Coconut Rice Recipe
This coconut rice is light, fluffy, and infused with 3 times the coconut flavor thanks to my secret ingredient! Readers rave about the perfect texture and rich coconut taste. One reader said, “This coconut rice was SO GOOD—perfect texture, fluffy, just the right amount of coconut flavor.” Another shared, “OMG! This rice came out so light, fluffy, and each grain was literally separate—it was amazing.” A third simply said, “This rice was delicious… it was a huge hit!”
Servings 6 servings
Ingredients
- 2 cups long grain jasmine rice
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 14 oz. can coconut milk (full fat or light)
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 tsp EACH garlic powder, onion powder, ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
ADD LATER
- 3-5 tablespoons cream of coconut – see notes (optional but recommend)
- Toasted shredded coconut for garnish
Serving Suggestions
Instructions
- Rinse the rice in a fine mesh sieve under running cold water until the rice water runs pretty clear. This is crucial and will take several minutes. Don’t shortcut this step or you’ll end up with gummy rice.
- Melt the butter in a large non-stick saucepan over medium heat. Increase heat to medium-high and add the rice. Sauté for three minutes to toast the rice (this makes it fluffy). Set a timer and shortcyt it!
- Add the coconut milk, water, and seasonings. Bring to a simmer (wait for the middle to start to bubble, not just the edges). This can take up to five minutes, so be patient. Once simmering, give the rice a stir, cover with the lid and turn the heat down to LOW.
- Cook on low for 8-12 minutes, or until the rice is al dente (it will continue to cook more in the next step), checking doneness and stirring at 8 minutes.
- Give the rice ONE stir, remove from heat and rest, COVERED, for 10 minutes - no peaking!
- Add cream of coconut to taste and gently stir in with a rubber spatula. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with toasted coconut, if using, and serve warm.
Notes
- Use jasmine rice; other types of rice can have too much starch and are prone to becoming gluey or mushy. You may also use basmati rice if you’re looking for a more distinct grain or a more Indian mouthfeel.
- Coconut milk: Buy canned, not the kind in a carton. Do NOT use an extra think brand like Chaokoh. I use Thai Kitchen in this recipe, and it's perfect.
- Cream of coconut: This replaces sugar in most recipes with a slightly sweet, intoxicating, concentrated coconut flavor. Cream of coconut is not to be confused with the coconut cream you scoop off the top of canned coconut milk. It is most often used in mixed drinks and can be found near other drink mixers at your grocery store. Note that cream of coconut does NOT contain alcohol. If you have trouble locating it, just ask someone at the store because it is a very common ingredient. There are both liquid and powdered forms, so make sure you get the liquid form. I use Coco Real Cream of Coconut in the convenient squeezable form. This is the exact one I use.
- If the liquid evaporates before rice is done: add just a little water, keeping in mind that the rice will continue to steam for 10 minutes once it’s removed from heat, so it doesn’t need to be 100% cooked once the liquid is gone.
- If the rice is still wet once it’s done: don’t worry, it will continue to absorb the liquid for the last 10 minutes while steaming. After 10 minutes, remove the lid and let the rice sit for an additional 5-10 minutes to dry out.
Coconut Rice in the Rice Cooker
The ingredients are the same, with the omission of butter and a reduction of water.- 2 cups long grain jasmine rice
- 1 14 can coconut milk (full fat or light)
- 1 cup water
- 3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 1/2 tsp EACH garlic powder, onion powder, ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
ADD LATER
- 3- 5 tablespoons cream of coconut – see notes above
- Toasted shredded coconut for garnish
INSTRUCTIONS
- Rinse the rice in a fine-mesh sieve under running cold water until the water runs pretty clear. This is crucial and will take several minutes. Don’t shortcut this step, or you’ll end up with gummy rice.
- Add all the ingredients to your rice cooker and stir.
- Cook on the white rice setting.
- Once the rice is done, don’t open the lid. Continue to let the rice steam for 10 minutes before stirring in the cream of coconut to taste.