Orlando, Fla. — The National Mango Board (NMB) invites chefs and restaurant operators to keep menus on trend with flavorful, colorful and multipurpose mangos, taking advantage of buzz from the National Restaurant Association’s What’s Hot 2018 Culinary Forecast. This forecast names house-made condiments, artisan pickles and ethnic condiments—all applications in which mangos excel—as three of the top 10 food trends this year. Mangos also shine as part of Middle Eastern flavors (trend No. 38) and in Mediterranean flavor (a “perennial favorite”).
Sliced or diced, fresh mango integrates easily into condiments and encourages endless creativity. Recent mango menu research from Datassential noted that mango salsas are one of the most popular ways operators use the fruit as a condiment, with onequarter of appetizers, entrees or side with mango featuring it in this manner. Mango chutneys and vinaigrettes are also featured on menus, as are relishes—up 4.2 percent in popularity, according to Technomic’s MenuMonitor. The use of green mango in a relish or chutney can be an intriguing application, as the mature, but not yet ripe, fruit mimics the flavor and texture of a crisp, tart green apple.
Mango is a time-honored ingredient in ethnic condiments and cuisines. Operators are experimenting with chamoy, a pickled fruit sauce that originated in Mexico, and often feature mangos on their menus as a way of tying all three of these key trends (condiments, pickling and ethnic cuisines) together. Additionally, the tangy condiment amba (the Sanskrit word for mango) is becoming prevalent at Mediterranean and Middle Eastern restaurants. “Israeli Amba is excellent with so many things including, grilled and smoked proteins like chicken, pork and fish as well as grilled and smoked vegetables,” stated Chef Dave Woolley, chef consultant for the NMB. “It’s also great with noodle, rice and grain dishes. The beautiful color, slightly smooth and chunky texture, and slightly sweet and sour flavors from fresh mango with highly aromatic spices really can level up any dish as a fun and unique condiment.” Use Woolley’s recipe for Israeli Amba to add a condiment to your meu that hits on some of the top trends in today’s culinary scene.
For more recipes and everything you need to know for optimizing fresh mango on menus, visit mango.org/foodservice.
About the National Mango Board
The National Mango Board is an agriculture promotion group supported by assessments from both domestic and imported mangos. The board’s vision, to bring the world’s love of mangos to the U.S., was designed to drive awareness and consumption of fresh mangos in the U.S. marketplace. One cup of the superfruit mango contains 100 calories, 100% of daily vitamin C, 35% of daily vitamin A, 12% of daily fiber, and an amazing source of tropical flavor. Learn more at mango.org.
Source: National Mango Board