Let’s make everyone’s favorite Thai dessert—mango sticky rice! This easy mango sticky rice recipe uses fresh ripe mangoes, sweet coconut, gooey sticky rice, and salty coconut sauce. Mango sticky rice is the perfect healthy and delicious guilt-free dessert.

Thai mango sticky rice only requires a handful of ingredients and yields an irresistible sweet and salty combination every time. Plus, this mango recipe is gluten-free, vegetarian, and dairy-free!

Ingredients

You can find the ingredients for this mango sticky rice recipe at your local grocery store. Full measurements and links to everything I used are listed in the recipe card below.

• Thai Sticky rice, also called glutinous rice or sweet rice, is gluten-free. The long grains have a gooey-sticky texture when cooked. It is also very common in Vietnamese cooking, like xoi vo (Vietnamese mung bean sticky rice), Vietnamese sticky rice with chicken (xoi ga), or xoi gac (Vietnamese red sticky rice).
• Mango: You can use any ripe mango for this mango sticky rice recipe. I like to use either Ataulfo or Tommy Atkins mangos.
• Coconut Milk: is used to sweeten steamed sticky rice and add depth to a salted coconut glaze.
• Sugar: sweetens the coconut milk in the glutinous rice.
• Salt: to enhance the flavor of the coconut milk and add a savory balancing element to the dessert.
• Cornstarch: to thicken the salted coconut drizzle sauce.
• Sesame Seeds: for added crunch and garnish.

Substitutions and Additions

Substitutions

• Short-grain sticky rice: Instead of Thai long-grain glutinous sweet rice, you can use short-grain sticky rice or sushi rice.
• Sweetener alternatives: brown sugar, palm sugar, condensed milk, honey, or agave can be sugar alternatives.

Additions

• Toasted mung beans: for added crunch, lightly pan fry mung beans.
• Coconut flakes: for added coconut texture and flavor.
• Pandan or ube extract: for added color and earthier flavor notes.
• Mint leaves: for a fresh garnish.

How to Make Mango Sticky Rice

Here are the step-by-step instructions for how to make this mango sticky rice recipe.

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly wash and drain the sticky rice with water until the water is clear. Let the rice soak in water for at least 4 hours or overnight.

2. Boil the water in your steamer over high heat. Drain the rice and lay the sticky rice on a cheesecloth or parchment paper in the steamer—cover and steam for 25 minutes or until the rice is soft and translucent.

3. While the rice is cooking, in a small saucepan over medium heat, add 1 cup coconut milk, sugar, and salt. Mix until the sugar dissolves and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 minutes.

4. In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch and water to make the cornstarch slurry. Next, in a saucepan over medium heat, add 2/3 cup coconut milk and salt until the mixture comes to a gentle simmer. Slowly pour in the cornstarch slurry and stir until combined.

5. Once the rice is cooked, place the sticky rice in a heat-proof bowl. Pour the sweet coconut sauce over the rice and mix. Microwave for 1-2 minutes until the rice has absorbed the coconut sauce.

6. Peel the mangoes, place them stem side down, and vertically slice the cheeks from the pit. Then, slice the cheeks into thin slices.

7. Serve the mango sticky rice garnished with the salted coconut drizzle and toasted sesame seeds.

Storage Instructions

This mango sticky rice recipe is best served immediately. However, the coconut rice and salted coconut drizzle can be separately refrigerated in airtight containers for up to 3 days.

Reheat: either re-steam the coconut sweet rice in a steamer until softened, or sprinkle a few drops of water onto the rice, cover with a wet paper towel, and microwave for 1-2 minutes until softened.

FAQ

What kind of rice do I use for mango sticky rice?

Sticky rice is also called glutinous rice or sweet rice. You would need to use Thai glutinous rice for the most authentic mango sticky rice. Thai sticky rice is similar to traditional sticky rice, but it has longer rice grains.

How do I cook sticky rice?

It is very important to wash and soak the glutinous rice before steaming. This reduces the cooking time of the sticky rice and allows it to cook more evenly.

After soaking the rice, steam it in your steamer for about 20-25 minutes until it is plump and sticky. Alternatively, you can cook the sticky rice in a rice cooker with a 1:1 ratio of rice to water.

Can I dye the sticky rice with pandan or ube?

Yes, you can dye the sticky rice by adding pandan or ube coloring to the coconut milk before steaming the rice.

How do I choose the right mango?

A ripe mango will be slightly soft to the touch, has a sweet and fruity smell, and the skin will be vibrant in color and not wrinkled.

How do I cut a mango?

First, peel the skin off the mango. Then, place the mango stem side down. The pit runs vertically in the center, so slice the cheeks off of the two sides of the seed. Lastly, thinly slice the mango cheeks to serve.

Mango Sticky Rice Recipe