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The Best Way to Peel a Mango

Mango with slices and lime on a cutting board with a knife.

For the longest time, I only ever did one thing with mangoes. I would cut off a chunk of the fruit, squeeze some lime over it, and eat it straight out of my hands as though it were a watermelon slice. I didn't do this because I loved devouring mango in the messiest way possible; I did it because I had no clue how to peel a mango. As such, I never cooked with mango: I ate it directly off the peel, or didn't eat it at all.

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It turns out that peeling a mango is actually incredibly easy once you know the right way(s). It's unlike peeling any other fruit, though: all you need is a knife and a glass.

Mango on a wooden cutting board with a knife and glass of water.

Cut a Slice of Mango

Start by cutting a clean slice of mango off of the pit. Ideally, you want to cut as close to the pit as possible, to get the largest amount of fruit. But don't be anal about this; you can always eat the leftover fruit off of the pit when you're done.

Sliced mango on a cutting board with a glass.

Crisscross the Fruit

Cut into the flesh of the mango slice multiple times in both directions, so that you have a checkerboard slice of mango. Try to cut deep into the fruit without puncturing the skin on the other side (you'll probably cut through the skin a few times, but that's not a big deal). You can also cut the fruit after peeling it, but I have found that cutting it first makes the peeling process easier.

Freshly sliced mango on a wooden cutting board next to a knife.

Scoop the Fruit with the Glass

Take your drinking glass in one hand, and your mango slice in the other, and scoop out the fruit as though the glass is a shovel. The key is to keep the glass as close to the peel as possible, so that you don't waste much mango.

Enjoy!

Now comes the best part: eat that delicious mango!

Freshly cut mango pieces and lime on a wooden cutting board with a knife.

Fun with Fruit Hacks

Now that you know how to cut a mango efficiently, why not learn 5 other lightning-fast tricks for peeling annoying fruits and veggies? Plus, it's important to make sure you know how to pick perfectly ripe fruit every time. Tomatoes are essential to many great recipes, so make life easier and learn how to cut them the right way.

Photos by Brady Klopfer/Food Hacks

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