Thai Mango Chicken

Mango Chicken
stu_spivack/Flickr
  • Total: 30 mins
  • Prep: 15 mins
  • Cook: 15 mins
  • Yield: 4 servings Thai mango chicken
Ratings (53)

By Darlene Schmidt

Updated 10/24/18

This Thai recipe for mango chicken tastes like a deep-fried dish but is much easier to make, plus lower in calories and fat.

Slices of flour-dusted chicken are pan-fried, then simmered in a tangy mango sauce. Fresh ripe mangos work best in this recipe, the taste is well worth the effort.

This dish works equally well for a family meal or when entertaining.

What You'll Need

  • For the Mango Sauce:
  • 2 fresh ripe mangos (fruit scooped out or substitute 2 cups frozen or canned mango)
  • 1 red chili (de-seeded and diced, or 1 teaspoon chili sauce or 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed chili)
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar (or white or apple cider)
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 1/2 lime (juiced)
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1 thumb-size piece galangal or ginger (sliced)
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
  • 2 kaffir lime leaves (snipped into slivers with scissors (discard stem and central vein), or zest of 1 lime)
  • For the Chicken:
  • 1 cup flour (all-purpose or rice flour)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 to 3 chicken breasts (cut into 2-inch-long pieces—chicken thighs work too)
  • 1/4 cup oil for pan-frying
  • 1 red bell pepper or 1 sweet red pepper
  • 1/2 to 1 mango (cut into chunks)
  • 3 to 4 tablespoons coconut milk or water
  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh coriander

How to Make It

Make the Mango Sauce

  1. Place 2 ripe mango chunks, red chili, rice vinegar, soy sauce, fish sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, galangal, garlic, turmeric, and kaffir lime leaves in a food processor or blender. Process well, until more or less smooth.
  2. Taste the sauce. The goal is to reach a balance of sweet, sour, spicy, and salty. Add more sugar if you find the sauce too sour (this will depend on the sweetness of your mangoes). If not spicy enough, add more chili. If not salty/flavorful enough, add more fish sauce. If too salty or too sweet, add more lime juice. Set aside.

    Make the Chicken

    1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add the chicken pieces and turn or gently stir them to coat.
    2. Heat a wok or frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil, then begin frying the chicken pieces, 3 to 5 minutes per side, or until light golden brown and cooked through. Remove chicken from pan and set on a paper towel.
    3. Wash out the wok/frying pan, or use another (clean) one. Set over medium-high heat and add the mango sauce plus red pepper. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce to a simmer (medium to low heat).
    4. If sauce becomes too thick, add 3 to 4 tablespoons water or coconut milk. Simmer 3 to 4 minutes, or until the pepper has softened slightly but still retains some crispness.
    5. Add the fried chicken pieces, gently stirring them into the sauce. If desired, add chunks of mango (fruit of 1/2 to 1 ripe mango). Simmer briefly, just until everything is hot.
    6. Do a final taste-test for salt, tasting the sauce together with the chicken. Add a little more fish sauce or chili if desired.
    7. Transfer to a serving dish. Sprinkle with fresh coriander and serve with plenty of Thai jasmine-scented rice. For an extra special treat, use easy coconut rice.
    Nutritional Guidelines (per serving)
    927 Calories
    43g Fat
    60g Carbs
    76g Protein
    (Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)