and no cooking at all. The recipe makes serves 4. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Mango chow?
Yes, within limits. Coriander stands in for chadon beni, used more generously since it is milder. Pineapple, cucumber, pommecythere and plum are all chowed the same way.
What is the most important thing to get right in Mango chow?
Peel the mangoes with a knife or peeler. It must all come off completely. Slice the flesh off the flat stone. Cut it into thin strips or slices. Thin slices take the dressing better.
