By Request

By Betty Shimabukuro

Wednesday, June 9, 1999

By Craig T. Kojima, Star-Bulletin
If you're lucky enough to have an abundance of
mangoes, there are wonderful treats you can prepare.

---

Take a crack
at mango seed

RACHEL Saito is hungry for mango seed, "the kind you find in crack seed stores," which makes this as good a time as any to address the annual onslaught of mangoes.

If you're lucky enough to have a fruitful tree, or friends who like to share, you may already be awash in mangoes and looking for ways to make use of them. Listed here are suggestions from some venerable island cookbooks, some of them no longer in print.

But first, a bit of history, from one of those cookbooks, "Fruits of Hawaii," by Carey D. Miller, Katherine Bazore and Mary Bartow, and published in 1955 by the University of Hawaii Press:

The first mango trees were brought to Hawaii from Manila in 1824 by a Capt. John Meek of the ship Kamehameha. Other varieties were imported in the decades that followed. Today's most popular types include the basic "common" mango, the upper scale Hayden, Chinese and Pirie.

Now to deal with Saito's request for the classic mango seed, cooked in a Chinese 5-spice blend, then dried in the sun. This recipe is credited to Mabel Ito, a Maui home economist. Chinese or common mangoes are suggested, as is Japanese rice vinegar.

Mango Strips

"Our Favorite Recipes, 50th Anniversary Edition,"
Maui Extension Homemakers' Council, 1997

8 cups green mango, peeled and cut in strips
2 tablespoons salt
6 tablespoons vinegar
1/2 teaspoon 5-spice
1/2 teaspoon licorice or anise
1/2 teaspoon red food coloring
1 tablespoon molasses (optional)

Sprinkle mangoes with salt, mix and soak overnight. Drain, using a cloth to squeeze out the liquid.

Combine remaining ingredients to make a syrup. Cook mangoes in the syrup for 15minutes, stirring constantly, especially toward the end as the syrup thickens.

Place strips in a single layer in a baking dish. Drizzle remaining syrup over the strips. Cover with net or a screen and dry in the sun one day, or use a food dehydrator.

Mango Freeze

"Fruits of Hawaii"

3-1/4 cups unsweetened mango sauce (see note)
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1-1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup sweetened whipped cream

Combine all ingredients except cream and mix well. Taste; add more sugar if needed. Freeze in an ice-cream freezer using 8 parts ice to 1 part salt. Top with whipped cream to serve. Makes 1 quart.

Note: To make mango sauce, cook 6 cups green or half-ripe mango slices in 1-1/2cups water until soft. Add 1-1/2 to 2 cups sugar and cook 5 minutes longer. Use as is or puree while hot.

Serve with meats or use in fillings or frozen desserts. Makes 1 quart.

Mango Bar

"Favorite Island Cookery, Book 1," Honpa Hongwanji Hawaii Betsuin, 1973

Crust:
2 blocks butter or margarine
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar

Filling
4 cups chopped mango
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
3 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in water

Topping:
2 cups oatmeal
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 block butter or margarine

Cut crust ingredients together until pea-sized lumps form. Press into a 9-by-13-inch pan.

Cook together filling ingredients except cornstarch until soft. Add cornstarch and cook until clear. Cool slightly; pour over crust.

Cut topping ingredients together until pea-sized lumps form. Sprinkle over filling. Bake at 350 degrees for about 50 minutes.

Mango Muffins

"Oldies But Goodies, Volume I," the Kamehameha Schools Alumni, 1983

2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
4 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup sugar
1 beaten egg
1 cup milk
1 cup chopped mango
Cinnamon-sugar

Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.

Cream butter and sugar; add egg. Beat well. Add milk and mango. Add dry ingredients and mix only to moisten. Drop into greased muffin pans or paper muffin cups. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar.

Bake at 400 degrees 25-30 minutes. Makes 1 dozen.

Nutritional information unavailable.

Send queries along with name and phone number to:
By Request, Honolulu Star-Bulletin Food Section,
P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu 96802.
Or send e-mail to features@starbulletin.com

Asterisk (*) after nutritional analyses in the Body & Soul section indicates calculations by Joannie Dobbs of Exploring New Concepts, a nutritional consulting firm.