Can you cook with Mango peels?

[star7bs]

Do not automatically write this off as a crazy question. I love mangos and I hate waste. There is always so much yummy pulp that no matter of scraping with teeth can remove. I am sure somewhere in the world some ingenious cooks have found ways to harness mango peels (hey, orange peels are turned into candies!) So....any ideas Chowhounds?

[carswell]

Also be aware that, if the fruit has been sprayed or otherwise treated with pesticides, fungicides, etc., the peel is likely to have the highest concentration of those potentially harmful compounds.

[Lenox637]

Mango is a relative of poison ivy. You can't even burn the wood safely.

[EmileJ]

now I know - I love mango skins and eat them all the time - but I am one of the 65%(?) who do not have a reaction to poison Ivy and can basically stand in it all day without ever knowing it.

[chowser]

Mango skin contains urushiol oil, which is the substance in poison ivy that causes rashes. If you're allergic to it, it could be dangerous but if you're not, you could eat it, though it doesn't taste good. People used to think that by eating small amounts of poison ivy, they'd build up an immunity to it but they'd get serious side effects, eg, tingling mouth, severe stomach cramps, vomitting, to death. People who are allergic to urushiol oil will react the same with mangoes (and cashews, brazilnuts, pistachios) and skin.

[Rasam]

Unripe (very tart) or raw mangoes are eaten peels and all (pickles, or cooked with dal, or in salads, etc.). Though I've never heard of people eating the peels of ripe mangoes, there seems to be a recipe here: http://kuali.com/recipes/viewrecipe.a...
that uses them. Do tell if it works....

[buttermilk]

I can confirm that mango peels are VERY unpleasant for people who are sensitive to poison ivy. I love mangos and I can touch the peels with my hands, but if the peel comes in contact with mouth and lips, I break out in a bad rash. No fun at all.

[luckyfatima]

I was thinking about the use of unripened green mango with peel in Indo-Pak chutneys and pickles as well, plus there is a whole genre of cuisine for "kairi" (that's Urdu/Hindi for the raw mango). I must have eaten pounds of the stuff in my lifetime and I never died. Perhaps the poison develops once the mangos mature.

Definately don't like the ripened mango peels though. I toss them out. I have never heard of them being used and I guess now after reading this thread I know why. They are bitter and yucky anyway.

[modthyrth]

Maybe so. I used to eat unripe mangoes pickled and sprinkled with salt until my lips would turn white. Of course, I'm also a person who can run through a field of poison ivy with no ill effect, so I'm not the best test case. ;-)

[sarah galvin]

Mango peels are inedible. Go to the mango website.

[modthyrth]

No no no no. While not strictly poisonous, the sap and peel of mangos are highly toxic. Most people (though not all) will react very badly. It's a dermatitis reaction very like poison ivy (with similar frequency, not everyone reacts)--but not something you want to risk.