Picking a mango requires a thoughtful approach to ensure the best flavor and texture while protecting the fruit from damage. The process starts with determining maturity. Understanding when to harvest and how to handle the fruit immediately after picking are the most significant factors for success. This attention to detail prevents degradation and allows the mango to reach its full potential during post-harvest ripening.
Assessing Readiness for Harvest
A mango must reach physiological maturity on the tree before it can be picked and ripened successfully. The most reliable visual cue for maturity is the “fullness of the shoulders.” This describes how the fruit body swells and rounds out near the stem end, forming a level platform. Immature mangoes have a sloped shoulder, while a mature mango appears plump and heart-shaped.
Color is often an unreliable indicator of readiness because the skin hue depends on the mango variety and sun exposure, not internal maturity. Many varieties are harvested while still predominantly green, even though they are fully mature. A better internal measure of maturity, though destructive, is that the flesh should have changed from white to a uniform pale yellow color when cut open. The presence of a white, waxy layer on the skin, known as pruina, also suggests the fruit is ready for harvest.
Techniques for Safe Removal
Removing the mango must be precise to avoid damaging the fruit and managing the caustic sap. Mangoes should never be simply pulled or twisted off the branch. This tears the stem and causes a gush of highly acidic latex sap to run down the skin, severely burning it and leaving black marks that reduce quality.
The correct method involves using sharp shears or a specialized picking pole to cut the stem, leaving one to two inches attached to the fruit. Harvesting high-up fruit requires a long-handled picking pole, which incorporates cutting blades and a collection basket. Picking with a long stem acts as a temporary plug, minimizing the immediate flow of sap onto the fruit’s surface.
Managing Sap and Post-Harvest Ripening
After the mango is cut, the acidic latex will inevitably drain from the severed stem. This caustic sap must be managed immediately to prevent it from contacting the fruit skin, which causes severe discoloration and damage. The process of “de-sapping” or “curing” involves placing the harvested mangoes stem-end down on a rack or flat surface to allow the sap to drip away naturally.
This draining period, which may last 20 to 30 minutes, ensures the initial surge of latex is fully expelled without touching the fruit. Some commercial operations use a neutralizing dip, such as a solution containing hydrated lime or a mild detergent, immediately after de-stemming to wash away residual sap. Once the sap has drained, the long stem should be trimmed closer to the fruit’s shoulder before moving the mangoes to a ripening location.
Optimal indoor ripening occurs at temperatures between 68 and 73.4 degrees Fahrenheit (20 to 23 degrees Celsius). To accelerate the natural ripening process, which is driven by the fruit’s production of ethylene gas, mangoes can be placed in a paper bag at room temperature.