Sweet Mango Sticky Rice (Printer View)

Sweet and fragrant sticky rice paired with ripe mango and creamy coconut milk sauce.

# What you'll need:

→ Rice

01 - 1 cup glutinous sticky rice
02 - Water for soaking and steaming

→ Coconut Sauce

03 - 1 cup full-fat coconut milk
04 - 4 tablespoons granulated sugar
05 - 1/4 teaspoon salt

→ Topping

06 - 1/3 cup coconut milk
07 - 1 tablespoon sugar
08 - Pinch of salt
09 - 1 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 2 teaspoons water, optional for thickening

→ Fruit

10 - 2 ripe mangoes, peeled, pitted, and sliced

→ Garnish

11 - 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds or mung beans, optional

# Method:

01 - Rinse sticky rice under cold running water until water runs clear. Soak rice in cold water for at least 4 hours or overnight.
02 - Drain soaked rice and transfer to cheesecloth-lined steamer basket. Steam over boiling water for 25 to 30 minutes until rice is tender and translucent.
03 - Combine 1 cup coconut milk, 4 tablespoons sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in saucepan. Heat gently over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until sugar dissolves completely. Do not bring to boil.
04 - Transfer steamed rice to mixing bowl. Pour warm sweetened coconut milk over rice and stir thoroughly to combine. Cover bowl and let rice absorb liquid for 15 minutes.
05 - In small saucepan, combine 1/3 cup coconut milk, 1 tablespoon sugar, and pinch of salt. If thickened sauce is preferred, add cornstarch slurry. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened, approximately 3 to 5 minutes.
06 - Mound portions of coconut-infused sticky rice onto serving plates. Arrange mango slices alongside rice. Drizzle with warm coconut topping. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds or mung beans if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It tastes like a tropical vacation without leaving your kitchen, and somehow gets easier every time you make it.
  • The contrast between warm, sticky rice and cool, sweet mango is the kind of thing that makes people close their eyes when they eat it.
  • You can prep the rice ahead and just assemble when guests arrive, which feels like cheating but isn't.
02 -
  • The rice must be glutinous rice, not a substitute—this was a painful lesson learned with regular jasmine rice that looked right but tasted like betrayal.
  • Don't skip the soaking step; it's the difference between rice that's tender and rice that tastes like it's still learning to cook.
  • The coconut sauce needs to be warm when it hits the hot rice, which is why heating it just before serving matters more than you'd think.
03 -
  • Buying mangoes a day or two before you plan to cook lets them ripen at home, which gives you control over the texture and sweetness you'll get.
  • The cornstarch slurry in the topping is truly optional—some days loose sauce feels right, other days you want it to cling, so follow your instinct.
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