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Monday, April 30, 2012

Mangos and Other Miscellany

I've been feeling sentimental today, and I just realized why. Mangos. Or mangoes, if you prefer. (Don't worry, I consulted Google and either spelling is acceptable.) They are on sale at both Publix and Kroger this week, which means two things - they must be in season somewhere, and I stocked up.

Some background information - My dad is from Mexico City. He moved to the U.S. to attend grad school at Penn State, where he met my mom, got married, and settled in to a new life filled with gringos and snow. Oh, and two adorable children, of course. Growing up, this meant many trips to Mexico to visit my dad's family. Being a notoriously picky eater as a child, I spent many of these visits to the motherland sustaining myself on only mangos and a delicious salted beef called cecina. (The story has a happy ending. I later came to my senses and now joyfully indulge in all food. All of it.)

Never heard of cecina? Understandable. It is most likely illegal to sell in the United States since preparing it involves laying the thinly sliced and heavily salted meat out in the sun for hours. If you want to learn more - and who wouldn't - check out the webpage I published about cecina for a project in college. That's right. A webpage about beef. You're welcome.

Anyway, since mangos were pretty much the only thing I would eat, my grandparents were kind enough to prepare them for me often. One of my favorite childhood memories is eating breakfast with my grandfather (who my brother and I called "Guty") in the backyard of their home in Cocoyoc, my bare feet tapping on the red tiles of the patio, sweet mango juice dripping down my arms, while we sat peacefully and listened to the crows of the rooster in a neighboring yard.

I have many wonderful memories of summers spent in Mexico with my family - not all of them involving mangos - but the fact is, after all these years, the taste and smell of a mango takes me right back to those times.

In the spirit of this mango love, I decided to share a recipe we made tonight from the bounty I purchased yesterday.


Mango Glazed Pork Chops

Ingredients
  • 4 center cut pork rib chops
  • 2 mangos
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons Cayenne pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt
Directions
  1. Cut, then puree mangos
  2. Mix mango puree, honey, lime juice, cayenne pepper and salt
  3. Pour half of mixture over pork chops and marinate for at least 30 minutes
  4. Sear pork chops for 1 minute on each side over high heat
  5. Grill at medium high heat for 5 to 7 minutes on each side
  6. Top with remaining glaze
Serves 4

In honor of the true randomness of these thoughts tonight, I am linking up with Carissa at Lowercase Letters. Yes, this is my first link up. Yes, I am quite excited about it.

  miscellany monday at lowercase letters

Alright y'all... Have a happy Monday. And go eat some mangos.


1 comment:

  1. The recipe sound delicious! I'll become vegan after I have it. I bought a sale mango, but need to go back for the rest of ingredients. Or you can bring me leftovers.

    Julie

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