Creamy Coconut Rice
Whenever I go to a southeast Asian restaurant, my eyes immediately drift to the “sides” part of the menu. What I’m looking for is two-fold: A delicious salad to share and coconut rice.
I love rice by itself. It’s a great blank canvas, and I use it in multiple recipes including my spicy salmon “poke” bowl and mapo tofu. But sometimes I want to dress it up. In preparation for Thanksgiving 2024 – this year with my daughter Skylar – I wanted to recreate this restaurant-style coconut rice at home.
Turns out it’s fairly simple! Simply add rinsed rice to a bubbling bath of coconut milk and a few lime or curry leaves. Now’s not the time to use fat-free or “skim” coconut milk: We want richness and depth. One of my favorite garnishes is crispy garlic chips, so I’ve made my own here. With a squeeze of fresh lime, this might replace your Thanksgiving stuffing.
What rice dishes do you like to make? Let me know below!
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked rice
- 13.5 oz coconut milk, preferably full fat
- 1/4 cup water
- 3-4 lime or curry leaves
- 2 cloves garlic, sliced
- Salt
- Lime
Directions
- In a large mixing bowl, rinse rice until its water becomes clear, 3-4 times.
- In a large pot, bring coconut milk and water to a simmer. Add leaves.
- Add rice and cover, simmering for 20 minutes.
- When most of the liquid is absorbed (~80%), remove from heat and rest for 10 minutes.
- In the meantime, fry garlic until golden and crispy.
- Fluff rice with a fork and season with salt.
- Garnish with garlic chips and a squeeze of lime. Enjoy!
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