Beating the Heat with Mango Leather

Yes. You read that right. Leather! Today I am going to share my long cherished secret of beating the hot (and sometimes humid) weather with some leather.

Whoa! Don’t go jumping to conclusions just yet. I am well aware that leather is not meant for summer. Then again, I am not referring to the kind made from animal hide. What I am talking about is fruit leather – made from raw mangoes – more commonly known as Aam Papad in North India.

Aam papad has been my favourite since… well… forever. While I do occasionally enjoy the sweet, golden coloured block of aam papad, nothing beats the kala khatta (black, sweet-and-sour) aam papad with its tangy flavour that is almost an addiction for me.

Knowing my love for it, my mother tried to make some at home last summer, and the results were surprisingly good, even though it took more than three days to dry under the fan and was still slightly moist by the end. (In all honesty, I didn’t have the patience to wait long enough for it to dry completely)

This year, now that we have the dehydrator, we decided to give it another shot and it turned out absolutely dry in only a few hours inside the dehydrator, just the way I love it. I even posted a picture on Instagram and Facebook, and many wrote in saying it looked delicious and was amazingly thin.

So, I ran a poll on Instastories and based on the vote count, here is the recipe by popular demand:

Ingredients:
Raw Mango – 1 kg
Water – 1 and a 1/2 cup
Sugar – 3/4 cup. You can add more as per taste.
Red Chilli Powder – 1/2 tsp
Garam Masala – 3 tsp
Black Salt – 2 and a 1/2 tsp

Instructions:
1. Add water to the mango and boil till they are soft.

2. Allow mixture to cool, then grind in a mixie.

3. Add sugar and other spices and cook till the paste becomes thick.

4. Line a tray or thali (or any other flat surface) with a plastic sheet.

5. Smear a thin layer of ghee and pour the aam papad mixture on it in an even layer.

6. Allow to dry in the sun for 2-3 days.

7. Peel off the aam papad layer, cut it in narrow strips or pieces and store in an airtight container either folded or as rollups.

As you can see, the recipe is fairly simple and easy to make. So go on, give it a try and share your results of this delicious mango fruit-leather. There are only a few months when you can make it to last you the year.

Oh… and Happy Mango Season! 🙂

Picture Source: aquamarineflavours.wordpress.com

 

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