Made with 3 ingredients only, this super easy Mango Coulis Recipe is the perfect sweet sauce or topping for desserts, breakfast, cakes or cheesecakes. Packed with fruit, this thick mango sauce is super versatile and can be used in many different ways!
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Why we love this recipe
Topping your favourite breakfast, cake or dessert with this mango coulis is like adding a little bit of sunshine to your plate. Sweet and tangy with tropical flavours, it is the perfect addition to any of your sweet cravings!
This Sweet Mango sauce makes a great dessert or breakfast topping - but I particularly love it as a sauce for Cheesecake or as a Breakfast Topping over pancakes, waffles or french toast.
Not only delicious when used as a topping (imagine it over my Mango Cheesecake or Mango Mousse Cake for example!), this sauce can also be used as a base to create other desserts like a Mango Panna Cotta or a Mango Mousse!
What is a Coulis
A coulis is a thick sweet sauce made from fruits that have been cooked, blended and optionally strained. Just like with Strawberries, Raspberries, Passion Fruit or Blueberries, it is usually made from 3 ingredients: the fruit, some sugar and a little bit of lemon (or lime like here) juice.
As opposed to a fruit puree, a fruit coulis is blended until smooth strained to remove any seeds (if made with berries for example) or remaining fibres.
It also differs from a fruit compote that usually refers to cooked fruits that have not been blended and left chunky.
Ingredients
This mango sauce is super easy to make and only requires three ingredients:
- Mango: the most important ingredient of course - try to choose a nice and ripe fruit that will bring a rich flavour and sweetness to the sauce. Non-ripe mangoes can sometimes be a bit sour.
- Sugar: I used Caster Sugar here (or fine white sugar), but it could also be made with Brown Sugar for a slightly different flavour.
- Lime Juice - a great way to balance the natural sweetness of the fruit. You can use lemon juice if preferred, but I like the milder sourness of Lime.
The Sugar is used to slightly caramelise the fruits while they cook and will also help to thicken the coulis. It is also required to preserve the sauce.
The Lime (or lemon) Juice provides some acidity to the sauce and really helps to balance the flavour of the sweet mango. Along with the sugar, it will also help to thicken and set the sauce so that it is not runny.
How to make Mango Coulis
Just like my Strawberry Coulis or Raspberry Coulis, this recipe will be ready in a few easy steps.
- First, cut the Mango into small cubes (if using fresh mango) and place them in a small pot. If using frozen mango, place the chunks directly in the pot.
- Add the Sugar and Lime Juice and stir to combine. - photo 1
- Place on a low to medium heat and leave to cook for 10 to 15 minutes, occasionally stirring to make sure the fruits do not burn (*). The fruits need to be very soft and fall apart. Note that if using frozen mango straight from the freezer, you might need to add a little bit of water to help it thaw at the start. - photo 2
- Leave to cool down for about 5 minutes, then use an Immersion Blender to blend the compote together until very smooth. You do not want to have any chunks of fruits left. - photo 3 and 4
- At this point, I recommend tasting the sauce and adjusting the sweetness and / or acidity with more sugar or lime juice if needed.
- Optional: for a very smooth and more liquid sauce, pour the blended coulis through a sieve to remove any fibres or fruit chunks. Note that mango coulis is naturally thick so you need to use a larger mesh sieve to strain it - it will not go through a thin mesh sieve.
(*) The time it will take to cook the fruits will depend on how ripe it is and if you use fresh or frozen mango. Make sure to keep an eye on it and cook it until the fruits are very soft. With a very ripe fresh mango, it could only take 5 minutes or so!
Tips to make this Mango Sauce
- Don't leave the fruits on the stove unattended - the fruits will start to caramelise quickly and potentially burn if left unstirred for too long.
- The cooking time will depend on the ripeness of the fruit, and if you use fresh or frozen mangoes. Keep cooking until the fruits are very soft and start to fall apart.
- If using frozen mango, you might need to add a little bit of water to the pot to help thaw the fruits.
- After blending the coulis, taste it and adjust the level of sweetness / acidity to your liking. The natural sweetness of Mango can highly vary depending on their variety and ripeness, so it is hard to give an exact quantity of added sugar and lime juice!
