Summer vacations were the time when we kids loved to freak out and freak others!!
We would wake up late in the mornings, actually bundled into the bathroom straight out of bed and soaked with water…..to make us fully awake.
That year the Mango tree in front of our building had quite a good bloom. We watched the flowers break into small pea-sized green mangoes and waited patiently till they would grow bigger. Usually, they would fall off the branches even before growing much big. But that year, we could see medium sized Kairees (Raw Mangoes) tantalizingly hanging from the branches, tempting us to reach out and pluck them. Only we were on the 2nd floor and couldn’t stretch our hands too far without the risk of landing straight on the ground below.
Necessity is the mother of all inventions!! One bright afternoon, a brilliant mind came up with an idea of plucking those Kairees without giving up our lives.
The search began for a big, reliable bamboo. We found one. We made a crack at one end, just enough for a thin branch to enter and stay trapped. We went up to the terrace and one daring soul decided to lie flat on the parapet to get maximum leverage. The bamboo was handed over to him. Mission-I had begun.
Slowly the crack in the bamboo trapped the delicate branches and with a slight twist snapped from the tree, our Kairees safely hanging at the end. We could collect quite a few and just when the Mission-I was accomplished and we were about to move towards Mission_II, the Raw Mangoes safely cuddled in our arms, one guy (who claimed the Mango tree belonged to his family) suddenly appeared out of thin air. The thief in us made us blush pink and red and the guy smelt something fishy. Ofcourse he couldn’t prove the Kairess were from his (supposedly) tree since all the evidence (bamboo) had been professionally disposed off. So without much trouble we could manage to brush him off, after all he too was only a kid. And off we moved on to Mission-II with a minor interference.
Knifes were taken out, red chilli powder and coconut oil was ready to be used. Kairees were cut into nice little cubes, chilli powder sprinkled and only a little coconut oil added for smoothness. All the pieces were tossed together to ensure that the masala mixed properly. Pop……a spicy tangy piece went into the mouth…..sluuuurrrpppppppp
BLISS!!!!
Believe me, the Kairees somehow taste yummier when you steal them!!
