If you are from the midwest you probably know exactly where I am going with this post. If you are not, you will likely be shocked and amazed to discover that a large portion of people in the United States (primarily in the midwest) refer to green bell peppers as mangos!
Yes, you read that correctly and yes I was just as confused as you are when I first learned this interesting bit of trivia a few weeks ago.
I mean, a bell pepper and a mango have almost nothing in common so how could you even confuse the two?
Let me begin by telling you how I first uncovered this little gem and then I will see if I can shed some light on the confusion.
During the last week in May I was visiting my Mom in Virginia. We were browsing a local antique store when we came across two metal boxes containing someones old handwritten recipe cards. The recipe cards appeared to range from the mid 80’s to about 2008. These weren’t ancient cards but there was something interesting about looking at someone else’s handwritten recipe cards. For me; my recipes are a very important part of my life so looking at them made me feel a little voyeuristic or risqué. Mom and I decided to buy them and brought them home to sort through.
There were some good looking recipes (Swedish Apple Pie), some familiar recipes (Broccoli Casserole) and even some really odd recipes (Sauerkraut Cake). But it wasn’t until I came across this recipe for Chicken Supreme that I became utterly confused.
The third ingredient listed in the recipe is 3 Tbsp. of chopped mango. Not only that, but the recipe tells you to saute the “mango” with onions and celery and add mushroom soup to it! EWWWWW! I read and reread the recipe and could not make any sense of why or HOW mango would make any sense in this recipe. Completely lost I showed the recipe to my mom.
She laughed and said, “Just last week one of my friends said something to me about some people calling green bell peppers mangos so I bet it really means bell peppers!”
Me, “Surely not!”
Well we did what normal people do when they don’t know something. We Googled it!
Low and behold, it’s true! Many people in the midwest refer to green bell peppers as mangos. But why? And do they know there is a difference between bell peppers and mangos? When they go to the grocery store and ask the clerk where to find the mangos are they taken to the pepper display? There were so many unanswered questions so we delved even deeper into Google! Here are our findings:
Who calls Green Bell Peppers Mangos?
Primarily older people from Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri.
Where did this originate?
It seems to have originated in the 1870’s with coal miners in eastern Pennsylvania.
What is a mango?
It is a fruit that is indigenous to Southeast Asia and India.
What is a green pepper?
Although technically a fruit it is most commonly referred to as a vegetable and is indigenous to Mexico, Central American and northern South America. It was named after the “peppercorn” by Christopher Columbus. The peppercorn was a newly popular spice in Europe and many things with a spicy flavor were generically referred to as peppers.
So why was the green pepper called a mango?
Apparently, when mangos were first important to the American Colonies they were sent in pickled form because the long oversea journey prevented them from being able to arrive fresh. At some point linguistic confusion caused the americans to believe that the word “mango” referred to the pickling process rather than the fruit they had received. It became commonplace to refer to something that had been pickled as a mango. Many popular dishes at the time were pickled and one of the most popular “mangos” included a bell pepper that was stuffed with cabbage and then pickled. Apparently the name stuck and many people still refer to the bell pepper as a mango.
Well, there you have it. We now know the reason why but I can’t say I am really any closer to understanding the whole mango vs. bell pepper debate! A mango is a mango and a pepper is a pepper!
What do you think? Where are you from and what to they call bell peppers where you live?
My grandmother in Illinois always called them mangoes! I grew up calling them bell peppers AND mangoes, but I clearly knew the different between mango (fruit) and mango (bell pepper). I figured it was a regionalism.
My grandmother in Illinois always called them mangoes! I grew up calling them bell peppers AND mangoes, but I clearly knew the different between mango (fruit) and mango (bell pepper). I figured it was a regionalism.
What an interesting little piece of trivia. I had never heard of this mango/bell pepper synonym before. I am feeling smarter now 😉
What an interesting little piece of trivia. I had never heard of this mango/bell pepper synonym before. I am feeling smarter now 😉
I grew up in a central PA coal town, Mt Carmel, and we always called green peppers, Mangos.
I grew up in a central PA coal town, Mt Carmel, and we always called green peppers, Mangos.
Thanks for the story. My aunt, great aunt, and other relatives always called bell peppers “mangoes”. It used to make my mom mad. She would say, “it is a bell pepper, NOT a mango…mangoes are a fruit”. Even the stores here in southwest Ohio had signs that read “green mango’s”, “red mangos”, and “yellow mangos” and the items were bell peppers! Unreal! My aunt still called bell peppers “mangos” up to the day she passed away a few years ago.
Thanks for the story. My aunt, great aunt, and other relatives always called bell peppers “mangoes”. It used to make my mom mad. She would say, “it is a bell pepper, NOT a mango…mangoes are a fruit”. Even the stores here in southwest Ohio had signs that read “green mango’s”, “red mangos”, and “yellow mangos” and the items were bell peppers! Unreal! My aunt still called bell peppers “mangos” up to the day she passed away a few years ago.
