Summer Memories | Raw Mango | Aam Panna | Kairi Panha

It's that time of the year when the dry and dust-laden, much dreaded ‘loo‘ or hot summer winds, sweep across the plains of North India. Summer becomes intolerable at times, with ‘fry eggs on the sidewalk‘ like temperature threatening the very existence! Then comes along some of the best fruits, nature has to offer - Phalsa, Bael, Water-Melon, Litchi, Apricot, Plum, Peach, and of course Mango topping the charts and life becomes worthwhile again!

One of the perks of living in a tropical country like India is the opportunity to indulge in yummy thirst-quenchers prepared from a slew of summer favorites!

Summer of 2020 is yet to witness soaring temperatures but with our mango tree laden with fruits, my memory loves to traverse through the kachchi-kairi days of the 70s & 80s. I know I am obsessed with my childhood stories, but this is what brings that smile, in my recipes, writings, and blog posts!

The new session in Delhi starts April onwards and with the new session, summers are announced.
During our school days, we used to carry a large milton bottle full of cold water and that used to be our day’s respite from the heat. We would come home walking back from the bus stop, and mom would keep a large glass of a tangy sweet aam-panna ready. That's my memory of AAM PANNA! The house used to fill up with the aroma of raw mango, and freshly roasted jeera, as my mom preferred to do things from scratch every single time.

Talking of memories, 'my daily morning walk' seems like a distant memory now. But more than my walk, I miss buying fresh veggies and fruits on my way back, all that haggling with the fruit vendor, his instant slicing through the fruit on my slightest doubt on its sweetness or freshness, his coaxing me into buying more than I require with the phrased remark, "aapke liye khaas alag nikaal kar rakha hai!" (have kept aside few best pieces especially for you) Yes, I'm missing all of it!

With pandemic scare being paramount in everyone's mind, no one knows, when life will start walking its normal course. Not wanting to worry about future; more often than not, I find myself, diving into my nostalgic past, before the millennium, the days when mom used to prepare earthy, healthy yet lip-smacking drinks that were kissed with secret recipes, blended with overdose of love and topped with immense care!
When at the advent of summers, she would store pulp of phalsa or raw mango or plum in glass jars and serve fresh, tangy homemade summer coolers as opposed to today's chilled aerated ones, to guests and family throughout the day. There used to be phalsa sherbet, bael sherbet, kokum juice, nimbu paani but nothing would spell relief quite like the sensation of sipping on cool khatta-meetha kairi ka panna, a drink made from green (raw) mangoes, spiced with black salt, cumin powder, and fresh mint. 

Kachchi kairi, or raw mango, is etched in all of our summer memories, as strongly as are the scorching winds, the uncomfortable heat, the relentless Sun or the street vendors selling pieces of kachcha aam cropping up here and there, offering passers-by a temporary respite from the sweltering heat.

We all love to munch on raw mango and drink its juice because it's delicious, and it tastes of nostalgia but there's a reason our mothers always kept stock in the fridge and fed us kairi pickle during the summers-?
Aam Panna finds its mention in the Ayurvedic texts as a great thirst-quencher. As per Ayurvedic principles, heat during the summer causes variations in vaatha (lethargy) and kapha (phelgm) and subsides jataraagni (the fire that induces hunger) which leads to loss of appetite. The ingredients in Aam ka Panna, which act as a coolant in hot sweltering summer, are believed to counteract such elements and rejuvenate mind and body. 

Today, I share with you the classic 'aam-panna' recipe from my mom's kitchen and inspired by #ChefRanveerBrar, the slight tweaks, I gave to mine!

Abounding in flavor, subtlety, and simplicity are the cornerstones of all of my mom's recipes.

From my mom's kitchen:

• 500 gms raw mango(ambi/kairi)

• 300 gms or 1.5 cups sugar

• few sprigs of fresh mint leaves

• 2 tsp roasted cumin seeds

• black salt as per taste

• 7-8 black peppercorns

• salt to taste

• lemon juice if required

Method:

• Wash nicely raw mangoes and put in a pan filled with water to boil. It will take around 30-40 minutes for the pulp to soften. The skin will lose its green color and get a light yellow color once the pulp softens. You can also use a pressure cooker to cook mangoes. It will shorten the cooking time. Check after 2 whistles if the mangoes are cooked.

• Take out the mangoes from water, and when they are cool enough to handle peel off the skin and take out the pulp in a bowl.

• Transfer the pulp to the mixer, add sugar, mint leaves, black peppercorns, black salt, and blitz. Add lemon juice only if needed to adjust the tanginess.

• Add roasted and crushed cumin seeds.

• Let it cool down completely and store in a glass jar. Refrigerate.

• To make refreshing aam-panna, take 3/4 part water and 1/4 part aam-panna concentrate, or adjust the pulp as per your taste. Add ice cubes, fresh chopped mint leaves, freshly roasted and crushed cumin seeds and serve chilled. 

• You can refrigerate and store this pulp for almost a fortnight. 

Chef Ranveer Brar's Recipe-

Ingredients:
5 medium-size raw mango
2 cups water
salt to taste
1 tbsp Fennel seeds
1 inch ginger peeled and sliced
1⅓ cups sugar
a handful of mint leaves
For Masala:
1 tbsp cumin seeds
2-3 green cardamom pods
8-10 black peppercorns
salt to taste

Process:
In a pressure cooker, add raw mangoes and pour 2 cups of water. Cover and pressure cook for 2-3 whistles or until mangoes are cooked well. Cool completely, and peel the skin of mangoes. Also, scrape the pulp of mango making sure the skin has separated.
For intense flavor, roast the mangoes till their skin is charred. Let them cool down and scrape out the pulp.
Transfer the mango pulp into a bowl and add ginger.
In a separate bowl, add fennel seeds and water and let it soak for a few minutes.
 
For Masala:
In a pan, add cumin seeds, green cardamom pods, black peppercorns, and salt to taste and dry roast them well.
Once it's cooled down, transfer into a grinder jar and grind into a fine powder. In the same jar, add raw mango pulp, ginger, soaked fennel seeds and grind into a smooth paste.
 Add sugar, mint leaves, and a few ice cubes and grind into a smooth paste.
 To serve, in a tall glass take a spoonful of aam panna concentrate and add a few ice cubes. pour in ice-cold water and mix well.
Finally, enjoy aam panna garnished with fresh mint leaves.

While the mango last only for 3-4 months, its memories remain forever. So, enjoy the mango season whilst it’s still here or before they are all gone but let’s join in a small initiative to restore the fast depleting ecological balance, by planting a mango seed and contribute towards making the Earth greener & more sustainable for living!