One summer fruit that I am always looking forward to buying are mangos. They are not always available, but are in season from May to September so that is your best chance at finding them at the grocery store. They are a popular summer fruit to add to many cuisines for that special tropical flavor.
Some of the best ways to use them are in salsa, jams and jellies, or in a mango smoothie. You can also dehydrate them to have a healthy snack on the go!
Directions for Washing Mangos
Washing mangos is just as important as any other fruit. Even though you don’t eat the outside, you want to make sure that it is clean when you cut through it. You will wash your mango by putting it in a large bowl with about 10 cups of water and ¼ cup distilled 5% white vinegar.
Allow the mango to soak for two minutes. After the two minutes is up, you should allow your mango to air dry on the counter for a few hours. I love using this beach towel which covers my whole counter, giving me plenty of room to dry all of my produce. Following these simple steps of washing mangos will help this summer fruit stay fresh even longer!
How to Store Mangos
After you are done washing mangos, they should be stored whole and in a bowl in the fridge. I like to keep my mangos on one of the top shelves of my fridge in an acrylic bin. This makes them easy to see so I don’t forget about them. You can learn more about fridge organization, including a handy chart, in my Grocery Guide and Meal Planner.
Mangos produce a high amount of ethylene, which is the gas that causes produce to ripen. For this reason, you will want to make sure that they are stored away from other fruits and vegetables, especially apples, which are sensitive to ethylene.
Since apples are more of a Fall fruit, and mangos are a summer fruit, it should be easy to keep them apart. This is another reason why it is helpful to shop seasonally. Not only are you getting produce that is fresher, but you are able to enjoy different things throughout the year.
Other ethylene sensitive fruits are lemons and avocados. That is why I always recommend keeping those in the crisper drawer away from other fruits or vegetables, especially mangos. Avocados can last a month when stored correctly, check out this blog for more information.
Summer Fruit Fun Fact
One fun thing about mangos is that if you pick it up and shake it, you might hear the seed inside of the pit. You have to open the pit and inside of it there is a seed. If you take that seed out, wrap it in a wet paper towel and keep it there for about three weeks.
Once you see it starting to sprout, you can plant it (with the sprout out of the soil) and see what happens! I did this a few weeks ago and have a small mango plant starting to grow! Check it out in this video. Living in the Pacific Northwest I am not sure we have the right climate for it to grow, but it was worth a try!
Enjoy This Summer Fruit All Year
Earlier this summer I found mangos on sale and bought 10 of them. I wanted to put some of them in the freezer because we love to have them in smoothies. To freeze them, cut the mango into small pieces or slices and put the pieces on a tray first. Place that tray in the freezer, this is called flash freezing. It allows each piece to freeze individually so you don’t have a giant chunk of mango in your freezer.
Once they are frozen, transfer them to a reusable bag or glass container for long term storage. You can keep these frozen mangos for up to a year!
Easy Mango Smoothie Recipe
- Mango (fresh or frozen), to taste
- Spinach (fresh or frozen)
- Milk (any kind)
- Berries of your choice (optional), to taste
- Purée in a blender until smooth and enjoy!
Did you know you can make an easy mango smoothie? I use coconut milk which is shelf stable so it is something that we always have on hand. I use frozen mango as well as frozen spinach. Spinach is another item that I keep in the freezer in a reusable bag. This means that whenever a recipe calls for it, I have some. You could also add in other frozen berries that you might have on hand for extra flavor. Having everything on hand means we can make a mango smoothie anytime!
These are a few of the tricks that I teach in my course, The Grocery Solution. Having a well-stocked pantry and freezer allows me to be able to make almost anything and helps me to spread out my grocery shopping trips to every three weeks.
Mangos are one of the over 50 items that I talk about in my bestselling eBooks, I Bought It, Now What? If you want to learn how to wash and store other produce items, be sure to check out the books on my website.
This Fall I’ll be making a mango salsa so be on the lookout for that recipe coming soon on social media!
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