Iraqi · sauce/condiment

Amba (Fermented Green Mango and Fenugreek Pickle)

Amba (Fermented Green Mango and Fenugreek Pickle) reads sourness 6.9, allium 4.5 and salinity 3.9 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Iraqi sauce/condiment, about 79 hr 2 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

• Umami & Savory — 4.1 / 10
• Sweet & Fruity — 1.6 / 10
• Sour & Bright — 7.0 / 10
• Bitter & Earthy — 3.5 / 10
• Rich & Fat — 3.7 / 10
• Aromatic & Spice — 5.1 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Sourness 6.9 · Allium 4.5 · Salinity 3.9 · Heat 3.6 · Earthy 3.2 · Richness 3.2 · Warm Spice 3.0 · Umami 2.1 · Nutty 1.6 · Bitterness 1.6 · Sweetness 1.5 · Floral 0.8 · Fruity 0.6 · Herbaceous 0.5 · Citrus 0.5

What's in it (11)

• hard unripe green mangoes — 1000 g
• salt — 60 g
• ground fenugreek — 30 g
• turmeric — 30 g
• cumin — 15 g
• brown mustard seeds — 15 g
• chilli powder — 10 g
• garlic — 30 g
• sunflower oil — 184 g
• white vinegar — 120 g
• water — 300 g

Time & effort: about 79 hr 2 min (20 min active) · effort: medium

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 22.9 kcal, 1.1 g protein, 0.7 g fat, 3.4 g carbs

Dietary: Vegan — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (7 steps)

1. The mangoes must be rock hard and green — the sour, fibrous kind sold for pickling in South Asian and Middle Eastern shops. A ripe mango makes chutney, not amba.
2. Toss the mango pieces with the coarse salt in a bowl, cover with a cloth and leave in a warm place for 3 days, stirring once a day. They will give up a great deal of liquid and start to smell sharply fermented. Keep the brine.
3. Drain the mango, reserving the brine, and spread the pieces on a tray in strong sun for 6 hours to firm up, or in an oven at its lowest setting with the door ajar for 2 hours. This drying stops the finished amba being watery.
4. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat, add the crushed garlic and cook 40 seconds, then add the fenugreek, turmeric, cumin, ground mustard and chilli and cook 60 seconds only. Fenugreek burns fast and turns acrid; take it off the moment the kitchen fills with its smell.
5. Add the mango, the reserved brine, the vinegar and the water. Simmer 20 minutes, mashing about half the mango against the side of the pan, until the sauce is thick, ochre-yellow and coats a spoon while the remaining pieces still hold.
6. Cool completely, about 40 minutes, then bottle. The flavour keeps developing for a week and it keeps for months in the cold.
7. Serve on grilled fish, in a sandwich of kubba or falafel, or spooned over rice. It is pungent, sour and slightly funky — the fenugreek is meant to be loud.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

• Pupusas Revueltas con Curtido — Salvadoran
• Ethiopian Beet and Potato Salad — Ethiopian
• Southern Fried Chicken — Southern
• Buttermilk Fried Chicken — Southern
• Mchuzi wa Samaki (Swahili Fish Curry) — Swahili Coast

Keep reading: what sourness, allium, salinity mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.