Pakistani chefs reinvent mango recipes with barbecue, tiramisu and soda twists

KARACHI: Chef Imran Ahmed placed small cubes of mango onto wooden skewers and held them over a frying pan. He then ignited the pan with a handheld butane canister, grilling the fruit briefly before serving it to an eager customer. 

Mangoes are arguably the most popular fruit in Pakistan during summers. The fruit is consumed on its own, in desserts in various forms, and in beverages such as milkshakes, smoothies, lassi and mocktails owing to its inherent sweetness.

Several chefs from all over Karachi attended the ‘Mango Mania Family Festival 2026’ from July 4-5 at the Pakistan Maritime Museum to savor the taste of Pakistani mangoes. The event was organized by the social networking group, TCN Executive Forum, in collaboration with the museum.

Ahmed, a food consultant and chef, delighted customers with a recipe of his “Mango Barbecue” dish. 

“It’s a fusion recipe that you will find very delicious and flavorful,” he told Arab News on Saturday. 

The festival featured large crates of Sindhri, Chaunsa, Anwar Ratol and other Pakistani mango varieties placed on green baskets at food stalls for customers to examine closely. 

So how does Ahmed barbecue mangoes?

First, he sliced mangoes into large cubes and placed them on wooden barbecue sticks. He then placed them on a frying pan and used a butane canister to grill the fruit.

“Once it’s grilled, you can keep the mango cubes in a pan or platter before sprinkling the barbecue-flavored spices,” Ahmed said about the finishing touch.

“It’s ready to serve then.”

The chef used red chilli flakes, salt, oregano, lemon juice and some other ingredients that he wanted to be kept a secret, to make the Mango Barbecue dish. 

’INNOVATIVE RECIPES’

Iqra, another chef at the festival, opted for something simpler and popularly consumed. Being a baker by profession, she chose to make mango tiramisu to several attendees’ delight.

“For desserts, it is really important to prepare ingredients in advance and keep them in sight at the time of assembling,” Iqra, who gave only disclosed her first name, told Arab News. 

Iqra started off by crushing the biscuits and setting them aside at her stall. She then cut mangoes into small cubes before taking a huge bowl of chilled, whipped cream and adding icing sugar before beating it thoroughly. 

“You can beat dairy cream and use it as well,” she said. “If you like it sweeter, you can add Comelle or pub cheese.”

The chef advised people to use mint leaves in their mango tiramisu as the ingredient enhances the taste of every sweet dish. 

When it came to assembling the dessert, she took a small cup and placed crushed biscuits in it and added a layer of whipped cream to it.

She then added mango chunks to the cup and repeated the process. With the mint leaves finally added on top, the tiramisu was ready to be eaten. 

Syed Mansoob Hassan, who runs an accounting and audit firm, noted that initially there were only a few dishes that could be made out of mangoes in households. 

“The professionals coming up with formal culinary education are bringing in innovative recipes, and it felt so good to see them,” he said. 

Mahira Khan, a student of culinary arts, made mango soda drink. According to her, the drink was “refreshing and different” compared to mango beverages that are made with cream and milk.

Khan began by making a “jam-like” mango mixture using unripe and ripe mangoes for a bit of tanginess and added sugar to it. Next, she added two to three tablespoons of the purée in a glass and topped it with a soda drink.

She stirred it well before adding some more soda to it. 

Suha Abbas, an educationist, was delighted by the wide variety of mango dishes on display.

“[They created] something salty and something spicy as well,” she said. “So it’s a very good infusion of different recipes here with mangoes.”