i love coconut. admittedly, i go through weird flavor obsessions. no joke, a couple months ago, i was putting blue cheese on everything. but i like experimenting with different flavors in regular foods - makes for a nice change of pace. coconut rice is nothing new to many asian menus, but it's not as common in western foods. you don't have to love coconut to love coconut rice, because the flavor is pretty subtle. and, if you're totally anti-coconut texture, you don't have to add any coconut at all - but give it a try - the texture of the coconut is practically undetectable amidst all that rice.
this recipe began with one i found online, but i tweaked it to make it mine...
Coconut Jasmine Rice
1 TBSP butter
1 TBSP brown sugar
1 tsp sea or kosher salt (or 1/2 tsp table salt)
2 cups jasmine rice (washed and drained)
if you never have before, you MUST try jasmine rice. it is amazing. and so very different from every day white rice that we americans use in everything. in fact, i've given up on "normal" rice forever.
1 1/2 cups coconut milk (shake can to mix well before opening)
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cups coconut flakes
1/4 - 1/2 cup crushed pineapple
1/2 cup diced bell pepper (i like using red, yellow, and green for color)
heat butter in a medium sized, heavy saucepan. when melted, add brown sugar and salt, stirring until dissolved. add rice, turning heat to high, and stir until all grains are evenly coated. * add coconut milk and water, stirring well. when boiling, immediately cover with tight fitting lid, turning heat to medium-low and simmer undisturbed for 20 minutes. remove from heat but do not open lid for 10 minutes. seriously, the key here is leaving that lid ON. every time i've made it, it works perfectly.
while rice is cooking, toast coconut flakes on a dry skillet over medium heat. stir / move frequently to avoid burning. remove from skillet as soon as coconut is golden brown (about 2 minutes).
after rice is cooked, add coconut, pineapple, and peppers. stir well and serve!
* the first few times i made this, i noticed "crunchy" pieces in my finished product. i finally realized it was bits of brown sugar that had clumped together. the next time, i was careful to use my wooden spoon to break up all clumps after i added the liquid. chuck later informed me that those "crunchy" pieces were one of his favorite parts. either way, you can't go wrong.
That sounds really good. We only use Jasmine rice or brown rice with our meals. I kind of burned myself out on stir-fry early in our marriage, but some of our garden's sugar snap peas might taste really yummy in that concoction...I may have to make some sweet and sour chicken or something.
ReplyDeleteyum! Sounds good. I was on a rice-stir fry kick for awhile and I agree that jasmine is the best! yum.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to try it... where do you get coconut milk?
ReplyDeletemel, coconut milk is canned and sold in the ethnic foods section of your grocery store. there is some in the asian section as well as in the hispanic foods section. the thicker, the better... but any canned coconut milk will do :)
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