Episode 2 -

The Juice of Mango Clichés

To speak about Indian mangoes may be cliché, but because Indians never seem to tire of the subject, there’s always some juice. London-based writer, Nikesh Shukla, will humorously tell us how to devour one correctly – a skill most South Asians seem to inherently possess – while halfway justifying why our obsession for the fruit can and should live on. A conversation with food historian Vikram Doctor follows as he talks about the colonial legacy that underpins this obsession, and the parochialism that most Indians adopt as they cultivate their specific mango fetishes. Meher concludes in a kitchen with a Delhi-based pastry chef, Ruchi Vaish, who turns herself in as a Mango Obsessive. For her, mango season is the very best. 

In this episode of Bad Table Manners, Meher chats with:

• Nikesh Shukla, a London-based writer. He is the author of Brown Baby: A Memoir of Race, Family and Home.

• Vikram Doctor, food writer and host of The Real Food podcast. 

• Ruchi Vaish, pastry chef and owner of In The Know Artisan Kitchen in New Delhi.

Here are some highlights:

How to Eat a Mango Properly

• Nikesh outlines his rules for how to eat a mango, adapted from his piece in The Guardian:

1. Hold the mango. Press it to your cheek.

2. Squeeze it to pulverize the flesh, but don’t break the skin.

3. Tear a small strip of the skin off. Squeeze the flesh into your mouth

4. When the skin is deflated, tear it off.

5. Suck the flesh from the stone.

Mango in Literature

• Nikesh tells a story about Salman Rushdie advising a fellow writer to never write about mangoes.

• There’s a certain Western gaze that writers of the diaspora pander to when writing about mangoes. This isn’t necessarily a detriment, Nikesh explains, because in the West, there isn’t really a canon for what it means to be a contemporary person of South Asian origin. 

The Alphonso Mango

• Called the “king of kings,” the Alphonso mango is a favorite, with brand name recognition and a beloved reputation.

• Vikram thinks that the real tragedy of Indian mango obsession is that a parochial attitude toward one variety of mango over another restricts knowledge of other equally good mangoes from other parts of the country.

Is Mango Parochialism Political?

• Indians tend to be most comfortable within their own communities, Vikram agrees, and mangoes fall into that ethos. Those that are grown locally have preference. More practically, however, mangoes—and fruit in general—are expensive and are seen as a discretionary, rather than essential, purchase. Indians are thus more likely to spend a lot of money on a fruit that they’re familiar with.

• In the past two years especially, due to the pandemic, there have been increases in inflation and decreases in income, which has drastically impacted what people are willing to spend on fruit. As a consequence, fruit is dropping out of Indian diets, which Vikram says is a real problem. 

Mango Pickle

• British colonists really took to mango pickle, Vikram explains, so much so that it has become a key ingredient in British cuisine. For example, the recipe for coronation chicken, served first at Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in the 1950s, calls for a sauce of mango pickle and mayonnaise. 

Income Hanging from a Tree

• Fetishization and obsession with mangoes puts enormous pressure on growers. Growers will sometimes pick the mangoes early to avoid damage from predators or monsoons, and then artificially ripen them, often through calcium carbide, which flattens their flavor. 

• Vikram clarifies that the main concern about the carcinogenic factors of calcium carbide is for the workers handling the mangoes; there is very little to no evidence, he says, that the calcium carbide causes cancer in consumers. But it does put workers handling the mangoes at risk for cancer.

Tommy Atkins Mango

• The Tommy Atkins mango was developed in the United States and is marketed as a low-sugar variety compared to other mangoes. Vikram discusses the pros and cons of this variety being planted in India, particularly for people afflicted with diabetes and other health complications.

In the Kitchen with Ruchi

• Ruchi makes Meher a mango cheesecake with a “real serious mango punch.” She puts mango slices on top of the cheesecake, but also folds mango into the cheesecake base.

• If you’re worried about the fat content: “Give up everything else to make room for the mango. Do anything for the mango,” Ruchi says.

Mango Cream Cheese Cake

By: Ruchi Vaish

From: Bad Table Manners, Episode 2

Ingredients

*All ingredients should be at room temperature

For biscuit base:

100g unsalted butter, melted

250g digestive biscuits, crushed

For cake:

225g cream cheese

100g sugar

25g freshly squeezed lemon juice

1½ tsp (3g) vanilla

2 whole eggs

200g sour cream

5 gms cornstarch or corn flour

1 Alphonso or Langra mango, cubed

For decoration:

1 Alphonso or Langra mango, sliced

Crushed pistachios

A few sprigs of mint leaves

Directions

1. Grease the sides of a 7-inch springform pan. Put butter paper (parchment paper) on the base of the removable tin so that when you remove the cheesecake, it will be easy to pull the tin from the biscuit base. Wrap the pan with foil to keep it watertight.

2. For biscuit base: Stir together the melted butter and crushed biscuits. Press firmly into the bottom of the springform pan. Put it in the fridge to set the biscuit base.

3. For cake: In a large mixing bowl beat the cream cheese and sugar until very smooth (about 3 minutes), preferably with a whisk beater.

4. Beat in the cornstarch. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides until smooth.

5. Add the lemon juice, vanilla, and salt and beat until incorporated. Beat in the sour cream until just blended. Fold in the cubed mango.

6. Pour the batter into the springform pan and set it in a larger pan. Surround the springform with 1 inch of very hot water. The water bath must not be higher than the springform or it will slow down baking.

7. Bake for 35 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. Turn off the oven without opening the door and let cool for 1 hour. Remove to a rack and cool to room temperature, about 1 hour.

8. To unmold: Have ready a serving plate and a flat plate at least 8 inches in diameter, covered with plastic wrap. Move the pan over a heated burner for 15 seconds. Wipe the sides of the pan with a hot, damp towel.

9. Run a thin metal spatula around the sides of the cake and release the sides of the springform pan. Place the plastic-wrapped plate on top and invert. Remove the bottom of the pan and the parchment. Reinvert onto the serving plate and use a small metal spatula to smooth the sides. Refrigerate for at least 4-5 hours, preferably overnight.

10. Before serving, decorate the top of the cake with mango slices, crushed pistachios, and mint leaves.