Osteen mangoes are an elegant, elongated shape with a slight curve. This is quite a plump mango, usually with pale green skin going to pale yellow or mottled yellow as it ripens, but often with a heavy purple-red blush as well. The yellow flesh is sweet and satisfying with a fragrant flavour: very enjoyable and a cut above Kent or Keitt. There are some fibres attached to the thin stone which you will not notice so much if you slice away the two fleshy cheeks, which are succulent and soft when ripe.
Osteen are often cultivated under an organic regime in Spain.
Ripening: Look for a firm but obvious ‘give’ in the flesh. This is quite a dense mango, so has a heaviness to the feel. The background skin colour will be going pale yellow but may be mottled. Osteen bought in a hard state will generally take a week to 10 days to ripen in a fruit bowl.
Good Fruit Guide Rating: ****
For consumers, Osteen is a lovely choice of mango with its wonderful flavour and sweetness. Spain is the nearest mango-growing region to the UK, so growers can harvest fruit in a more mature state than many mangoes destined for our market.
Plump, sweet, tasty
Names: Osteen
Origin: Osteen originates from Merritt Island, Florida. The original tree was reported to be a seedling of Haden and was grown in 1935.
Grown in: Israel, Spain, Florida. Osteen is the main variety of mango grown in Spain.
In Spain, the growing area is the ‘sub-tropical’ coast of Andalucia.
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