Mango Sticky Rice

Ah....dreams of Thailand and the beach are on my brain for sure in these last weeks of summer. Too bad there is no vacation planned in my foreseeable future! If you're like me, you might still enjoy making your own Mango Sticky Rice at home if you can't have the real deal on the beach. Here's another guest post from my friend, Anita! 

I love me some mango sticky rice. It makes me reminiscent of street vendors in Thailand as well as all things tropical and summery. When I had it at a friend's house a few years ago, it was nice to discover that it actually wasn't a difficult dessert to make so I decided to try to duplicate it at home. I was so glad to not have to wait til I got back to Thailand to eat it again! That's the beauty of living in Asia - mangoes are better on this side of the world in my not-so-humble opinion. 

A good mango carries the whole recipe, and the rice and coconut sauce are simply there to complement the mango. I just wanted to warn you that the taste of your end product hinges on the quality of your mango.* No pressure, ha! 

I did learn a tip recently that when you go to pick out mangoes at the store, make sure to smell them - if they smell good, you'll have a greater likelihood of them tasting good. Go figure. This probably works when buying most fruits (...except for durian...).

Anyhow, there are several recipes that you can find online, however this one is simple, contains only 5 ingredients, and is gluten-free to boot! Feel the freedom to adjust amounts according to your taste. I hope you enjoy it!

Mango Sticky Rice

Prep time: 2 1/2 hours 

Yield: 6 servings 

1 cup Thai jasmine sticky rice (uncooked)

2 to 3 good mangoes, depending on size

1 can coconut milk

4 Tbs sugar, more or less to taste

1/2 tsp salt

Place Thai sticky rice in a bowl and add about 3 cups water (enough so the water level is at least 2-3 inches above the rice). Set aside and allow to soak for at least a couple hours or more, up to about 5 hours - use warm water (about 100F/38C) if you have less time to soak.

Place a cheesecloth in a strainer basket making sure there's enough cloth to drape over the sides (I use the basket that came with my rice cooker). Place some water in your rice cooker (the container you normally put rice in, enough that it won't boil dry. I put in about 2 cups). Insert the steamer basket over the rice container. Drain water, rinse the rice and place inside the cheesecloth.

Fold the cheesecloth over the rice. Steam in rice cooker for about 20 to 25 minutes or until thoroughly cooked - the rice will change color from opaque white to translucent.

If you're not sure just taste a granule or two and you'll be able to tell - if it's soft and not crunchy, you're good to go :)

In a saucepan stir together coconut milk, sugar, and salt. Heat over low heat until it's scalded (you'll see a ring of bubbles around the edge where the liquid meets the pot), stirring to make sure sugar and salt have dissolved completely.

To assemble, spread out a thin layer of sticky rice onto each plate. Spoon some coconut sauce on top of rice - just enough to moisten it. Peel your mangoes one at a time. Holding a flat side, cut one side of the mango horizontally so that it's parallel to or on the same plane as the flat side of the seed. Slice that side and arrange slices on top of sticky rice. Drizzle some more coconut milk sauce on top to garnish - that completes one serving. Flip over the mango. Cut and slice the other side the same way, and cut off the sides as well. Do the same for the rest of the servings. 

Notes: 

You can garnish with a sprinkle of yellow mung beans if you like for a little crunch.

I like to leave the remaining coconut sauce on the table so that guests can add extra at their leisure. 

If you're not serving it right away, transfer cooked rice to a bowl and pour some coconut sauce over it to keep the rice moist and from drying out. 

Store remaining coconut sauce in the fridge (can also be stored in the freezer). 

*For most authentic flavor, choose mangos that are most like or from Thailand or Philippines. These are more yellow/orange colored on the outside. The Thai sticky rice is available at Carrefour in China.