Mango in a Sweet Sauce - Mangai Pachadi

Sleep-ins, cousins, playing in the sun, sun burns and mangoes - no summer was complete without these. Raw or ripe, mangoes were a part of our everyday lunch during the summer months, in Chennai. Curd rice and golden, ripe mangoes were a favorite as it meant effortless cooking for my mom, and juicy sweetness for us.
Manga pachadi is made by cooking raw, tangy mangoes in a sweet jaggery sauce. The juxtaposition of the sharp mangoes against the cloying sweetness of jaggery is quite genius.

Mango in jaggery sauce - mangai pachadi

Ingredients:

• Raw mango - 2
• jaggery / vellum , powdered - 1 cup, packed
• green chili - 2
• turmeric powder - 1 tsp
• cilantro, for garnish

Tempering:

• kadalai paruppu / broken channa dal - 1 tbsp
• mustard seeds - 1 tsp
• cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• curry leaves - 1 or 2 sprigs
• oil, for sauteing

Method:

1. Wash and quarter the mangoes. Leave the skin on. I usually cut once on either side of the pit/seed/stone and then cut the side in half. Do not discard the seed.
2. In a wide mouthed saute pan,  add the mangoes, green chilies slit in half and turmeric powder. Add just enough water to cover the mangoes halfway. Cook covered until the mangoes turn soft. Watch out for water boiling over. This should take anywhere between 10 and 15 minutes.
3. If needed, turn the mango pieces a couple of times so all sides are cooked in the water.
4. While the mangoes are cooking, heat powdered jaggery in 2 tbsp of water . If needed, add just enough water to avoid burning. Heat this on low heat until the jaggery has melted.
5. Remove the jaggery water from fire and let cool.
6. When it has cooled, pour the jaggery water in to the mango pan, through a seive. This will help remove impurities, if any.
7. Cook until all water has evoprated and the mango pulp has congealed.
8. In a separate saute pan, heat oil for sauteing. When the oil is ready, add kadalai paruppu. Fry this in the oil until it turns golden brown. Now add cumin and mustard seeds. 
9. When the seeds splatter, add washed and dried curry leaves. If you are using asafetida, add it now. Add this mixture to the mango pachaadi,
10. Remove from fire and serve with sambar rice or curd rice.