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Fruit from Sabah, Malaysian Borneo

Bambangan pickle (Kadazan-Dusun fermented wild mango)bambangan

Fermented bambangan is the pulp of the wild Bornean mango Mangifera pajang mixed with its grated seed and salt, then shut in a tightly closed container at room temperature for 7–10 days. Lactic acid bacteria sour it, peaking around day 4. It is a popular indigenous ferment, eaten mainly by the Kadazan-Dusun.

Fully documentedFruit7 days – 10 days

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceThe ratio 90 % pulp, 6 % grated seed and 4 % salt is from the producer's mix that Chan et al. (2023) sampled in Kota Kinabalu; the traditional process has no fixed amounts in the sources.
Bambangan pulp, peeled and cut into small cubes90 % of the mixIn the study, a local producer's mix was sampled; the ratio is theirs[chan2023]
Grated bambangan seed kernel6 % of the mixThe outer layer of the kernel was removed before grating[chan2023]
Salt4 % of the mix[chan2023]
Starterspontaneous

Total time across the recorded steps: 7 days – 10 days

Start
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What changes: The wild mango is peeled, its pulp cut and its seed grated

Step 1 of 4
Peel the fruit, cut the pulp and grate the seed
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
L. plantarum
Pediococcus pentosaceus
Lactobacillus brevis
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Fermented bambangan is the pulp of the wild Bornean mango Mangifera pajang mixed with its grated seed and salt, then shut in a tightly closed container at room temperature for 7–10 days. Lactic acid bacteria sour it, peaking around day 4. It is a popular indigenous ferment, eaten mainly by the Kadazan-Dusun. Made in 4 steps over 7 days – 10 days. The longest step, ferment at room temperature, takes 7–10 days (Chan S.T 2023) and runs at 28 °C (Chan S.T. 2013). Salt is 4 % (Chan S.T 2023). Lactic acid bacteria, highest on day 4 at both 28 °C (6.29 log CFU/g) and 35 °C (7.37 log CFU/g); no species named and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Pediococcus pentosaceus do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step7–10 daysReported[chan2023][john2025][chan2013]Ferment at room temperature
Temperature28 °CReported[chan2013][chan2023]Ferment at room temperature
Salt4 %Reported[chan2023]Mix pulp, grated seed and salt and close tightly
AciditypH 4.2 → 3.44Measured[chan2023]Ferment at room temperature

What makes this one different

Fermented bambangan mixes the grated seed in with the fruit pulp before salting. Like tempoyak, it sours by lactic fermentation in a closed container.

Related ferments

Safety

In a producer's mix with 4 % salt, the pH fell from 4.20 to 3.44 over 14 days at 28 °C and was 3.24 after 90 days of storage at room temperature (Chan et al. 2023). That study measured pH, acidity, antioxidants and phenolics. It did not test for pathogens, so it does not show the product is safe to keep.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Fermented bambangan is a traditional pickle of the Kadazan Dusun of Sabah. Chan et al. (2023) describe it as a popular indigenous food, and John et al. (2025) note that the pulp is fermented to give a longer shelf life. John et al. (2025) cite a 2010 microbial-diversity study of the spontaneous fermentation by Sim and colleagues, and Chan et al. (2023) cite a 2015 study (Ng et al.) that found it mainly fermented by Lactobacillus plantarum and L. brevis.

  1. [chan2013] Chan S.T. 2013, Antioxidant properties and phenolic compounds of fermented bambangan (Mangifera pajang), academic exercise (unpublished), Universiti Malaysia Sabah (repository abstract)other
  2. [chan2023] Chan S.T., Padam B.S., Chye F.Y. 2023, Effect of fermentation on the antioxidant properties and phenolic compounds of bambangan (Mangifera pajang) fruit, Journal of Food Science and Technology 60(1):303–314, doi 10.1007/s13197-022-05615-wpaper
  3. [john2025] John O.D., Surugau N., Kansedo J., Panchal S.K., Brown L. 2025, Plant-based functional foods from Borneo (review), Nutrients 17(2):200, doi 10.3390/nu17020200paper