As far back as I can remember, here in southern IN, we always purchased green mango, red mango or yellow mango, when wanting the bell pepper, vegetable. – when actually I was corrected, a few years ago. by my daughter-in-law from the southwest
Until then, I did not have a clue that ‘mango’ is a fruit. I was puzzled even after she showed me the mango fruit. Regional names, I suppose.
As far back as I can remember, here in southern IN, we always purchased green mango, red mango or yellow mango, when wanting the bell pepper, vegetable. – when actually I was corrected, a few years ago. by my daughter-in-law from the southwest
Until then, I did not have a clue that ‘mango’ is a fruit. I was puzzled even after she showed me the mango fruit. Regional names, I suppose.
I grew up in Northern indiana. Stuff mangos were a staple in our house.I moved to texas with my girlfriend in 1995. One day i put mangos on the grocery list and She got the fruit. This was the first time i tasted real mangos.
I grew up in Northern indiana. Stuff mangos were a staple in our house.I moved to texas with my girlfriend in 1995. One day i put mangos on the grocery list and She got the fruit. This was the first time i tasted real mangos.
This is for Julie – I am from Indiana, and we always called Bell Peppers Mango’s. You mentioned in your article that you were interested in hand written recipes – I have a recipe book, handwritten by my grandmother when she was 85 years to five granddaughters – all are a little different, but the recipe books are fun to read, unusual recipes like 6 generation corn pone, Vinegar Pie, etc., and recipe was spelled receipt. Also cook til done, and would sometimes tell you to add something after you thought you were finished. If you like I will send you a copy just for your enjoyment…Thank you, Barbara
This is for Julie – I am from Indiana, and we always called Bell Peppers Mango’s. You mentioned in your article that you were interested in hand written recipes – I have a recipe book, handwritten by my grandmother when she was 85 years to five granddaughters – all are a little different, but the recipe books are fun to read, unusual recipes like 6 generation corn pone, Vinegar Pie, etc., and recipe was spelled receipt. Also cook til done, and would sometimes tell you to add something after you thought you were finished. If you like I will send you a copy just for your enjoyment…Thank you, Barbara
I am originally from Ohio and I did not know that a bell pepper was not a mango until I moved to Florida and found out what a mango really was. Shocker!
I’m from the Midwest and coincidentally, I just saw a cooking show on TV, where the chef was making Mango salad – guess what he was using…yep – Bell Peppers!…
I am originally from Ohio and I did not know that a bell pepper was not a mango until I moved to Florida and found out what a mango really was. Shocker!
I’m from the Midwest and coincidentally, I just saw a cooking show on TV, where the chef was making Mango salad – guess what he was using…yep – Bell Peppers!…
I grew up in Michigan and Ohio and green peppers were always mangoes! Not until I moved to Floridaq did I know about the fruit by that name! A former nun friend who was raised in Florida was stunned when in the convent in Ohio it was announced one evening that they were having stuffed mangos for supper!
I’m still having debates with people down here in Florida!
I grew up in Michigan and Ohio and green peppers were always mangoes! Not until I moved to Floridaq did I know about the fruit by that name! A former nun friend who was raised in Florida was stunned when in the convent in Ohio it was announced one evening that they were having stuffed mangos for supper!
I’m still having debates with people down here in Florida!
Myself , my children, my Grandchildren, and everyone I know call them by their given name, and that is MANGO. We like them in all our salads, fried with onions and potatoes, we stuff them with seasoned ground beef and bake with tomato sauce. They grace every veggie tray for dipping. We saute them with onions for topping hot sandwiches.
We were confused to find out there was a fruit named the same as our garden favorite. Now why would anyone do that. None of us has ever tasted this strange fruit. We probably never will…….. Yes, we all live in Indiana.
Myself , my children, my Grandchildren, and everyone I know call them by their given name, and that is MANGO. We like them in all our salads, fried with onions and potatoes, we stuff them with seasoned ground beef and bake with tomato sauce. They grace every veggie tray for dipping. We saute them with onions for topping hot sandwiches.
We were confused to find out there was a fruit named the same as our garden favorite. Now why would anyone do that. None of us has ever tasted this strange fruit. We probably never will…….. Yes, we all live in Indiana.
I live in Western KY and I’ve never heard ANYONE call Green Pepper’s … Mango’s – Mango is a fruit and Green Pepper is a Green Pepper and I’ve been gardening for 50 years.
I grew up in southern Ohio and we called green peppers mangoes. When I grew up and learned more about cuisine, i did find out that mangoes were a fruit. Regarding the handwritten recipies, it is so unfortunate that they are no longer teaching cursive in school (thanks to common core). An entire generation will not be able to enjoy these handwritten treasures.
Hi. I grew up in Southern Ohio. We always called the vegetable mangoes, and I still do. Stuffed mangoes is one of the regional dishes. Yes, we knew there was a fruit with the same name too. It’s just our name for it, and I don’t think we need to change that.
I grew up in SW Ohio. Until I was in my early 20s I’d never heard of this. Working at Pizza Hut was how I learned about it. Someone ordered mangoes on their pizza. I couldn’t find any so I asked the supervisor where they were. She pointed out the green peppers. Live and learn I guess.