Mango Sticky Rice
Thai sweet coconut sticky rice served with ripe mango.
Preparation: 15 min · Cooking: 15 min · Total: 6 hr 30 min · 4 servings
Ingredients
- 250 g Thai glutinous rice, dry — Also labeled Thai sweet rice; not jasmine or sushi rice. Despite its name, glutinous rice contains no gluten.
- 200 ml unsweetened coconut cream — Rich coconut cream, not a coconut drink or sweetened cream of coconut.
- 38 g granulated sugar
- 2 pc ripe, sweet mangoes
- 0.3 tsp salt
Instructions
Rinse and soak well ahead
Put 250 g Thai glutinous rice in a bowl. Rinse repeatedly with cool water, gently moving the grains and draining each time, until the water is mostly clear. Cover with fresh water and soak in the refrigerator for about 6 hours. This soaking time is part of the recipe, not optional preparation.
The grains have soaked fully and the final rinse water is mostly clear.
Finish the rice soak: 21600 seconds
Prepare the steamer
Drain the soaked rice. Line a steamer basket with a clean steaming cloth and spread the rice in an even layer. Add water to the pot below the basket, keeping the rice above the water. Bring the water to a steady simmer and cover the basket with its lid.
Steam can reach the rice; the rice is not submerged.
Steam until tender
Steam for about 15 minutes, then lift the lid away from your face and taste a grain from the center after letting it cool. It should be tender and pleasantly chewy, with no hard core. Continue steaming if needed and check that the pot does not run dry.
Tender, sticky grains with no hard center.
First rice tenderness check: 900 seconds
Warm the sweet coconut mixture
While the rice steams, put 200 ml unsweetened coconut cream, 37.5 g sugar, and 1/4 tsp salt in a small saucepan. Stir gently over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. As soon as it reaches a boil, remove it from the heat; do not keep boiling it down.
The sugar is dissolved and the mixture remains fluid.
Add the coconut mixture to hot rice
Transfer the freshly steamed rice to a heatproof bowl. Add the warm coconut mixture a little at a time, folding gently between additions. Use all of it, allowing each addition to coat and soak into the grains. Keep covered when not stirring so the surface does not dry out.
Glossy, moist, sticky rice rather than rice floating in sauce.
Peel and slice the mangoes
Wash and peel the 2 mangoes. Cut the flesh from each side of the flat stone and slice into pieces that can be eaten with a spoon or fork. Remove any remaining flesh around the stone without cutting through it.
Ripe mango slices with skin and stones removed.
Serve while freshly made
Divide the coconut rice into four portions and arrange half a mango beside each. Serve promptly; this version uses no separate pouring sauce or mung-bean topping.
Warm or freshly cooled coconut rice with ripe mango.
Tips
- Use the specified Thai glutinous rice and allow the full soak.
- Mix the coconut cream into the rice while the rice is still hot.
Common mistakes
- Jasmine rice does not give the required sticky texture.
- Reserving part of the measured coconut cream for a sauce changes this formula.
Storage
Best freshly made. If saving rice, cool it quickly in a shallow container, ideally within 1 hour, refrigerate, and use within 24 hours. Store cut mango separately.
Reheating
If reheating stored rice, do so only once and heat until steaming hot throughout. Add the mango after reheating.
About this recipe
Khao niao mamuang is a Thai dessert of sweetened coconut sticky rice and ripe mango. Extra salted coconut topping and crisp mung beans are optional in the cited source and are not included here.
Editorial approval does not establish independent kitchen testing. Check allergens and follow safe food handling.