Mango Sago is a refreshing and satisfying summer dessert, with juicy chunks of mango and a mango/coconut milk tapioca pudding. The glug of heavenly condensed milk doesn’t hurt either!
Inspired by Honeymoon Dessert
This is another dessert copycat off the menu of famed Asian dessert chain, Honeymoon Dessert. (Though you may have seen mango sago elsewhere as well.) Until they expand to the US, we’ll have to keep whipping up our own at home!
When we lived in Beijing, we spent countless lazy summer afternoons in big air conditioned malls, enjoying a bowl of Honeymoon Dessert concoctions with red beans, sticky rice, vanilla and green tea ice cream, grass jelly, mango, and tapioca.
We also indulged in Honeymoon dessert during our last visit to Hong Kong. See our travel post on the Top 10 Things to Do in Hong Kong. Satisfying our cravings at Honeymoon Dessert was thing #7!
If you’re looking for more Honeymoon Dessert-style recipes, check out our Mango Black Sticky Rice Dessert and Grass Jelly Dessert recipes.
An Easy & Healthy Summer Dessert
Mango sago is a delicious tropical-tasting dessert, and it’s also quite healthy! If you wanted to make this vegan, you can simply replace the condensed milk with simple syrup or agave.
It’s also so easy to make. Much easier than a cake, I think! The hardest part is peeling and cutting the mango. You might think cooking tapioca is difficult, but not so! I just boiled these tiny tapioca in boiling water for about 15 minutes.
To see pictures of the type of tapioca I used here, check out our Coconut Tapioca Dessert recipe.
If you like your Mango Sago cold, chill the mango mixture for an hour before adding the tapioca. Just keep in mind that colder temperatures reduce the sweetness, so you may need to add more condensed milk to taste if serving this very cold.
Mango Sago Recipe Instructions
In a pot, bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Add the mini pearl tapioca (don’t add it before the water is at a full boil!). Stir and bring it to boil again.
Simmer for 15 minutes, or until the tapioca is completely transparent, which means they’re fully cooked.
(A common mistake is to take them off the heat while they still have a small white dot at the center. They should be completely translucent.)
When the tapioca is cooked through, drain, rinse in cold water to cool, then soak in a bowl of cold water and set aside.
Peel the mango, trimming to remove the center pit. Set aside a large handful of nice chunks for topping. The rest will be blended.
In a blender, add the coconut milk, condensed milk, vanilla extract, and mango.
Blend until smooth, and transfer to a large bowl. At this stage, if you like your dessert cold, chill the mango mixture for at least an hour before adding the tapioca.
When you’re ready to serve, pour the mango mixture into serving bowls.
Drain the cooked tapioca, and add to the mango mixture. Top with mango chunks.
Mango Sago
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup small-sized uncooked tapioca (about 60g)
- 3 ripe mangos (about 1 kg)
- 200 ml unsweetened coconut milk (1/2 of a 13.5 oz. can)
- 60 ml sweetened condensed milk (1/4 cup, or more to taste if you like it sweeter)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a pot, bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Add the mini pearl tapioca (don’t add it before the water is at a full boil!). Stir and bring it to boil again. Simmer for 15 minutes, or until the tapioca is completely transparent, which means they’re fully cooked.
- When the tapioca is cooked through, drain, rinse in cold water to cool, then soak in a bowl of cold water and set aside.
- Meanwhile, peel the mango, trimming to remove the center pit. Set aside a large handful of nice chunks for topping. The rest will be blended.
- In a blender, add the coconut milk, condensed milk, vanilla extract, and mango. Blend until smooth, and transfer to a large bowl. At this stage, if you like your dessert cold, chill the mango mixture for at least an hour before adding the tapioca.
- When you’re ready to serve, drain the cooked tapioca, and add to the mango mixture. Scoop into individual bowls and top with mango chunks.
nutrition facts
Wow! I had only an approximate of the ingredients so I ended up doing this with two (largish) mangos, half a can of coconut cream ^.^ and a dash of honey. So intensely satisfying and easy! There were a lot of wide eyes and happy humming around the table. I will be making this again.
Yayyyy! Group hugs :-)
Can you replace or ommit the condensed milk, we are dairy free.
Hi Jo, you can use sweetened coconut milk instead of non-sweetened until it reaches the right consistency that you like.
Hi, Could you please tell me how to pick out a ripe mango, I’ve had mango in other dishes but I’ve never actually made anything myself using mangos. Also could you tell me how much mango to use in cups (I don’t know metric)?
I’ve love every recipe I’ve tried on your site and am looking forward to making this. Thanks!!
Hi Nina, I usually just give a mango a gentle squeeze. It’s ripe if it gives a little. FYI, 3 mangos should be about two and a quarter lbs. I did not use cups to measure this time.
Hi Judy, thanks for the quick reply! Going shopping tomorrow so I’ll get my ingredients. Can’t wait to try this. Thanks again.
I made this last night for the family and followed the recipe exactly except I didn’t set aside any mango for topping (wanted maximum flavour!). It was refreshing and perfect for the heatwave on the west coast.
I know, Helen, it’s a great summer dessert.
I made this last night. It was the perfect dessert to eat alfresco during this heatwave! It’s a little soupy though. Any tips for thickening it to be more like pudding?
I am so glad, Carolyn, you should drain more water off the tapioca before adding it!