A good mango

When I was a kid, a mango was an exotic fruit, and you had to travel to an exotic place (and be brave) to eat one. I'm sure there weren't any at the A&P grocery store in Quakertown, Pennsylvania! But like many other things, now they are easy to find and relatively cheap. In some parts of the world, papayas and mangoes are a diet staple, and a beloved part of the food culture.

Tropical fruit is so good, and one of the joys of waking up on vacation in Hawaii or Mexico is eating slices of big, sweet, red papayas with a squeeze of lime juice. With toast and strong coffee, it's a perfect tropical breakfast in my opinion. They never taste quite as good here.

When I was poking around the Internet, I was surprised to read how many healthful benefits (and various superstitions) are connected to eating mangoes and papayas. Most Americans wouldn't think of picking one up and eating it like an apple, but there are other tasty things to do with them.
This week, one of the nice ladies John works with gave us two deliciously sweet Champagne mangoes. I like to make a fresh mango "chutney" or "salsa" with these. The easiest way to peel the slippery things is to slice the fruit off the pit in thick chunks, then score and dice it off the skin.
The recipe is simple: small amounts of chopped jalapeño, onion, tomato and cilantro mixed with the diced mango, plus a squeeze of lemon or lime juice and salt/ pepper. Make it about an hour before dinner so the flavors mingle.
It is really good with pork chops or breaded chicken cutlets like these.