Mango + Rice Breakfast Bowl: Longing for Summer

As a largely seasonal eater, I had considered saving this recipe until the summer. But when the grocery store hands you ripe mangoes (and the cold weather continues to bring chilly days and snow) there is something significant about eating in hopeful anticipation.

If you like Thai food, you may be familiar with the lovely dessert of mango and sticky rice. If you’ve never tried this—and may be feeling a bit skeptical—let me invite you to try a flavor and texture combination that is unmatched. It really is very special. The bright, tangy acidity of the mango against the creamy, starchy nuttiness of the rice—and all this sweetened by rich coconut oil—is splendid.

This breakfast bowl is utterly simple and is based on those flavors and textures. Feel free to use whatever rice you please—brown rice (I used brown jasmine rice here), black rice, red rice . . . you can even use white (though I encourage venturing into other types if you’ve not tried them before; they’re tastier and pack a nutritional punch).

Whether eaten in the midst of the long, sunshiny days of summer, or in hopeful anticipation of them, I hope you enjoy.

Recipe

Serves 4 (or 2 for two days)

Mango + Rice Breakfast Bowl

INGREDIENTS

1 cup rice, dry, uncooked

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 tsp. salt

1 large mango or 2 small, peeled, flesh removed from pit, and cubed

1 T. coconut oil

*optional add-ins: cacao nibs, cashew yogurt, unsweetened coconut flakes, walnuts (*But I urge you to try it plain, with no add-ins, to start. It’s that good. . . . And I’m kind of a purist.)

INSTRUCTIONS

Cook the rice. I often soak my rice for 8 – 12 hours before I cook it. You can skip this step and cook it straightaway if you like. (If soaking, soak overnight with the 1 1/2 cups of water, and start cooking that same mixture.) Cook the rice in the water, adding the salt when the water comes to a boil. Cook according to instructions (various rices take different amounts of time.)
Prepare the mango. While the rice cooks, peel and slice your mango. I like to use a “Y-peeler” (think “potato peeler”) to remove the skin before slicing off the “cheeks” from the pit. Be careful. It’s slippery. Use a sharp knife and caution.
Mix and serve. Mix in the coconut oil when the rice is finished cooking (I like to let it sit off heat for about 5 minutes after it’s finished cooking before “fluffing” it.) Dish up rice into bowls, top with mango, and enjoy!