Did you know that mangoes, considered the king of fruits has been cultivated for at least 5000 ears? That’s a longtime, isn’t it?Interestingly, in India, mango was once considered a sacred fruit. It was said that the Buddha was presented with a grove of mangoes to provide him with a shady refuge. The best thing about this fruit is that it’s tasty and extremely good for your health with large doses of Vitamin A and C.So how to have the mangoes? Most say they like to have it raw and either slice it, dice it, or slurp it.
While the sun drains us of energy it makes the mangoes ripe, fresh and juicy! The season begins in mid March and goes upto the end of June. All you need is the tropical climate with no rains during the harvest.
Alphonso is the king among the mangoes.
The
most cherished variety of
mangoes is the Alphonso. Popular
belief says that the fruit got its name
after Afonso de Albuquerque, the
Portuguese conqueror in the 15th century
who used to bring the fruit from Latin
America. But did it really have any connection
to Albuquerque? Was it a Brazilian breed?
Here’s how the story goes. A priest who was an
avid gardener started trying out grafting experiments
with various varieties of mangoes
in India. The Portuguese took some of these
saplings to Brazil. One of the experimental
grafts in Brazil provided a perfect fruit, the
variety eventually baptised Affonse. This
came back to India in the 16th or 17th century.
So the connection to the governor is
fictional. Historian Niccolo Manucci’s
writing in the 17th century clearly says
that the names were given after people
who created them.
The
International Mango Festival held annually in
Delhi is a two-day festival showcasing mangoes
since 1987. Organised by the Delhi
Tourism and Transportation Development
Corporation (DTTDC) in collaboration with
the Agricultural and Processed Food Products
Export Development Authority, the National
Horticultural Board and the New Delhi
Municipal Council, the festival is held in the
Talkatora Indoor Stadium in the recent past.
More than 50 mango growers from across
the country, mainly from Uttar Pradesh,
Bihar, Gujarat are given an interactive platform
to present the ‘king of fruits’. There are
quizzes and competitions about the huge variety
of the fruit and ways in which it can be
used in a cuisine. Mango based products like
jams, pickles make their appearance in the
festival. There is also a prize given for the
biggest mango.
MANGO DIPLOMACY
This mango frenzy is not only confined to the
India. Indian mangoes are exported in the
world. However, for many years since the
mid-1980’s, USA had banned the import of
Indian mangoes for the fear of fruit flies and
mango lovers in the US were deprived of
their favourite fruit. All this changed in 2006
when President Bush initiated the Mango
diplomacy with India while working out a nuclear
deal. These succulent and delicious
mangoes once again are enjoyed in the US.
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