Sweet and Sour Summer Drink with Green Mangoes

On a hot summer day, there is nothing  quite as refreshing as an ice-cold beverage that hits both sweet and sour notes. There is the basic lemonade and its variants, of course.   In the land of perpetual heat and sun that is coastal Maharashtra, in addition to the lemonade, or nimboo pani, there is punhe’.

Punhe’ is a special summer time treat  made with unripe green mangoes available only in March and April.   Green mangoes are also used as a souring agent like tamarind or lime.  I drank punhe’ in copious amounts in my futile attempts to keep cool in the heat of May.  Recipe below the fold:

Punhe’