In March, just before we all went into lockdown, this pirate spent two weeks in northern Thailand eating her fill of delicious khao soi, som tam and khao niao mamuang every day. Grateful to make it home before borders were closed, she nonetheless went into Thai food withdrawal, and the first dish she was compelled to recreate–when a pile of beautiful, ripe mangos met her at the door of her local grocery–was the khao niao, or Thai sticky rice with mango. I’ll work on the curried noodles next, but not sure where I’ll get the particular green papayas they use for som tam…not everything is available on Amazon!
I’ll ask up front that you forgive the photo quality from down in the galley … this is what it looked like right before I went below to use steam pressure and sharp knives. A beautiful sail, but a bit rough below decks!
Khao Niao Mamuang
Jump to Recipe1 cup Thai sweet sticky rice
1 can full-fat coconut milk
1/2 cup sugar
Sea salt
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2-3 mangoes
Toasted sesame seeds
The other secret to sticky rice is steaming it rather than boiling. Drain it and put it in a steamer — I’m using my pressure cooker to cut back on time and water a bit. In the pressure cooker, it took about 10 minutes on high pressure. With a regular steamer, bring the water to a boil, cover, and cook until tender, which will take about 20 minutes.
I wasn’t kidding about this all being on a serious heel — that’s my knee bracing me between the companionway and well-gimballed stove to have my hands free to take a picture. Mix the coconut milk well in the can to get the fat evenly distributed, then put half of it in a small saucepan and bring it to a simmer, stirring constantly. Whisk in about 1/4 cup of the sugar and a big pinch of salt to dissolve. The salty-sweet flavor is key to this dish.
Lift the rice out of the steamer — you can see here how sticky it is — and scrape into a large bowl. Pour the warm coconut milk over it, stir to mix through and let it stand until all the liquid is absorbed which should take about 20 minutes, but you can let it sit for a couple of hours while you help with a tack to get on a gentler reach!
When you’re ready to serve, heat the rest of the coconut milk to a simmer and use a few spoonfuls to make a slurry with the cornstarch, then whisk that into the coconut milk with the remaining sugar and another big pinch of salt. Simmer for a few minutes until thickened.
Peel and slice your mangoes and arrange on a platter or individual plates with the sticky rice, then pour the coconut cream over the top and sprinkle with lots of toasted sesame seeds.
Now that you’re on a gentle reach, grab a couple of forks and enjoy! Sawadee ka, pirates.
Thai Mango and Sticky Rice
Ingredients
- 1 cup Thai sticky or sweet rice
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- sea salt or kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2-3 ripe mangoes
- 2-3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Cover the rice with water to a few inches deep and let sit for an hour or overnight. Drain and put in a steamer or pressure cooker, steaming for about 20 minutes or cooking on high pressure for about 10 minutes, until soft but still chewy.
- Stir the coconut milk to combine, then heat half of it in a small saucepan to a simmer. Whisk in half the sugar and a large pinch of salt. Pour over the rice in a large, heat proof bowl and stir well to combine. Let sit for about 20 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed.
- Heat the remaining coconut milk to a simmer, then use a few spoonfuls to make a slurry with the cornstarch. Whisk this into the coconut milk with remaining sugar and another large pinch of salt, stirring and simmering a few minutes until thickened.
- Heap sticky rice on a platter or plates, arrange peeled and sliced mangoes around it, and drizzle with the coconut cream. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve immediately.
Notes
