4 ways to ripen mangoes quickly and naturally at home

There are two kinds of people in summer: those who wait patiently for mangoes to ripen, and those who poke them every three hours. If you belong to the second category, here are four smart, natural ways to ripen mangoes at home without any chemicals or shortcuts.

The paper bag trick

Place the mangoes inside a paper bag and loosely fold the top. The trapped ethylene gas speeds up ripening naturally. Add a banana if you’re in a hurry, there’s nothing a banana can’t help with.

Bury them in rice

An old-school Indian kitchen hack that still works best. Put the mangoes in a container of uncooked rice. The grains help trap heat and ethylene, ripening the fruit evenly and quickly.

Let room temperature do the work

Sometimes the best method is doing absolutely nothing. Keep mangoes on the kitchen counter, away from direct sunlight, and let nature handle the rest. Slow ripening usually means better flavour.

Wrap them in a cotton cloth or newspaper

Wrap each mango loosely in a breathable cloth or newspaper and store in a warm corner. This creates a gentle cocoon of warmth and gas circulation that helps the fruit soften naturally.

A ripe mango should smell sweet near the stem and yield slightly to pressure but not collapse. And whatever you do, don’t refrigerate unripe mangoes. Cold air kills the ripening process faster than anything else.