Bought some mangoes and want to eat them right away, but they’re still green? Waiting for days or using chemical ripeners can be worrying. The good news is, you can naturally speed up the ripening process without any chemicals at all.

Let’s take a look at some easy ways you can do this at home.

Why do mangoes ripen naturally?

Mangoes are fruits that continue to ripen after harvest. This is because they release a gas called ethylene, a plant hormone that stimulates the ripening process.

Therefore, if we can trap or increase the amount of ethylene around the fruit, it will stimulate the mango to ripen faster without using any chemicals at all.

This is a simple, safe, and effective method. Place the mango in a paper bag, such as a bread bag, or wrap it in newspaper. Keep it at room temperature instead of the refrigerator. The reason is that the paper bag traps ethylene around the fruit, speeding up the ripening process by about 1–3 days.

Place them next to ripe bananas or other ripe fruits. Ripe bananas release a high volume of ethylene, which helps stimulate the ripening of other fruits. Put the mangoes and ripe bananas together in the same paper bag and close it loosely. Leave it at room temperature. This method can help mangoes ripen within 1–2 days, depending on the maturity of the fruit.

Store in a loosely covered container. Paper or plastic boxes may be used as substitutes for paper bags. Do not seal completely. Keep in a cool, ventilated place away from direct sunlight.