Puree ripe mangoes with chilies, ginger, shallot and cilantro, then stir in fish sauce and coconut milk to make a sweet-spicy dipping sauce for fried or grilled chicken, meat or seafood.
Cook’s notes
I’m Asian and I grew up with one or more dipping sauces on the dining table to accompany every meal, but never have I had a dipping sauce this good. Vietnamese mixed fish sauce used to my favorite but then my daughter, Sam, asked me to make Thai mango chili sauce and, well, being such a mango lover, my preference has shifted.
What makes this sauce so good? The overall flavor, for starters. Together, the sweetness of the mangoes, heat from the chilies and ginger, the incomparable herby goodness of cilantro and a bit of sharpness from raw shallots are enhanced by the addition of a little fish sauce and just enough coconut milk.
And then, there’s the texture of the sauce. Thick. Naturally thick. It’s all the mangoes that go in it, you see. So, when you dip your chicken or shrimp or whatever you’re pairing the sauce with, the sauce coats the food effortlessly and clings to it relentlessly. When the food lands in your mouth, so does a generous amount of mango chili sauce.
Excess mango chili sauce can be stored in the fridge in a tightly covered jar for a day or two.
What makes this sauce so good? The overall flavor, for starters. Together, the sweetness of the mangoes, heat from the chilies and ginger, the incomparable herby goodness of cilantro and a bit of sharpness from raw shallots are enhanced by the addition of a little fish sauce and just enough coconut milk.
And then, there’s the texture of the sauce. Thick. Naturally thick. It’s all the mangoes that go in it, you see. So, when you dip your chicken or shrimp or whatever you’re pairing the sauce with, the sauce coats the food effortlessly and clings to it relentlessly. When the food lands in your mouth, so does a generous amount of mango chili sauce.
For the best flavor balance, use one very ripe mango and one that hasn’t fully ripened yet. You get all the lovely sweetness from the first and bit of tang from the second. See how to skin ripe mango.
No-cook Thai-style mango chili sauce
Equipment
- food processor or blender
Ingredients
- 2 mangoes cut into small cubes
- 2 bird’s eye chilies sliced
- 1 shallot peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 half-inch knob ginger peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 to 4 sprigs cilantro stems and leaves
- ½ teaspoon fish sauce or to taste
- 3 to 4 tablespoons coconut milk
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients, except the fish sauce and coconut milk, in a mini food processor (or blender).
- Process to your desired consistency (some people like ultra smooth sauce; others prefer it chunkier).
- Pour the sauce into a mixing bowl, season with fish sauce and then stir in the coconut milk.
- Serve with grilled or fried chicken, meat or seafood.
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