Troubleshooting
The sauce is too thick
When cooked, Mangoes tend to naturally remain quite thick. If you are looking for a slightly more liquid sauce, add a little bit of water (start with 1 or 2 tablespoon and add more if needed) and mix it in the coulis with the Immersion Blender.
The sauce is too liquid
A coulis that is too liquid usually means that the fruits are were not cooked for long enough - and the water naturally contained in the fruits has not evaporated. Place the blended coulis back on the stove and leave to reduce on low heat until you reach the desired consistency.
The coulis is not smooth
There are two options if the coulis is not smooth enough:
- Keep blending for a few more minutes - you really need to blend it well to remove any fibres from the fruits
- Pour through a mesh sieve again to remove any fibres of chunks. If the coulis is too thick to be poured through a sieve, blend in a little bit of water and try again.
Note that the sauce will be naturally thick and you might struggle to strain it through a sieve that has a very thin mesh. Use a larger mesh sieve if needed.
Recipe FAQs
Absolutely - I used frozen mangos for this recipe. You might just need to cook the fruits for a little bit longer to allow them to thaw first. You might also need to add a little bit of water it the frozen fruits stick to the pot.
I do not recommend using a liquid sweetener like Honey or Maple Syrup if you are looking for a thick sauce like here. They would make the coulis more runny and it won't set as much as with crystallised Sugar.
If you do not mind having a more liquid / runny sauce, then yes you can!
Once ready, leave the mango sauce to cool down completely then transfer to a sealed jar or container. Keep in the fridge for up to 1 week.
This sauce will freeze well and can be kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. I highly recommend freezing it in individual portion - using small silicone molds or an ice tray for example - so you can thaw a little bit at the time when required!
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Recipe
3 Ingredients Mango Coulis
Ingredients
- 400 g (0.9 lb) Mango - fresh or frozen
- 1 Small Lime (*) - juiced
- 30 g (1 1/2 tablesp.) Caster Sugar
Disclaimer
I highly recommend using the measurements in grams & ml (instead of cups & spoons) for more accuracy and better results.
Instructions
- Peel and slice the Mango into small Cubes and place them into a small pot (see note 1 if using frozen mango).
- Add the Caster Sugar and Lime Juice, and stir to combine.
- Cook on low to medium heat for about 10 to 15 minutes (see note 2) or until the fruit is very soft and starts to fall apart, occasionally stiring to avoid burning. Remove from the stove and leave to cool down for about 5 minutes.
- Using an Immersion Blender, blend the cooked fruits until very smooth. It will take a few minutes of blending to get a very smooth, thick sauce.
- Once blended, taste the coulis and adjust the sweetness / acidity with a little bit more sugar or lime juice if needed (see note 3).
- Optional: to get a very smooth and thiner sauce, strain the coulis through a mesh sieve to remove any fibres or unblended fruit (see note 4).
- Leave to cool down completely then transfer to a sealed jar / container and keep in the fridge for up to a week.
Tried this recipe? Make sure to leave a comment and star rating below!
Notes
- If using frozen mango, you can place the mango cubes in the pot straight from the freezer. You might need to add a little bit of water to help the mango to thaw if you see that the pieces are sticking to the bottom of the pot or start to burn before they are defrosted. Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water if needed.
- The time it will take for the fruits to get very soft fruits will depend on how ripe the mango is, its variety and if you use fresh or frozen fruits. If using a very ripe fresh mango cut into small cubes, it could only take about 5 minutes to cook. Make sure to stay close to the stove and stir the fruits occasionally until very soft!
- Mangoes natural flavour tend to greatly vary depending on the variety, quality and how ripe the fruit is. Make sure to taste the fruit to check if it is naturally very sweet or more sour - and adjust the quantity of sugar/lime juice as required.
- The coulis will naturally be quite thick, so you might struggle to strain it if using a very thin-mesh sieve. I recommend using a larger mesh sieve, or blend a little bit of water into the coulis to thin it out if preferred.
Nutrition
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Claudia says
It can be used for what ?
Sylvie says
You can use it as a sauce or filling 🙂
Linda B says
Absolutely delicious! Thank you for the recipe! I used the coulis to make mango ice cream -- it was a huge improvement over using raw mango puree. I also used 2 Tablespoons in Mango Mojitos which were out of this world!
Sylvie says
So happy to hear that Linda!