Easy Mango Water

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Mango water is an easy and refreshing beverage made with ripe fruit, water, fresh lime juice, and a little bit of sweetener.

Mango water in a glass with a straw and limes.

The recipe is simple, lightly sweetened, fresh, and you only need 4 ingredients! Serve this fruity summertime beverage over ice or let it chill in the refrigerator. It’s quick, easy to make, and stores well. It can be made in advance for a party or just to be able to have a refreshing beverage on hand.

To make the mango water, blend ripe mangoes with water, fresh lime juice, and a sweetener. Super easy! Since you’re blending the whole fruit, the beverage will have a thicker texture compared to juice.

For more refreshing summer beverages try a pineapple slushie, lemon ginger and cucumber water, or a cucumber lemon mint water.

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Recipe features
Ingredient notes and substitutions
Tips
How to dice a mango
How to make mango water (mango agua fresca)
Storage
Frequently asked questions
Related recipes
Recipe
Comments

Recipe features

Easy to make using simple ingredients!
Refreshing tropical beverage for a hot summer day!
Easy to customize!

Ingredient notes and substitutions

The mango water recipe uses simple ingredients but please see the recipe card below for the exact measurements.

Mangoes - You’ll need about 2 ½ cups of diced fresh ripe mango to make this mango water. How many mangoes you’ll need depends on the size and variety of mango. Mangoes come in a wide variety, I tested with Kent (which is a larger green/red variety) and Honey (Ataulfo) (which is a smaller yellow one). For larger mangoes, I may get 1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups of mango flesh per mango, so you'll need about 2 large mangoes for the recipe. Small mangoes like Ataulfo, will produce less than that so you may need 4-5 small mangoes.

Frozen mango can be used but I do think fresh ripe mangoes were more flavorful in this agua fresca. Thaw it first before blending or you’ll have a slushie-like texture. You may need to adjust the water needed if you use thawed frozen mango, start with less and you can always add more if needed. For more mango recipes try mango oatmeal, mango overnight oats, or mango corn salsa.

Lime - Freshly squeezed lime juice is best to give the mango agua fresca a bright flavor.

Water - The water-to-mango ratio can be adjusted to suit your preference. Remember that the more water you add the more the mango flavor will be diluted. Coconut water can also be used.

Maple syrup - Maple syrup or agave syrup can be used. The amount needed should be adjusted based on your unique sweetness preference and how ripe the mangoes are. The flavor of mangoes will vary depending on their ripening stage from sour for unripe to naturally sweet for fully ripened.

If you want to make the mango water very sweet, you may want to use cane sugar instead of maple syrup since maple syrup has a distinct flavor.

Tips

This ratio of water to mango gives the beverage a texture that is in between a smoothie and juice. If you prefer a thinner consistency add more water, but it will dilute the mango flavor.
That being said, the recipe is very forgiving so feel free to add more water to thin out. This is by no means a traditional mango agua fresca recipe but inspired by it.
With Kent and Ataulfo mangoes I didn’t find it necessary to strain the mango water. If you use a stringy variety like Tommy Atkins then you may want to strain the water to remove some of the pulp or if it’s your preference. Use a fine mesh strainer and a spoon or silicone spatula to help push the blended mango through the strainer.
I use a high-speed blender. If your regular blender does not blend the mangoes well, you can try to strain it through a fine mesh strainer to remove some of the pulp.

How to dice a mango

Here are instructions on how to dice a mango, but since the recipe calls for blending the mango there is no need to be precise with the cuts.

Start by cutting off the two checks of the mango from the large pit in the middle of the mango. The cheeks are the wide sides along the big oblong pit. While running your knife down the sides of the mango if you hit something hard, that’s the pit. No big deal, just try to cut a little further out.
Take each mango slice and slice through the flesh vertically and horizontally creating squares. Slice to the skin of the mango but not through the skin.
Flip the cheek inside out and trim off the cubes with a paring knife or a spoon.
Carefully trim what’s left on the mango pit. Use the pit as a guide, start from the top, and move your knife down the length of the mango to trim it off. Then trim off the skin and dice the mango flesh.

How to make mango water (mango agua fresca)

Wash the produce, then dice the mango. Add the mango, water, and lime juice to a blender and blend until smooth.

Taste and add maple syrup to adjust for sweetness. I prefer the mango water not to be too sweet and enjoy the natural sweetness of ripe mangoes. So, I usually only add about 1 tablespoon of maple syrup but adjust to your preferred sweetness.

Mangoes and lime juice blended in a blender.

The amount of sweetener you add will also need to be adjusted if your mangoes are not fully ripe. Serve over ice or refrigerate for about 1 hour to chill.

Storage

Store for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Keep it in a container with a lid such as a mason jar. Storage longevity is based on the quality of the mangoes. It may separate during storage, shake the jar, or give a good stir before serving.

Mango water in a glass with a straw and sliced limes.

Frequently asked questions

How to ripen a mango?

An unripe mango will ripen on the counter at room temperature. To ripen a mango faster, put it in a brown paper bag. I like to add a ripe banana or even an onion to the bag to help the mango ripen faster. Roll up the end of the bag to close it.
Like avocados, how long it will take will vary depending on how much it needs to ripen. A ripe mango can then be stored in the refrigerator to slow the ripening process.

How to pick a ripe mango?

Focus on feeling to pick a ripe mango. It will give a little when pressed, but not too soft or mushy. An unripe mango will be firm when pressed. Avoid any with large indentations and bruises.