We’re officially in the heat of the summer, and with all of the events and gatherings that take place this season, one aspect we all look forward to is the flavorful food.
Fruit flavors tend to be popular in the summer months, and one of the top trending fruits being used in foods this season is mangos. Yelp’s June Trend Tracker looked at increases in searches from May 2024 vs. May 2023 to forecast the trends of the moment. One of those was “Mango Madness,” in which restaurants are finding creative ways to serve this sweet summer fruit. Searches on the platform for “mango dessert” are up 182 percent, “mango sticky rice” up 91 percent and “mango sago” up 78 percent.
Pinterest is another valuable destination for users to discover the hottest trends for the summer of 2024. This season, trending searches show that people are embracing a bold and fearless approach to showcasing their unique tastes.
According to the platform, this summer is all about new twists on staple, healthy summer ingredients. One of those is mangos, which are ripe for reinvention (including many Filipino desserts).
Trending searches for the ingredient in particular foods include:
- Mango float 3700%
- Mango tapioca +690%
- Mango sago +260%
- Mango chia seed pudding +210%
- Mango crepe +180%
So how do you as a foodservice professional make the most out of this trendy fruit? It all starts with selecting the right ones. The National Mango Board advises that you should focus on feel, not color. Mangos come in a variety of different colors so you can’t judge a mango by the peel. Pick up a mango and give it a soft squeeze with your hand. If the mango is slightly squishy, get out the knife and cutting board because it is ready to be enjoyed.
Now that they’re ready, you can maximize their flavor with the right pairings. Spanning global cuisines and spices, fresh mango provides inspiration. In sweet goods, excellent pairings include butterscotch, caramel, chocolate, honey, maple, mochi, risotto and sorbet. For cooked mangos, a suggested pairing is gianduja, a homogenous blend of chocolate and hazelnuts.
When heat is applied to a mango, the texture softens, the fibers break down and the flavor intensifies. Cooking with indirect heat, fresh ripe mango flavor is infused into a filling and holds its shape as a topping. This works especially well for baked goods. Cooking with direct heat will caramelize the sugars in the mango, which brings out its inherent sweetness in certain desserts.
Fresh mango desserts deliver on the sweet flavor profile most customers want at the end of a meal. Among the Board’s suggestions include Mango Crème Brûlée and Mango Mousse Trifle Cake.
