Mango tierno con Alguashte (Green mango with Algushte)

Mango tierno is one of the most popular snacks in El Salvador. You can typically find it in a Mercado or being sold at most stoplights (at least in San Vicente) in plastic bags with salt, lime, spicy sauce and alguashte. Mango tierno, is young green mango that’s not ripped, it’s small and sour. So sour that you will hear people say "se me destemplan los dientes," which means to dull your teeth. Mango tierno is hard to find in the US and it's not until last year that I've started to find it at Latin grocery stores in Houston so when I do see it, I buy it!

The Algushte on the other hand is a seasoning made by toasting and grinding pumpkin seeds (or semillas de ayote), and mixing it with salt. This seasoning is used in many dishes but most commonly eaten with fruit such as, cucumber, jicama, jocote, orange and mango. You can make it with different pumpkin seeds and some people may add corn to the mix or that's what my cousin said! :)

If you're lucky to find mango tierno or any other fruit here's the recipe for Alguashte!

• 1 cup of pumpkin seeds

• 1 tsp of salt

1. Add the seeds in a sauce pan at medium heat. Move them around so that they don't burn, it takes about 3-5 mins to get them toasted until their brow color. Depending on the size of the pan, you may need to do this in batches to not crowd them and get an even toast.

2. Once the seeds are cooled completely, grind them in a blender, grinder or processor. Don't do this while hot because the powder will clump.

3. Once grinded pass it through a strainer to filter rough pieces.

4. Add salt and mix well.

5. Add it to any fruit or recipe that takes Algushte.

Since I found mangos tiernos, that's how I enjoyed my alguashte! The mangos need to be peeled and cut. You can cut around the seed or cut in half and remove it. Take the mango tierno and add lime, salt and alguashte on top! You won't regret it! Follow @flourishwithg for the video recipes on Instagram and TikTok!