Thai mango sticky rice is a very popular dessert from Thailand. With just few ingredients like rice, coconut milk and mango put together, this is a must try when Mangoes are in season. Let’s see how to make this delightful dessert with step by step pictures and full video.
Best when Thai honey mangoes are in season during summer when you get juicy sweetest mangoes.
Check out my other popular Thai recipes Green mango salad and Vegan red curry in this website.
Jump to:
I had Thai mango sticky rice when we went to Bangkok,once in a restaurant and once at airport. Both were good,though I had different idea about the dish thinking nothing special about it. But I was wrong,it was unique and tasty in it’s own way. I wanted to try myself for a long time but the process just seemed too long to me which dreaded me to attempt.
Finally after 2 weeks of making up my mind,I made this and thought of sharing the recipe too here in my blog to break my silence. Summer is at it’s peak here in Singapore and so do are the Thai honey mangoes. Super juicy and sweetest available at Fairprice and I thought before they disappear,I should atleast post this year.
I adapted the recipe from here,you can find more information and beautiful variations in her post.
Ingredients
Not many ingredients needed for making Thai Mango Sticky Rice,but just make sure to get the right ones.
- Sticky rice(Glutinous rice) –This is the best choice and must for making this sweet snack. It has a unique chewy texture and sticky nature,which works well in this recipe. I used Golden Pineapple brand we get here in Singapore.
- Thailand honey mango–Ripe,juice,fresh seasonal Thai mangoes preferred. This is the main component apart from rice,so make sure to get the right one.
- Coconut milk–I use organic coconut milk in carton. Using thick,rich coconut milk is perfect for this recipe.
- Sugar–The dessert looks white,so I prefer to use white sugar.
- Salt–Though it’s a dessert,salt is an important ingredient to avoid flat taste.
- Moong dal–Split,green mung bean without skin –adds a crispy texture to the dish,used for garnish.
See recipe card below for exact quantities.
Instructions
Let’s see how to make this wonderful dish. Some pre-soaking needed to prepare,so make note of it and plan accordingly. You can ideate the recipe into different parts –Soaking,steaming rice,making two types of coconut sauce,roasting the mung bean and finally putting everything together!
Soaking
- Step 1:Firstly,wash the rice well 3-4 times until water drained runs clear. Then soak it minimum 4 hours or overnight.
- Step 2:In another small bowl,wash and soak mung bean too.
Steaming rice
- Step 1:Once soaking time is over,drain water completely using a metal strainer.
- Step 2:Take a clean cotton cloth and spread the rice over it. Bring together the four ends so that the rice is covered.
Get a steamer ready with lots of water enough to steam for 20 minutes and let the water comes to a rolling boil.
- Step 3:Place the rice covered in cloth over a steamer plate.
- Step 4:Steam for 20 minutes. Once done,transfer to a mixing bowl.
The rice should be chewy in texture and not mushy. It may look a bit dry when. you take out,but once you mix with the coconut milk sweet syrup,you can see it swells up well and comes to the right texture,taste.
Prepare coconut milk sauce
Do this when you are steaming the rice.
- Step 1:To begin with,take â…” cup of coconut milk,sugar,salt in a saucepan.
- Step 2:Heat furthermore until it starts to boil well. Because of sugar,it will look more like a syrup. Keep aside.
- Step 3:Then for the creamy salt sauce,heat coconut milk,salt in a saucepan.
- Step 4:Then dissolve a teaspoon of rice flour in little water and add to the coconut milk.
- Step 5:After that,start heating and mix well. Once it starts to boil,it will subsequently turn thick and creamy. Keep aside until use.
Make crispy Mung bean
- Step 1:Boil water and add the soaked mung bean (moong dal) to it.
- Step 2:Just boil for 2 minutes and drain from water.
- Step 3:Heat a pan and dry roast this well in medium heat (may take 3-4 minutes).
- Step 4:Once golden and crisp,remove from pan and keep aside.
Mixing
- Step 1:Once the rice is cooked,heat the sweet coconut sauce (syrup) again until it starts to boil. Do not skip this step as it will not get absorbed properly if both are hot.
- Step 2:Then add the cooked rice to it and mix well. It will look watery or too loose,but eventually it will absorb all,so no need to worry.
- Step 3:Keep aside for 20 minutes. In between mix again for even absorption.
- Step 4:Once done,mix well to avoid any lumps. But the rice by itself will be sticky (not mushy). Now our rice is ready to serve.
Slice mango
- Step 1:Firstly peel the skin of the mango gently using a large,sharp peeler (with ridges better). You can also slice the skin off with skin if you are good at it.
- Step 2:Then,slice on both sides of the seed (stone). The variety I use have thin seed,so I got a good slice of mango.
- Step 3:After that,slice diagonally as shown in the image. Set aside until serving.
Serving
- Step 1:Take a plate and first place rice in one side. Place the sliced mango on the side next to the rice.
- Step 2:Pour the creamy salted coconut sauce over the rice as well as mango.
- Step 3:Finally,sprinkle some crispy roasted mung bean over it and enjoy!
You can serve two or three portions of this rice,here’s how mine looked like! Mine was from Fairprice,it was the sweetest and juiciest!
