Aam Panna, is a popular beverage made from raw green mangoes in the hot summer months in North India. It is prepared using raw green mangoes, sugar and an assortment of spices. It’s a tasty and healthy beverage drunk cold which helps to fight against the effects of the intense Indian summer heat and is an effective remedy for heat exhaustion and heat stroke. It also quenches thirst and prevents the excessive loss of sodium chloride and iron during summer due to excessive sweating.

This drink is mainly consumed in the Northern part of the India and is considered beneficial in the treatment of gastro-intestinal disorders. It is a good source of vitamin B1 and B2 and contains sufficient quantity of niacin, and since it is prepared from raw mangoes it is an excellent source of vitamin C also. Aam Panna is also considered as a curative for blood disorders because of its high vitamin C content. It increases the elasticity of the blood vessels and helps in the formation of new blood cells. This drink is also considered as a tonic which increases body resistance against tuberculosis, anemia, cholera and dysentery.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aam_panna

Shivani remembers that Aam Panna was a drink served at lunch time in the summer at her mother’s house. It is still the practice today. According to her mother, it kept them safe from the effects of the hot summer winds which can get quite intense in the months of May and June in North India. When she came back from school and when her father came home for lunch from work, Aam Panna was served before eating lunch.

The memories of this delicious beverage have not been forgotten and Shivani replicates this recipe and makes Aam Panna the way her mother does. She still makes it for family and friends during summer and it is always appreciated for its deliciousness.

Raw mangoes and fresh mint are abundantly available in the summer in India. The combination of boiled raw mango pulp with sugar, salt, roasted ground cumin and the paste made from fresh mint leaves has a pleasant flavour and restorative qualities.

It is a very simple recipe yet so delicious that it’s made time and again. The raw green mangoes are boiled till their skin breaks open. Once this happens, the pot is taken off the fire.

Then she uses a trick her mother taught her, and she adds the sugar in the hot solution so that it melts quickly. She lets the mixture cool completely, then gently rubs the mango pulp off the seed and the peel.

The skin and the seed are disposed of and the pulp, sugar and the water it was boiled in is whisked with a hand-held electric whisk to break up the lumps and combine all the ingredients. A blender can also be used.

Salt, ground cumin and fresh green mint paste is added to the blended boiled mango pulp mixture. The end result is a beverage tasting in equal parts sweet, sour and minty with a good dose of roasted cumin powder.

In the recipe, she further shares some more simple tips and hopes whoever reads this recipe will try making it at least once, because that’s all it takes to get people hooked to making it time and again. You can make a large batch and once made, this mixture can be kept in the fridge and used over a few days, not that it lasts that long.

Aam Panna

Rejuvenative Raw Mango Drink

Ingredients ~

½ kg raw green mangoes
100 gms white sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground roasted cumin
2 bunches mint leaves, paste
1 lt. water

Method ~

1. Roast whole cumin in a dry pan. Shake it around so that it doesn’t burn. Once fragrant, take off the heat and leave to cool. Grind it into a powder in the spice or coffee blender.
2. Boil the raw green mangoes in water in a covered pan till the skin breaks and the mangoes feel soft and cooked. They will still be firm in shape.
3. Add sugar into the pan with the mangoes and water while it’s still hot to help the sugar melt. Don’t stir it.
4. When cool, gently rub the mango flesh off the skin and the seed. This is important or the pulp will become bitter. Discard the skin and the seed of the mango.
5. Hand blend the mango and sugar mix or use a jar blender.
6. Take fresh mint, pluck the leaves off the stems and grind the leaves in the blender. Do this only when ready to mix to the cool pulp mixture or the colour of the mint turns dark if kept for too long.
7. Add the ground mint paste, freshly ground roasted cumin, salt into the mango mixture. Stir all together and strain through a fine strainer or if you like bits of pulp do not strain.
8. Bottle it concentrated or dilute it to your taste and refrigerate. The taste should be sweet and sour with a good dose of mint. The green colour of mint is very appealing.

~ It can be stored in the refrigerator for a week . Serve it with lots of ice.