Recipes

Spicy Green Mango Salad with Toasted Coconut

Yam Ma Muang Ma Prao

Shredded green mango with toasted coconut, dried shrimp, and peanuts in a spicy coconut dressing

Prep

15 min

Cook

5 min

Serves

4

Heat

hot

This southern-style mango salad trades the typical lime-and-fish-sauce dressing for something richer: coconut milk blended with shrimp paste and coconut sugar, whisked with crushed chili until creamy. Toasted shredded coconut mixed directly into the shredded mango adds a nutty crunch and deep golden color, while roughly ground dried shrimp and peanuts bring savory depth and texture. It's a heartier, more substantial take on green mango salad than the cleaner, brighter versions found elsewhere in Thailand, reflecting the richer flavor profile typical of southern Thai cooking.

Ingredients

• 2 Green mango (peeled, shredded into thin strips)
• 1 1/3 cups Dried shrimp (roughly ground)
• 1 1/3 cups Unsweetened dried shredded coconut (toasted golden brown)
• 2 3/4 tablespoons Peanuts, raw (toasted, roughly ground)
• 9 Red shallots (peeled, sliced thin, a few reserved for garnish)
• 7 Thai hot chilies (crushed, left in large pieces)
• 1 1/3 tablespoons Coconut sugar
• 1 1/3 teaspoons Thai shrimp paste
• 2/3 cup Coconut milk

Directions

1. Toast the dried shredded coconut in a clean, dry wok over medium heat, stirring constantly, until evenly golden brown and fragrant.
2. Stir the shrimp paste and coconut sugar into the coconut milk and let it sit while you prep the rest — the shrimp paste needs time to soften enough to blend smoothly.
3. Peel the mango and discard the skin. Shred into long, thin strips using a julienne shredder, working around the flat seed until you have about 2 cups per mango, or enough for the batch.
4. Peel and slice the shallots very thin, saving a few clean slices for garnish.
5. Toast the raw peanuts in a dry pan for a couple of minutes, until nicely browned in spots, if not already toasted.
6. Crush the chilies with a mortar and pestle, just enough to break them up — leave visible chunks for a spicier, more textured salad, or grind finer for a more evenly spread heat.
7. Once the shrimp paste has softened, add the chili to the coconut milk mixture and whisk until smooth and creamy with visible chili chunks. Let it sit again so the chili flavor develops.
8. Grind the dried shrimp roughly with a mortar and pestle, just enough to loosen and flake the edges so they can absorb some dressing. Grind the toasted peanuts until chunky.
9. Mix the toasted coconut into the shredded mango by hand until well combined.
10. Add the shallots, peanuts, and dried shrimp, tossing everything together well.
11. Pour the dressing over and mix until evenly coated.
12. Serve on a shared plate or individual portions, spreading the ingredients evenly. Garnish with reserved shallot slices, a few cilantro tops, and whole red chilies.

Notes

Let the shrimp paste soften in the coconut milk mixture before whisking in the chili — rushing this step leaves gritty, unblended lumps of paste in the finished dressing.

Substitutions

A tart, crisp, unripe mango works best; very sour varieties can be used for extra tang if you prefer. Unsweetened dried shredded coconut, toasted at home, gives the best flavor and color.