Substitutions &Variations
- Sticky rice–You can try sushi rice or regular rice,though I would highly recommend sticky rice. Jasmine rice will be way too different in taste,so it’s a no.
- Moong dal/ bean–use toasted black sesame seeds.
- Sugar–White sugar can be replace with your favorite sweetener,though accordingly,the taste,colour will change. If you feel ½ cup sugar is too sweet for you,try from ¼ cup sugar. We are sweet toothed,so this was perfect for us.
You can add few butterfly pea flowers when making coconut syrup (sweet coconut milk) and make a beautiful colored rice.
Storage
Since we are dealing with coconut milk,at room temperature,consume within 2-3 hours. If refrigerated immediately,consume within a day.
The crispy moong dal can be stored for a week.
Top tip
- Soaking the rice is a must for the glutinous look,chewy texture,yet a non-mushy rice.
- I tried in pressure cooker method too (check below) but I will only follow the steaming method for the best texture and taste!
- Do not use coconut cream for this recipe,use coconut milk. Choose good quality organic ones without any preservatives.
- If you do not soak and boil the mung bean,it will be hard to bite. Only if you follow the step,it will be crisp and easy to eat.
FAQ
Sticky rice or glutinous rice is best for absorbing the coconut milk,sweetness well,it is best to use glutinous rice or sticky rice without changing the authentic channel.
If Thai honey mango is not available,what variety of mango can we use?
You can use any mango that is sweet yet firm.
Can I cook in other methods without soaking?
I tried and failed to bring the same texture of steamed rice for this dessert that is required. Used Instant pot to cook the sticky rice,but it lost the chewiness and the beautiful translucent look.
So I highly recommend to steaming method. If you have successfully tried in other ways,please let me know in comments how you did.
Recipe card
Recipe card
Thai Mango Sticky Rice Recipe
Thai mango sticky rice is a very popular dessert from Thailand. With just few ingredients like rice,coconut milk and mango put together,this is a must try when Mangoes are in season.
Equipments (Amazon Affiliate links)
Cup measurements
Ingredients
- 1cupSticky riceGlutinous rice
- 2Thai Honey MangoRipe sweet mango
- 1tablespoonMung beanMoong dal
Sweet coconut syrup
- â…”cupCoconut milkorganic carton
- ½cupSugar
- ½teaspoonSalt
Coconut sauce
- ½cupCoconut milk
- ½teaspoonSalt
- 1teaspoonRice flour
Prevent your screen from going dark
Instructions
Soaking
Step 1:Firstly,wash the rice well 3-4 times until water drained runs clear. Then soak it minimum 4 hours or overnight.
Step 2:In another small bowl,wash and soak mung bean too.
Steaming rice
Step 1:Once soaking time is over,drain water completely using a metal strainer.
Step 2:Take a clean cotton cloth and spread the rice over it. Bring together the four ends so that the rice is covered.
Get a steamer ready with lots of water enough to steam for 20 minutes and let the water comes to a rolling boil.
Step 3:Place the rice covered in cloth over a steamer plate.
Step 4:Steam for 20 minutes.
Prepare coconut milk sauce
Step 1:To begin with,take â…” cup of coconut milk,sugar,salt in a saucepan.
Step 2:Heat furthermore until it starts to boil well. Because of sugar,it will look more like a syrup. Keep aside.
Step 3:Then for the creamy salt sauce,heat coconut milk,salt in a saucepan.
Step 4:Then dissolve a teaspoon of rice flour in little water and add to the coconut milk.
Step 5:After that,start heating and mix well. Once it starts to boil,it will subsequently turn thick and creamy.
Step 6:Keep aside until use.
Mixing
Step 1:Once the rice is cooked,heat the sweet coconut sauce (syrup) again until it starts to boil. Do not skip this step as it will not get absorbed properly if both are hot.
Step 2:Then add the cooked rice to it and mix well. It will look watery or too loose,but eventually it will absorb all,so no need to worry.
Step 3:Keep aside for 20 minutes. In between mix again for even absorption.
Step 4:Once done,mix well to avoid any lumps. But the rice by itself will be sticky (not mushy). Now our rice is ready to serve.
Make crispy Mung bean
Step 1:Boil water and add the soaked mung bean (moong dal) to it.
Step 2:Just boil for 2 minutes and drain from water.
Step 3:Heat a pan and dry roast this well in medium heat (may take 3-4 minutes).
Step 4:Once golden and crisp,remove from pan and keep aside.
Slice mango
Step 1:Firstly peel the skin of the mango gently using a large,sharp peeler (with ridges better). You can also slice the skin off with skin if you are good at it.
Step 2:Then,slice on both sides of the seed (stone). The variety I use have thin seed,so I got a good slice of mango.
Step 3:After that,slice diagonally as shown in the image.
Step 4:Set aside until serving.
Serving
Step 1:Take a plate and first place rice in one side.
Step 2:Place the sliced mango on the side next to the rice.
Step 3:Pour the creamy salted coconut sauce over the rice as well as mango.
Step 4:Finally,sprinkle some crispy roasted mung bean over it and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Soaking the rice is a must for the glutinous look,chewy texture,yet a non-mushy rice.