Spicy Mango Salad with Rocket

Spicy chilli & mango salad is a wonderfully simple & delicious side salad that combines sweet & sour flavours with peppery rocket or arugula.

It’s not only easy but it’s also a super quick recipe coming together in well under 20 minutes if you need it to.

Chilli and Mango Side Salad.

I love cooking with mango. I often caramalise it to add a trace of bitterness as I do in this chicken and mango salad or this millet and mango salad.

But here we go “nekid” and run with the pure sweetness of mango.

That sweetness is offset by beautifully sharp lime, given a big punch of heat with some fresh chilli.

We finish this spicy mango salad with peppery rocket, arugula for my American visitors, sharp & sweet red onion, and creamy toasted pine nuts.

It really is the perfect all year round pick me up sunny side dish!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you prepare a Mango?

1. Begin by laying the mango on a chopping board with one of the ends facing you.
2. Roll the mango through 90 degrees keeping the end facing you, if you let go the mango will fall over. This will ensure that the tall and narrow seed is vertical.
3. The seed is around 2cm (3/4 inch) thick, so take two slices from each side of the mango leaving the seed section in the middle.
4. Score each slice of mango through to the skin taking care not to cut through. You can do this as thickly or as thinly as you like. If you score in a crosshatch pattern you will get dice or diamonds.
5. Take a spoon and slide it between the flesh and the skin and scoop out the flesh and you are done.
   
   I’ve added a video below the recipe for those that prefer visual instruction.

What type of chilli should I use?

I personally use fresh cayenne pepper for this recipe. You should use a chilli that you can tolerate the heat from.

Tolerance to capsaicin is incredibly personal and one person’s raging inferno is another person’s mild tickle. For that reason alone you should use your own judgement.

How do you tell if a mango is ripe?

As with most fruits the answer is to give it a gentle squeeze. It should yield to the squeeze but not be ‘squidgy’!

Pine nuts are expensive, is there another option?

They are indeed a costly item and we only use a small amount here as they go a long way.

You can use other nuts or seeds. Slivered almonds add much more of a crunch and a great flavour, chopped cashew nuts mirror the creamy texture of pine nuts but add more sweetness.

Serving Suggestions.

This simple side salad is fantastic alongside a whole host of types of food.

It is pictured above with jerk salmon fillets and below with some harissa halloumi kebabs! You will also find it in the pictures with my air fryer stuffed chicken breast recipe.

It is also particularly good served with fried food, something like sweetcorn and Prawn fritters or even these courgette fritters.

It would also be great served with these old-school fried chicken wings.

Rich meat and oily fish recipes also make a good match. For instance, pan-fried duck breast or this seared tuna steak with capers are the perfect main elements to serve with this salad.

Equipment Used

I only name-check brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But if you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.

• Stovetop.
• Small 20cm or 8″ frying pan.
• Jar for shaking the dressing. You could use a whisk and a bowl.
• Kitchen knife.
• Chopping board.
• Spoon for removing mangon flesh.
• Salad bowl.
• Weighing scales and or measuring cups and spoons.