It’s mango season again in
South Florida. And that means Thai sour, unripe, green mangoes are available to satiate
my Asian treat tooth.
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| Florida grown sour, green, unripe mango and spicy shrimp paste, Copyright 2016 by Helen A Lockey |
I spent part of my childhood
in Thailand where I learned to love sour, spicy, salty food combinations. One
that I picked up, and kept, was eating sour green mangoes with spicy shrimp
paste.
Thai mangoes have several
names, depending on the nursery that grows them, but basically they have a
thin, wavy shape with green skin on the outside. Inside, their flesh ranges in
color from slightly pale green to yellow.
Their flavor ranges from
very tart lemon/granny smith apple taste to slightly tart. And their texture is
crisp and juicy.
The shrimp paste has a
strong fishy smell to it and is very spicy if eaten straight.
But sour, unripe, Thai
mangoes have a very high starch content which equalizes the heat of the chili
peppers in the shrimp paste.
I bought my mango at a
Lantana fruit stand and shrimp paste (Ginisang Bagoong brand) at Kabayan
Oriental Mart in Royal Palm Beach, Fla.
Both the salt and spice
bring out the flavors of the mango, but it’s really the spice that matters. I’ve
tried going non spicy but the flavors were not the same.
So if you are into
adventurous food pairings then check out this one. I think you will be amazed
at how well they go together.
