Ever woken up and thought, “Good gravy, what would happen if mangoes and chicken had a baby on a bed of coconut rice?” Me neither, until last Tuesday when I was elbow-deep in a pile of unused tropical fruit and staring down some chicken that was on its last leg (not literally the chicken’s leg, though that would work fine in this recipe too). I’ve been cooking professionally-adjacent for about 17 years, or maybe 12 if you don’t count my catastrophic catering phase. Anyway, this Tropical Coconut Chicken Rice Bowl isn’t just dinner—it’s what I call a “pan-dance miracle,” where ingredients that have no business being together somehow create harmonious flavor matrimony. You’ll just have to trust me on this one, folks. It’s stupid good.
My Kitchen Confession (Or How This Recipe Actually Happened)
So there I was, April 2nd of 2019, standing in my kitchen wearing mismatched socks and contemplating whether pineapple and soy sauce could ever truly be friends. The answer is HECK YES, but I’m getting ahead of myself. This recipe emerged after a particularly disastrous attempt at making a traditional Thai curry that ended with my smoke alarm giving a 20-minute solo performance and my cat refusing to enter the kitchen for three days straight. Jeanie (my grandmother’s best friend’s cousin) had always sworn that coconut milk makes everything better—”It’s not soup, Sharla, it’s salvation in a can!”—and dang if she wasn’t right.
I first tried making this bowl with quinoa instead of rice (blech—too earthy-crunchy for the tropical vibe I was chassin’). Then I went through a phase of using WAY too much ginger (my tongue still remembers). The evolution took a weird detour when I lived in Tucson where humidity was so low that rice never seemed to cook right (???). I eventually nailed down this version of the Tropical Coconut Chicken Rice Bowl last summer during a particularly sweat-inducing heat wave when turning on the oven seemed like an actual criminal offense (is it just me or does food taste better when you’re slightly miserable while making it?).
Grab These Goodies (aka Ingredients)
- 1½ cups jasmine rice (or whatever white rice is hiding in your pantry—I won’t judge)
- 1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk—THE FULL-FAT KIND, people! Diet coconut milk is basically sad water
- 3/4 cup chicken broth (homemade if you’re showing off, from a carton if you’re normal)
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or whatever fat makes your heart sing
- 1 pound-ish chicken thighs, boneless & skinless (breasts work too but they’re more temperamental than my Aunt Deedee)
- 1 ripe-bordering-on-suspicious mango, peeled and chunkified
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced into half-moons (or triangles if you’re feeling adventurous!)
- 3 green onions, chopped using the Wexler method (meaning: chaotically)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed through that garlic thing nobody knows the actual name of
- 1 thumb-sized nub of ginger, grated (about 1½ tablespoons if you’re boring and measuring)
- 2-3 tbsp soy sauce (or gluten-free tamari if gluten hates you)
- Juice from 1 lime + extra wedges for serving (the more the merrier, frankly)
- A fistful of cilantro, roughly torn (controversial herb, I know—substitute flat-leaf parsley if cilantro tastes like soap to you, you poor genetic mutant)
Let’s Get Cooking (Or Whatever We’re Calling This Controlled Chaos)
First & Foremost) Rinse that rice, friends. I’m talking REALLY rinse it—until the water runs clear-adjacent. This is non-negotiable unless you enjoy glue-textured rice. Combine your thoroughly rinsed rice with 1 cup coconut milk and the chicken broth in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then immediately drop to a whisper-simmer, cover, and let it do its thing for about 15 minutes or until the liquid disappears and the rice has gone from crunchy bullets to actual edible food.
B) While that magic’s happening, prep your chicken. Cut it into bite-sized chunks and season with salt and a bit of pepper. One time I dropped the entire pepper grinder into the bowl and had to pick out the biggest pieces—still tasted fine, honestly.
3rd Step) Heat the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until it’s shimmering but not doing that scary smoking thing. Add the chicken pieces without crowding them (crowded chicken gets steamy rather than browny—I learned this the embarrassing way at a dinner party in 2017). Cook until they’re golden on the outside and not trying to kill anyone on the inside, about 6-7 minutes depending on your stove’s personality.
Fourth action) Remove the chicken to a plate. In the same pan (because dishes are stupid), add the bell pepper and sauté until it’s starting to soften but still has some backbone, about 3 min. Toss in the garlic and ginger and stir for 30 seconds or until your kitchen smells like heaven’s waiting room. Don’t let the garlic burn or else you’ll have to start over and probably cry a little.
