Authentic Thailand Mango Sticky Rice

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Thailand Mango Sticky Rice is something sweet, tropical, and delicious packed in one plate. Scoop the coconut sticky rice drizzled with creamy coconut sauce and juicy, ripe mangoes. They all melt in your mouth! Plus, it’s way easier to make than you think. Let’s get cooking!

Thailand Mango Sticky Rice in three colors on a banana leaf with creamy coconut sauce.

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Mango Sticky Rice is a very popular dessert from Thailand. It is so popular worldwide and everybody likes it. This sweet and sticky dessert with mango slices is the best option for a hot summer day.

If you go to a Thai restaurant anywhere in this world, you will find Mango Sticky Rice on the menu. It is a basic dessert menu that every Thai restaurant must have.

Freshly ripe mangos with coconut flavor sticky rice next to it and the sweet coconut milk sauce is a great combination dessert for hot summer days. It is a simple dish with a delightful taste.

Why You Will Love This Recipe

Sweet and savory in one – It is the perfect combination of sweet taste from the fresh mango and creamy coconut sauce with the salty sticky rice. You will love the taste when they all melt in your mouth.
Super easy to make – It is super easy to make the sticky rice. In fact, you can even make it in a rice cooker, just like making rice.
Attractive and exotic – It is a very attractive and exotic dessert to serve with the yellow color from the mango, white from the dripping coconut sauce, and the colorful sticky rice. Serve it on banana leaf, if you have some.
Subtle sweetness – Since the ripe mango is already very sweet, I only add a little sugar into the sticky rice and the coconut sauce. So there is subtle almost faint sweetness to them. When eaten with the fresh mango, it is just perfect!

What is Mango Sticky Rice?

Mango Sticky Rice is a popular dessert of Thailand. The original name is khao niaow ma muang (ข้าวเหนียวมะม่วง).

The popularity of this dish is mind blowing. It started as street food but became popular worldwide.

It is a combination of sweet, salty flavor in sticky rice and the freshness of ripe mangos. Coconut milk sauce is dripped on top of the sticky rice and topped with toasted sesame seeds.

Recipe Ingredients

Thailand Mango Sticky Rice ingredients with labels.

Ingredient Notes

Glutinous rice or sticky rice – To get the most authentic texture, you need to get Thailand sticky rice. The grain is longer than regular rice. If you can only find round grain sticky rice, it is okay to use.

Ripe Mangoes – This tropical fruit has so many varieties. The best is Alphonso. It is large in size and flavor. Nam Dok Mai (Thai Mango) is the mango used in Thailand to make this dish. Some countries already import it. Indonesia uses Arumanis mango as it is the best variety to make this dish. The mangoes have to be ripe and just right so when you cut it, it is still very firm yet soft.

Coconut milk – Use a canned coconut milk or if a fresh one is available in your area. I find that the canned coconut milk can stay fresh longer when kept in the chiller.

Butterfly Pea Flowers – This is optional.

Pandan extract – This is optional.

Roasted Sesame seeds – Toast the sesame seeds on a pan until brownish to garnish the dessert.

Be sure to check out the full recipe and ingredient list below

How to Make Mango Sticky Rice

Photo collage of preparing to make the sticky rice in a pot.

STEP 1. Wash and drain the sticky rice until the water is clear, usually three times is enough. Soak the rice with clean water for at least one hour (Image 1). After one hour, drain the water (Image 2). Put the rice in the steamer (Image 3) and steam for 25 minutes. Pour coconut milk, sugar, and salt into a sauce pan. Put in pandan leaves (Image 4).

Photo collage of cooking the sticky rice in a sauce pan.

STEP 2. The sticky rice is halfway done. Now it is time to incorporate the coconut milk into the rice. Pour the sticky rice into the coconut milk mixture (Image 5). Turn on the stove and put the sauce pan in medium heat (Image 6). Stir the sticky rice with a spatula until all is well mixed and you can see the coconut milk is absorbed by the rice (Image 7). If you want to use butterfly pea flower to color your sticky rice, pour hot water into the flowers (Image 8).

Photo collage of coloring the sticky rice and cooking the creamy coconut sauce.

STEP 3. Divide the sticky rice into to color them. I use pandan extract and butterfly pea flower tea to have a hint of green and blue color (Image 9). Stir well with a spatula until the color is evenly spread (Image 10).

STEP 4. Let’s cook the coconut sauce. Combine all ingredients of coconut sauce: coconut milk, sugar, salt, cornstarch in a sauce pan (Image 11). Add pandan leaves. Put it on low heat. Cook until it thickens (Image 12). Do not leave it unattended.

STEP 5. Shape the sticky rice with any mold you like. Serve on banana leaf if you have any. Slice half mango, put the mango slices next to the sticky rice and drizzle the mango and sticky rice with the coconut sauce. Sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds on top. And it is ready to serve.

Pro Tips

You can cook the sticky rice in a rice cooker. Just put the soaked sticky rice, coconut milk, sugar, salt, and pandan leaves into the rice cooker. Press the button to cook. This is the fastest and most efficient to cook sticky rice.
Always wash the glutinous rice first and soak it in clean water first before steaming or cooking. Soaking time is from one hour to two hours. This will make the sticky rice easier and evenly cooked. The rice will be chewy.
If you want to shape the sticky rice in a cute pudding mold, dab the mold with a little oil first. Press the sticky rice tightly into the mold.

How to Serve

Serve this delicious dessert with warm coconut milk or cold coconut sauce. Either way is alright. Pair it with Lemongrass Tea or Butterfly Pea Flower Tea as refreshing drinks.

This dessert is also great after you finish eating spicy food like Chicken Curry or Spicy Fried Chicken.

FAQs about Thailand Mango Sticky Rice

Can I use regular rice to make Mango Sticky Rice?

No. The unique texture and flavor from sticky rice cannot be replaced by other type of rice. Using regular rice might not result in the same consistency and taste. Look for glutinous rice or sweet rice if you can’t find sticky rice.

Why should I use ripe mangoes?

Ripe mangoes offer the best sweetness and freshness to compliment this dessert. The juicy mangoes go well with the creamy coconut sauce and sticky rice.

Is this dessert okay for vegan? Is it gluten free?

This dessert is suitable for vegetarian or vegan because it uses coconut milk. You may want to replace the cornstarch in the coconut sauce, so it is really gluten free. Surprisingly sticky rice is gluten free.

Can I replace the sugar and use other sweetener?

Yes, you can. You can use honey or agave or erythritol to substitute the regular sugar. It may alter the taste slightly.

Storage and Reheating

Thailand Mango Sticky Rice is best freshly served on the day it is made. However, it can stay good for up to 2 days. Keep the sticky rice in an airtight container. Steam it for 15 minutes before serving.

The coconut milk sauce is nice when served cold. You may heat it for a while if you like it warm. Cut a new ripe mango so it is just like when it is still newly made.

More Desserts Recipes

If you like this recipe, you might also want to try other desserts.

Another popular dessert from Thailand that uses mangoes and cream cheese Mango Pearl Sago.
A popular cake recipe from Thailand with very moist texture is Thailand Butter Cake.
No bake Mango Cheesecake is another one that requires no baking at all.
When pumpkin is in season, try this cute little dessert called Bua Loy, also from Thailand with the creamy coconut sauce.