Aamras recipe

Aamras is a delicious mango dish popular in Gujurat , Rajasthan and Maharashtra. Aam means mango and ras means juice. So this dish is fresh mango pulp. This recipe is honestly a must try for when the mango season hits India. It is common place in Indian homes during the summer months as a sweet treat after a main meal.

Unfortunately we can't get Indian mangoes very easily here in the Netherlands - we do find them in Indian supermarkets but they can be very expensive. What you can get is tinned Alphonso mango pulp - which saves the day when it comes to making Indian desserts such as this one! If you live in a country which has good, delicious & sweet mangoes - then you don't need to use mango pulp.

Traditionally aamras is served with puri - a classic Indian fried bread. I haven't yet posted the recipe for this, but once I do I will post the link here as well. I made this combinaton a few days ago and I have been wanting to have it again ever since. I don't often deep fry food in my house - just because I don't like the smell and its also not healthy to be having deep fried food all the time. But I hadn't had something like this in a while, and I thought why not. I had bought a tin of Alphonso mango pulp and it was just begging to be used in a dish like this!

There are several ways of making & flavouring aamras and depending on where you are in India - it would be flavoured with different spices or ingredients. In Maharashtra they would flavour aamras with cardamom powder. In Gujarat they would add ginger powder and ghee, whereas in Rajasthan they add a few saffron strands. I added both saffron & cardamom powder. This gave a delicious flavour to the final dish.

When making aamras, you can either mash the mango pulp by hand or use a blender. Mashing by hand gives a more fibrous & textured aamras. Sometimes milk is also added for an extra depth of flavour. The blended version is of course a lot smoother. I prefer the version without milk - this allows you to just enjoy the mangoes as is!

Ingredients
Serves 2

Flesh of 1 large ripe mango

250ml canned Alphonso mango pulp
1-2 tbsp sugar (or to taste depending on how sweet the mangoes are)
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
Pinch saffron strands, soaked in a few tsp of warm water

Method

In a stand blender, add the mango flesh, canned mango pulp & sugar. Blend until smooth. Alternatively you can use a bowl and a stick blender. Give the aamras a taste and see if you need to add some more sugar.
Add the cardamom powder and soaked saffron strands (include the tsp of water as well). Blend again.
Pour the aamras into a dish and serve with puris, as part of a thali, or as a sweet treat after some dal, sabzi and chapatis.

Recipes notes

If you have delicious ripe mangoes use 2 mangoes and omit the canned mango pulp.
If you like you can also add some nuts to your aamras - I added some finely chopped pistachios for an extra texture!

FAQs

Can you freeze aamras?
Aamras freezes really well for 2 months. Just place in a freezer-proof container and place flat in the freezer. Let it defrost normally at room temperature rather than defrosting it in the microwave before serving.

What do I serve with aamras?

Traditionally aamras is served with puri, but you can also have it just like that.