29 Mango Recipes Full of Bright, Sunny Flavor
If this collection of mango recipes doesn’t inspire you to run to the nearest cutting board, you’re made of stronger stuff than most. The golden-hued tropical fruit has the versatility to take center stage or play a supporting role in frosty summer drinks, crunchy salads, creamy chia puddings, dinner-party-worthy desserts, and beyond. Its faint floral notes are especially welcome with spicy and tangy dishes, and our go-to mango salsas and slaws perk up everything from grilled fish or lamb to cozy grain bowls.
How to find the best mangoes
When shopping for mangoes, look for fruit that feels heavy for its size. Give it a gentle squeeze to make sure the flesh beneath the skin is soft (an underripe mango will feel rock-hard). If your yellow-skinned mangoes look slightly wrinkled, don’t fret: it’s a sign that they’re juicy, sweet, and ready to peel and eat.
To get the most out of your grocery dollar and avoid wasting even a bite of precious golden fruit, check out our guide to cutting and prepping mangoes.
Store firm mangoes at room temperature. Once they ripen, keep them in the fridge for up to three days.
Ready to put that flawless fruit to use? Here are our favorite mango recipes.
The recipes below are arranged in the following order: cocktails, relishes, salads, sides, breakfast ideas, desserts.
Photo by Travis Rainey, Food Styling by Maggie Ruggiero, Prop Styling by Linden Elstran1/29Spicy Mango Margarita
Photograph by Heami Lee, food styling by Frances Boswell, prop styling by Sophie Strangio2/29Sweet and Salty Mango Lassi
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Eliza Mozer3/29Mango and Greens Smoothie
Frozen fruit requires zero prep time and is available year-round, so you can throw together this mango smoothie recipe whenever the mood strikes. Use baby or mature spinach or kale, and add a spoonful of yogurt, almond butter, or avocado chunks for extra protein.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca4/29Mango-Lime Spritzer
This nonalcoholic cocktail comes together in minutes and makes the most of juicy ripe mangoes. Adjust the amounts of honey and lime juice to taste, and lengthen it with as much sparkling water as you like.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca6/29Mango Salsa
This six-ingredient recipe is endlessly riffable: Stir in crunchy red bell peppers or creamy avocado chunks, ditch the tomatoes, or use lemon juice instead of lime. Serve it as an appetizer with tortilla chips, spoon it onto fish tacos, or treat it as a condiment for grilled chicken or grain bowls.
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Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Caroline Hwang, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime.8/29Mango With Fried Shallots
Store-bought fried shallots add fuss-free crunch in this five-ingredient dish loosely inspired by Thai yum mamuang. Use jalapeños or Fresno chiles, and sub in any type of chopped mango at any stage of ripeness.
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Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Chris Morocco and Tom Cunanan, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime11/29Tomato and Mango Salad in Aguachile
Fresh mangoes, juicy tomatoes, and easy-to-find canned hearts of palm tap in for the traditional raw shrimp in this vegetarian spin on aguachile, a spicy relative of ceviche. Blitz the tomatillos, chiles, and lime juice up to two days ahead so all that’s left to do is chop, toss, and serve.
Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Aneta Florczyk12/29Honeydew, Jicama, and Mango Salad
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Tim Ferro13/29Mango Sticky Rice
Photograph by Maria Be, food styling by Thu Buser, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua14/29Yogurt-Marinated Lamb Chops With Mango Chutney
The easy, two-part marinade in this recipe locks in flavor, and basting chops with melted butter while you’re grilling keeps them meltingly tender. Fix the mango chutney up to a week in advance, and try it with other dishes in your rotation, like spicy biryani, bean salads, or grilled cheese sandwiches.
Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Amy Wilson15/29Grilled Spiced Snapper With Mango and Red Onion Salad
Photo by Travis Rainey, Food Styling by Taneka Morris, Prop Styling by Tim Ferro16/29Matcha-Mango Chia Pudding
Kimberley Hasselbrink17/29Greek Yogurt With Spiced Pepita and Cashew Crunch and Mango
Use garam masala or curry powder in the crunchy cashew topping for this easy mango breakfast, and consider making extra to sprinkle onto roasted veggies or steaming bowls of soup. Swap in almond or coconut milk yogurt to make it vegan.
Photograph by Elliott Jerome Brown Jr., Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Gerri Williams18/29Mango Bread
This tender, moist quick bread is easy to customize. Swap in light brown sugar to give it a caramelly undertone, or fold in chopped walnuts, shredded coconut, or golden raisins. Serve it for breakfast or as an afternoon snack, or bring individually wrapped slices to a bake sale and watch them disappear immediately.
Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Stephanie Yeh19/29Coconut-Mango-Lime Barfi
One bowl, no-bake, and easy to make ahead? This chewy, tangy, and fruity mango dessert delivers on all fronts.
Photo by Rick Martinez20/29Caramelized Plantain Parfait
This four-ingredient recipe comes together in minutes on the stovetop and is easy to customize with whatever crunchy toppings you like. If you’re lucky enough to live near a Caribbean or Latin American market, short, fat plátanos manzanos caramelize beautifully—giving crème brûlée vibes without the torch.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Beth Pakradooni22/29Mango-Yogurt Mousse
23/29Mango-Chile Ice
Photo by Alex Lau24/29Fruit Sandwiches
Thick slices of pillowy Japanese milk bread give these fruit sandos their signature squish; look for it online or at Asian bakeries, or bake a loaf at home. Customize your filling with sliced ripe mangoes, kiwis, strawberries, yellow peaches, or a combination.
Photo by Alex Lau, Styling by Sue Li25/29Mango-Yogurt Pudding With Lucuma and Chia Seeds
No lucuma powder (a naturally sweet, high-fiber supplement made from the dried pulp of a tropical fruit)? No problem: Adjust this easy recipe to taste with more agave, maple syrup, or plain ol’ sugar.
Photograph by Scott Semler, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie Yeh26/29Mango-Sumac Yogurt Semifreddo
Folding whipped cream into rich yogurt or labneh gives this semifreddo an airier texture than ice cream, and there’s no specialty equipment to lug out of your hardest-to-reach cabinets. The unexpected flavor combo turns skeptics into believers—“I wasn’t sure how the mango and sumac and chocolate would work together, but this is fantastic,” one BA reader writes—but you can mix it up with raspberries and cardamom or plums and black pepper.
Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Sophie Strangio28/29Tropical Trifle With Coconut and Rum
This creamy mango dessert from Lil’ Deb’s Oasis in Hudson, New York, features a high-low combo of velvety pudding, store-bought cookies, and rum-soaked fresh fruit. We went with mangoes, bananas, and star fruit, but you could sub in passion fruit, pineapple, kiwi, or other cubed or sliced tropical fruits.
Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou and Natasha Pickowicz, prop styling by Rebecca Bartoshesky29/29Vanilla Layer Cake With Mango Curd
This five-star mango recipe has it all: tequila-soaked vanilla cake, luscious buttercream frosting, and a sweet mango curd filling that’s set with gelatin so that it doesn’t ooze out when you cut. Breaking up the components and preparing them days in advance makes tackling the layer cake more manageable.
