Mango love tastes sweet

Temperatures soared and mango madness reached fever pitch at the weekend as locals took a mouth-watering bite into this year’s Broome Mango Festival.

A plethora of juicy events returned for the 26th festival, presented by the Lions Club of Broome.

In the festival’s main attraction, Joshua Grant from Pinctada Cable Beach resort took out the Great Chefs of Broome title for 2012.

Inspired by the humble but popular Aussie snag, Grant put a Kimberley slant on the barbecue favourite to create his Broome-style Fish and Mango Sausage, comprising Cone Bay barramundi, prawn, scallop, mango dill and coriander, presented on a Matso’s mango beer bread, accompanied by a zesty mango salsa.

While entries were disappointing for this year’s competition, standards were high as four gifted local chefs produced sumptuous cuisine, infusing Broome and delicious mangoes into the heart of each dish.

Jake Mai from Zoo Bar and Café was awarded second place with his Smokin’ Duck, and Tolly Martynjenko, also from Zoo, came third with his Sunset Ride which featured braised camel rump.

For a second year in a row, Zoo dominated the Great Bartenders of Broome competition, with Jess Byrne crowned the winner with her concoction Heavenly High Tea. Meanwhile on Saturday evening, the inaugural White Ribbon Day Gala at the Broome Civic Centre sold out its 200 tickets and raised more than $17,000 with its charity auctions, for various local organisations involved with the prevention of family violence.

A night of glitz, glamour and dancing was topped off with a sumptuous feast laid on by Kimberley Training Institute students.

The gala and other events, including the Mango Tasting and Mango Quiz, raised funds for causes including the Kyle Andrews Foundation, Royal Flying Doctor Service, and prostate and breast cancer research.

A fantastic number of delicacies were entered in this year’s Mango, Jams, Cakes and Chutneys competition, with Kim Eastough and Paul Far Stream winning best jams, Hiromi Gautier and Darrel McKerlie best mango cake, and Sally Eaton and John Stalker taking out the chutneys. Budding cooks Luna Lippert and April Ford won junior cakes.

Lions Club vice-president Simon Penn said the organisation was proud to have again built such a successful event.

“The Mango Festival goes from strength to strength,” he said. “We again raised lots of money.

“The Lions and Lioness clubs, the Broome community, visitors to the town and all the festival’s organisers and sponsors can be really proud of the support they gave this year’s event.”