The classic Thai dessert known as Khao Niaow Ma Muang (Mango Sticky Rice) is heavenly and scrumptious. Famously served as street food in Thailand and at Thai restaurants throughout the world, the taste of this tropical rice pudding is irresistible.
Before We Start
Thai sticky rice is best cooked using a traditional steamer pot and a bamboo steamer basket. This method is the aged-old, proven, and true method that Thai people have used in Thailand for generations. I found mine at the Maleenee Asian Grocery in Wangaratta.

What is Sticky Rice?
Sticky rice is a Thai glutinous long-grain white rice used extensively in Thai, Laos, Cambodia, and other Asian countries. Once cooked, the rice grains expand and soften, and they have a sticky texture that glues the grains together, and they can be rolled into little balls to eat with your fingers.
How Sticky Rice is different from other rice?
Sticky rice is very different to other types of rice used in Thai cooking and it is important to know the right type of rice to use. Sticky rice must be soaked in water for at least 4 hours before it’s steamed. Traditionally when cooking sticky rice, the water never touches the grains once they are on the stovetop. You can easily tell sticky rice apart because other types of rice do not have the obvious glue-like texture of sticky rice once cooked.
Is Jasmine rice sticky rice?
NO. Jasmine rice is not the same as sticky rice. It doesn’t have the look or texture of cooked or uncooked sticky rice. Sticky rice grains are milky white in color and have a slightly thicker grain than Jasmine rice. Sticky rice also requires absorption of water, by soaking it for a few hours to soften the grains before it’s steamed, not boiled, for cooking. Jasmine rice, on the hand, doesn’t need soaking and can be cooked directly with water in a rice cooker or pot.
Sticky Rice Substitutes
There is no substitute for Thai sticky rice. However, two other types of rice are sticky and can be used to make sticky rice. Japanese sweet rice, a shorter grain of rice, and black sticky rice. Black sticky rice (red or purple sticky rice) is dark, whole-grained rice mixed with white sticky rice to make purple rice.
Lets Get Started Making The Sticky Rice
Ingredients
2 cups sticky rice, uncooked
8-10 cups water.
Method
Wash the sticky rice by adding the rice and some cold water into a mixing bowl. Use your fingers to swoosh the rice grains in the water to help loosen up the grains and starch. Your water will be a cloudy, milky water. Rinse the water out and repeat this step 4-5 times until your water is mostly clear. Use a strainer to catch the rice grains when pouring if you don’t want to lose rice grains.
Soak the rice in cold water for a minimum of 5 hours at room temperature up to overnight for the best result. Don’t soak the rice longer than 24 hours.
To steam the rice, fill the bottom of the steamer pot with enough water to steam the rice for up to 20-25 minutes without the water drying out. This will be anywhere from 8-12 cups, depending on the size of your pot. A larger pot will require more water and also more cooking time. The water level should be low enough not to let the bottom of the bamboo basket touch it. Allow at least 2 inches of space between the water and the bamboo basket.
Wash, drain, and rinse the soaked rice before steaming. Put the rice into the bamboo basket, place the basket over the stainless steel pot, then cover the rice with a lid before steaming for 15-20min.
Check your rice 15 minutes into the steaming. If the rice looks translucent and shiny, carefully take a small piece of cooked rice with a long fork or wooden spoon to see how it tastes. Be very careful of the hot steam!
The sticky rice should be cooked on the el dente side but not crunchy. If you love it, it’s done. If not, cook for 5-10 more minutes.
You now neeed to flip the rice. Carefully remove the basket steamer from the stainless steel pot, and remove the lid. It’s going to be hot. Slowly flip the rice ball until the rounded bottom part of the rice is on top. Use a fork or wooden spoon to fluff the rice to let moisture and steam evaporate so the rice is not mushy. Leave it briefly, then cover with the lid and place the bamboo basket back into the pot of water. Be careful of the boiling water.
Steam the rice for 5-10 more minutes until the rice is soft and chewy. Turn the heat off, remove the rice basket from the pot, and set it on a steaming rack or on the sink.
Preparing The Sauces
There are two parts to this delicious dessert, but both are prepared very similarly. The sweet rice part and then the sauce that goes on top.
First Part: The Sweet Coconut Rice
2 cups cooked sticky rice
1 cup coconut cream
⅓ cup sugar
⅓ teaspoon salt
Heat a saucepan over medium heat. Add the coconut cream, sugar, and salt and stir until soft boiling, then turn the heat off and let it cool. Place the cooked rice into the sauce. Mix through and then let the rice soak in the coconut sauce for 15-20min.
Second Part: The Sauce For Topping And The Mango
1 ½ cup coconut cream
⅓ cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon tapioca flour, rice flour, or any thickening flour
2 mangoes, skin peeled and sliced the meaty part into thin slices
Combine coconut cream, sugar, salt, and tapioca flour in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk together well and often to prevent the sauce from clumping. It should take about 3-5 minutes to cook.
Once the sugar dissolves and your sauce has a thick consistency, remove it from the heat and let it cool slightly.
While waiting for the coconut sauce mixture to cool, peel the mango and use only the meaty part to serve with the sticky rice. Make sure your mango is ripe. Slice or cut into bite-sized pieces.
Scoop some warm rice into each serving bowl, then arrange the mango on the rice. Drizzle the sweet coconut sauce over the top and served with a chilled glass of Pfeiffer Rutherglen Topaque.
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