Poached Mango in Zobo Ginger Syrup

Poached Mango in Zobo Ginger Syrup

Mango season is here and there are a lot of creative ideas around this fruit. I try to maximize the use of fruits in season as they are firstly cheaper and also you will get very luscious ones. Poached Mango offers a nice fruit dessert and can be paired with Ice Cream or taken on its own. The combination of flavours of zobo (hibiscus), ginger, cloves and the  mangoes and date puree makes this dessert so refreshing, particularly when chilled.

As I grew up in Nigerian I had always wondered the whole purpose of a dessert after a meal. But as I started appreciating food I got to understand the sense in making the eating experience pleasurable beyond just feeding. Serving desserts after a meal is one way of keeping the camaraderie on the dining table going on for some time. After all eating should not be a chore; it is something to be enjoyed. With the busy schedule of most of us we hardly find time to relax and enjoy food, we just eat. Enjoying the food comes with appreciating the flavours, textures, temperature, colours etc.

Talking of colours, when I had plated my Poached Mango in Zobo Ginger syrup and proceeded to eat I realised how beautiful to the eye the plate was with the strong velvety burgundy and yellow colour set on a white plate.

Mangoes can also be enjoyed by simply sprinkling black peppers and pepper flakes on chilled fresh mangoes

2 cups Peeled Mango flesh cut in cubes

1 1/2  cups Zobo liquid

1 tablespoon fresh Ginger strips

4 pieces Clove

2-4 cubes sugar or 1 tablespoon Honey

4 table spoons Date purée.

1. In a pot add zobo, juice and some crushed cloves in muslin cloth and bring to boil for about 5-7 minutes.

2. The next step is to add ginger slices, sugar or honey and the mango cubes and continue cooking for about 5 minutes or until the liquid just starts to thicken a bit.

3. Take off the fire, plate and chill and serve as dessert

4. To plate, place some date purée on the plate and set the mango cubes and ginger strips on the date, plate and serve. Please check my previous post on date purée to how this is made.

1. It is a  good idea to plate the dessert whilst hot . The sugar or syrup will be too sticky when cold and therefore make plating more difficult.

2. When boiling zobo, I opt for non-stick pots . Zobo tends to act on aluminum pots and take on  the metallic taste.