Can I eat the flesh right next to a bruise?

Yes, cut with a 1cm margin and the remaining flesh is fine to eat raw or cooked.

How big does a bruise need to be before I bin the whole fruit?

If more than a third of the fruit is bruised, or any bruise smells fermented, bin it.

Ripe mangoes are soft, that's the trade-off. Store on a soft surface, don't stack, and move to the fridge once peak.

A bruise is a soft, slightly darker patch with no smell change. The flesh underneath is fine.

Rot is wet, fragrant in an alcoholic way, and often surrounded by mould. Rot means bin the whole fruit.

Cut around the bruise with a 1cm margin. The good flesh past that margin is unaffected.

Don't try to peel a bruised mango whole, the bruise spreads under the skin and you'll lose more than you save.

Best uses: smoothies, lassi, kulfi, jam, chutney. Anywhere the texture doesn't need to be perfect.

Avoid: salads, salsa, anything raw where appearance matters.

Store stem-down on a soft surface (tea towel on a tray). Don't stack ripening mangoes.

Once ripe, transfer to the fridge crisper, the cold firms the flesh and reduces bruising from contact.

If more than 30% of the fruit is bruised, or any bruise has gone wet/dark/sour-smelling, bin the whole mango.

Single-digit-percent bruises are normal even on perfect fruit, they're not a quality failure, just a fact of soft fruit.

Can I eat the flesh right next to a bruise?: Yes, cut with a 1cm margin and the remaining flesh is fine to eat raw or cooked.
How big does a bruise need to be before I bin the whole fruit?: If more than a third of the fruit is bruised, or any bruise smells fermented, bin it.
Why does my mango bruise so easily?: Ripe mangoes are soft, that's the trade-off. Store on a soft surface, don't stack, and move to the fridge once peak.