Mango Rice Recipe

Updated: August 19, 2023, By Swasthi

Mango Rice is a South Indian dish made with precooked rice, raw green mangoes, tempering spices and curry leaves. This Mango Rice is simple to make and is similar to the way we make Lemon Rice and Coconut Rice. It tastes tangy, slightly hot and flavorsome. It’s delicious on its own and you won’t need any sides at all. If you prefer something on the side, serve it with crispy papads, chips, Pakora or Masala Vada. Also a bowl of fresh yogurt or a Vegetable Salad makes your meal complete & more filling.

Mango rice

Recipe Comments

Indians make plenty of dishes with raw green mangoes when they are in season. Apart from this mango rice, Mango Pickle, Mango Dal, Mango Chutney, Aam panna are some of the many ways to use green unripe mangoes.

Mango Rice

Mango Rice is a popular summer dish commonly made in the Southern Indian states – Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. It is a dish made primarily with rice, green unripe sour mangoes, herbs and spices. In Telugu it is Known ad Mamidikaya pulihora and in Karnataka it is known as Mavinakayi Chitranna.

As with many other dishes, Mango Rice is also made in numerous ways and every region and household may have a different way to make it. The recipe shared here is the way my Mom would make and you will surely love this for its simplicity.

Remember the lovely flavors of South Indian tempering? Fresh curry leaves, ginger, green chilies, lentils and mustard seeds together fried in oil releases plenty of flavors. This dish has exactly the same flavors with an extra punch from the mangoes.

For this we first cook the rice to a grainy texture but fully cooked like it is done for lemon rice or any variety rice dishes. We temper the spices and then cook the mangoes in the tempering.

It is then later mixed with the precooked rice. You can also make this mixture ahead, cool and store in a glass jar in the refrigerator for few weeks. Use it when required to mix with your precooked rice.

Basically any kind of sour mangoes that are unripe are best to use in this recipe. On occasions I have also made this with about to ripen mangoes and it tastes just good as long as the mango is still sour.

You may check this post for more Rice Recipes.

green mango used to make mango rice

Photo Guide

How to Make Mango Rice (Stepwise Photos)

Preparation

1. This recipe makes about 4 servings, you can scale down as needed. But the amount of mango to use depends on the variety or sourness of the mango. Wash, soak and cook 2 cups rice the way you would cook your rice regularly. The cooked rice must be grainy, yet fully cooked and not mushy. Cool it down.

cooked rice in a bowl

2. Wash, peel and grate a mango. If you have a food processer you can also just add the mango pieces and grate them. Update: Lately I have started to make this rice with cooked mango. I just peel, chop and add the pieces to a bowl. Cover and place it in the pressure cooker over the rice bowl (PIP). Once cooked I mash it and use below.

grated mangoes

Tempering

3. Heat about 1 tbsp oil in a pan. Fry peanuts on a medium heat until golden and aromatic. Remove them to a plate for garnishing later.

4. Pour another 2 tablespoons oil. Add chana dal, urad dal, mustard seeds and red chilies.

5. Add thinly sliced ginger (optional), chopped green chilies and curry leaves. Saute everything until the curry leaves turn crisp. Add hing. I usually set aside some of the fried green chilies to add at a later stage if needed.

6. Lower the heat completely and add mango (grated or cooked), salt and turmeric.

7. Mix and saute for 2 to 3 minutes.

8. Skip this step if using pressure cooked mangoes. Lower the flame completely and cook covered. Stir in between. Mango must be cooked completely, turn soft & begin to leave the sides of the pan. If your mango is very dry with no moisture to cook, you may sprinkle a tbsp of water. Stir and cook covered.

9. At this step you can also add a generous pinch of mustard powder. It is optional. If you like to save it for later use, Once cooled completely you can store it in a glass jar and refrigerate.

To make Karnataka style mavinakayi chitranna, add 1 cup grated coconut and handful of finely chopped coriander leaves towards the end of sautéing the mango.

Make Mango Rice

10. Add this little by little to the cooled rice and mix well. Taste test and adjust salt and oil. Do not use less oil, the rice will turn out very dry.

12. Add more mango & mix as required until it comes to your liking. Mix it up gently. I used up the entire cooked mango mix here. You may be left with more mango mixture if your mango is too sour, you can bottle that and refrigerate. Use within few weeks.

Garnish with roasted peanuts. Serve mango rice with papad or veg salad.