FIVE!!) Return the chicken to the pan, add the soy sauce and the remaining coconut milk. Let it bubble-dance for about 2 minutes until slightly thickened. (This is where the pan-dance miracle happens—watch closely and you might see the ingredients do a little shimmy.) Add the mango chunks and half the green onions, just heat through because mushy mango is a crime against humanity.
LAST ONE) Off the heat, squeeze in that lime juice and give everything a gentle stir. Taste it—does it make your taste buds do a happy dance? If not, add more soy sauce or lime juice until it does.
Notes & Wisdom (From My Kitchen Disasters to Your Success)
• CONTROVERSIAL BUT TRUE: Adding coconut milk to the rice AND the chicken might seem redundant, but trust me—it creates what I call “flavor cohesion.” My cooking instructor at the community college would absolutely hate this advice, but she also wore crocs in the kitchen, so…
• The rice will keep cooking after you take it off the heat! I’ve ruined countless batches by forgetting this simple fact. If it seems slightly undercooked when you check, LEAVE IT ALONE for 5 more minutes with the lid on.
• For meal prep, keep components separate until serving time. Otherwise, the mango gets weird and the rice absorbs all the sauce like some kind of carb-sponge. Check out this great food storage guide
• If your mango isn’t quite ripe, place it in a paper bag with a banana overnight. This ripening trick works because of ethylene gas or something scientific—I just know it works. Learn more about fruit ripening here
• Vegetarian variation? Swap the chicken for crispy tofu or just double up on the mango and add some roasted cashews. Different dinner, still delicious.
Kitchen Gear That Won’t Let You Down
JOYCE’S BAMBOO CUTTING BOARD ★★★★★
I named my cutting board Joyce and she’s been with me through thick and thin for 8 years.
Joyce has survived numerous dishwasher cycles even though that’s apparently forbidden by bamboo board manufacturers.
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GCHJB6X
ANCIENT RICE COOKER FROM 1997 ★★★★★
This discontinued beast has exactly one button and makes perfect rice despite making threatening noises.
I’ve duct-taped the cord twice and it’s outlasted relationships, apartments, and my will to follow instructions.
If you can’t find one at a garage sale, any basic rice cooker will work—or just use a pot with a lid like a normal human.
Make It Your Own (But My Way Is Best, Obviously)
Caribbean Twist: Swap the mango for pineapple and add a scotch bonnet pepper if you’re brave (or a quarter teaspoon of cayenne if you’re sensible). The sweet-heat combo will make your Tropical Coconut Chicken Rice Bowl sing in your mouth—though probably not literally, which would be terrifying.
Desperation Version: Canned chicken, microwave rice packets, and canned pineapple tidbits will work in absolute emergencies. I made this during a power outage using a camping stove and it was… edible? That’s all I’ll commit to.
Winter Adaptation: When good mangoes are nowhere to be found (looking at you, January in Minnesota), use frozen mango chunks but thaw and drain them first—otherwise your beautiful sauce becomes mango soup, which is an entirely different recipe I haven’t perfected yet.
The Question Everyone Asks
Q: Can I make this Tropical Coconut Chicken Rice Bowl ahead of time for meal prep?
A: You absolutely can, but with one critical caveat that nobody else will tell you: always under-cook the rice by about 3 minutes when prepping ahead. Rice continues its cooking journey long after the heat is off—I call this “ghost cooking.” When you reheat your meal, the rice will finish cooking instead of turning to mush. Also, keep the fresh mango separate until serving time unless you enjoy the texture of tropical baby food. I learned this after a week of increasingly disappointing lunches during my “meal prep obsession phase” of February 2021.
The Last Bite
This Tropical Coconut Chicken Rice Bowl has saved me from the drive-thru more times than I care to admit. There’s something fundamentally satisfying about the combination of creamy coconut, juicy chicken, and sweet mango that makes you feel like you’re doing something right in life, even if your laundry has been sitting in the dryer for three days. Will this recipe fix your life problems? No. Will it make your Tuesday dinner something to look forward to? Absolutely.
What other unlikely ingredients might create harmony in a bowl? Could pickle juice and chocolate ever find common ground? These are the questions that keep me up at night.
Until next time, may your rice be fluffy and your mangoes be sweet!
Chef Maddie R. – Finalist in the completely imaginary “Best Use of Tropical Ingredients While Wearing Pajamas” cooking competition, 2023
