Does putting unripe mangoes on rice make it age faster?

[OursIsTheFury]

When I was little, my parents would place these green mangoes at raw rice and put it there for a week or so, saying it will "help them mature" and you can eat them afterwards. Is there any scientific explanation for this? There have been lots of things that older people have done that really didn't have any logical reason, so I'm curious, was it really necessary to place it in a bin of rice and hide it somewhere for a week? What do you guys think?

 

[Beverly]

Gee, i don't know @OursIsTheFury but thanks for the tip. I haven't heard of this way to ripen Mangoes. I've been told here to put them in a paper bag. The mango trees here are loaded with green mangos ready to ripen.

 

[rocky09]

When I was little, my parents would place these green mangoes at raw rice and put it there for a week or so, saying it will "help them mature" and you can eat them afterwards. Is there any scientific explanation for this? There have been lots of things that older people have done that really didn't have any logical reason, so I'm curious, was it really necessary to place it in a bin of rice and hide it somewhere for a week? What do you guys think?

In India, we use this technique. Some times, due to heavy wind, the Raw mango falls from the tree. We keep those in Rice bag (covered). So, the fruit will get enough moisture to get ripen.

 

[maxen57]

We do this for our papayas. It just makes the ethylene gas in fruits stay a little longer. We don't always use this method though because it's troublesome when we have to cook rice. Most of the time, the fruit sellers would wrap them in old newspapers for us. They said it will also ripen the fruit faster so I think that's another option.

 

[IcyBC]

I have seen my mom does this too with mangoes and avocados but I am not sure if the rice helps or just because they were cover up in a nice dark place. For me, I just kept the green mangoes and avocados on my counter top so I don't forget and they do get soft and ripe too.

 

[petesede]

I think the idea is that the rice takes away some of the surface moisture which keeps the fruit from growing mold until it ripens. I guess it is similar to the way people put a little rice in their salt shaker to take away moisture also. I am not sure that there is anything that the rice would do to make it ripen faster, I think it just helps prevent mold.