Mango rice made with rice spices green mangoes

Related Recipes

Recipe Card

mango rice

Mango Rice Recipe

4.98 from 47 votes
This Mango rice is a traditional South Indian dish made with precooked rice, raw green unripe mangoes tempering spices and curry leaves. It tastes slightly tangy, hot and flavorful.
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For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card

Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Servings4
AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (US cup = 240ml )

  • 2 cups rice
  • 1 raw unripe green mango (Sour, medium sized)
  • 1 to 2 sprigs curry leaves
  • 3 to 4 green chilies slit or chopped
  • 1 to 2 dried red chilies broken
  • ⅖ to 1 teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric (prefer organic)
  • ¼ cup peanuts or cashewnuts
  • 1 tablespoon chana dal (bengal gram)
  • 1 tablespoon urad dal (skinned split black gram)
  • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 1 inch ginger chopped, sliced, grated
  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • 1 pinch hing (⅛ teaspoon asafetida)


Instructions

Preparation

  • Cook rice to grainy texture: Add rice to a bowl & rinse it a few times. Pour 4 cups water & place the bowl in a pressure cooker. Cover the bowl & pressure cook for 3 whistles.
  • When the pressure drops, remove the rice & cool completely.  
  • Wash, peel and grate or chop the mango. You can also grate in a processor. Update: Lately I have started to make this with cooked mango. I just peel, cut and add them to a bowl. Cover and place it in the pressure cooker over the rice bowl (PIP). Once cooked I mash it and use as mentioned below.

How to Make Mango Rice

  • Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan and fry the peanuts on a medium heat until aromatic and golden. Remove them to a plate for later.
  • Pour 2 tablespoons more oil and heat it. Add chana dal, urad dal, mustard seeds and dried red chilli.
  • When the lentils turn light golden, add ginger, green chilies & curry leaves. Fry till the curry leaves become crisp, then add hing.
  • Add mango, salt and turmeric. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Cook covered until the mango turns mushy, completely soft & pulpy. (skip this with cooked mango.)
  • Add this to the cooked rice little by little and begin to mix. Taste test and add more mango mixture as required. Adjust salt and oil at this stage.
  • Transfer mango rice to serving plates and garnish with roasted peanuts.


Video

NUTRITION INFO (estimation only)

Nutrition Facts
Mango Rice Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 636 Calories from Fat 252
% Daily Value*
Fat 28g43%
Saturated Fat 13g81%
Sodium 28mg1%
Potassium 306mg9%
Carbohydrates 83g28%
Fiber 7g29%
Sugar 1g1%
Protein 11g22%
Vitamin C 0.3mg0%
Calcium 39mg4%
Iron 2.3mg13%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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About Swasthi

I’m Swasthi Shreekanth, the recipe developer, food photographer & food writer behind Swasthi’s Recipes. My aim is to help you cook great Indian food with my time-tested recipes. After 2 decades of experience in practical Indian cooking I started this blog to help people cook better & more often at home. Whether you are a novice or an experienced cook I am sure Swasthi’s Recipes will assist you to enhance your cooking skills. More about me

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Lately I have cooked a number of West African recipes and had 1/2 a green mango and cooked rice left in my fridge. An internet search brought me to your delicious MANGO RICE. It is superb. Will make it again and again. Still swooning – just thinking about it. Thanks Swasthi.

Please send variety of mango receipts, it would do world of good

5 stars
Yummy! Came out so good.

Hi Swasthi. I have 2 small unripe mangoes just recently fallen from the tree. Can I use them in this recipe?

Hi Swasthi, how long the mango spice mixture (without adding rice) can be stored in the refrigerator? I would like to make some and keep it in the refrigerator and occasionally mixing a little bit with rice for consumption. I am afraid that the mango spice mixture might grow fungus if it is stored too long. Wondering if you have any knowledge on how long this can be stored without any spoilage. Thanks. Keep up the great work. Rom

Swasthi, thanks very much. Those are very good tips. I will follow them.

5 stars
Awesome recipe.. simple too

Simple & perfect ,!!!!! Thank u!”

Hello Swati. Thanks for posting the recipe. I will definitely try this recipe tomorrow for lunch box..

Hi Swasthi! Thank you for your wonderful recipes. I just have a few questions –
What is “hing” ?
And, when you say “sour raw mango”, is this a certain type of mango, or just any unripe mango?
Here (the Caribbean) we have a few different varieties of mango, some are more fibrous than others, does it matter which one I use?
Thank you! I love your instructions and photos!

Love to try all your recipes ,so simple,so yummyyy.thanku

Great recipe for Summer. I’m definitely trying them in the weekend 🙂

4 stars
super taste of ur recipes swathi