Once you try this easy coconut rice recipe you’ll never make plain rice again. This basmati coconut rice is the perfect pair to curries and stir fry!
We made it! The first week of back to school, behind us. It’s only going to get crazier from here I’m sure, but we’ll find our groove. Wally had his first day of pre-k yesterday and it was adorable. I forgot how far Oscar has come from when he first started!
Anyway, as school picks up, along with all of the activities I (stupidly) enrolled my children in, we’ll be going, going these next couple of months. I’m going to need A LOT of easy dinner wins, and we can’t have skillet linguine EVERY night. Or can we….!?
This particular recipe is one of those recipes that I have been making for years now and only just thought of sharing it with you all. Duh. Sorry. Once you try it you will be spoiled like us, and never want regular rice with your curries again! Making it coconut-y is sooo simple and soooo good. Like so simple.
What is coconut rice made of?
Well, THIS recipe is made from coconut milk, white rice, a bit of sweetener and salt.
So, how do you make coconut rice?
Basically, instead of water, you use coconut milk…
No, but for real. Replace half of the water that you would normally use for basmati rice with coconut milk (I use full fat) and add a bit of maple syrup and salt for flavor. You can totally use brown sugar too, if maple syrup is not your thing. I highly recommend that little bit of sweetness though!
Boil the mixture, add the rice and let it all simmer for 10-11 minutes. Allow it to settle, fluff it up and serve!
I’m not gonna lie, after making the coconut rice I have a hard time not just shoveling it into my face all on its own. BUT I urge you, try to resist! It goes so well with so many curries. One of my favorite dishes to serve this with is this Instant Pot butternut squash Thai curry from Oh She Glows.
I’ve listed a few of my other fave curry dishes from LIMO at the bottom of this post, too!
I can’t gush to you enough about how much I love this one You’ve got to try it, you’ll love it too!
As promised, here are my favorite curry dishes from the blog that pair PERFECTLY with this rice!
- Instant Pot chicken tikka masala
- Thai green chicken curry
- golden lentil curry
- Thai chicken peanut curry
Easy Coconut Rice
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups rice 1x
Description
Once you try this easy coconut rice recipe you’ll never make plain rice again. This basmati coconut rice is the perfect pair to curries and stir fry!
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 3/4 cup full-fat coconut milk*
- 1 tsp maple syrup**
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup white basmati rice, rinsed and drained
Instructions
- In a medium sized saucepan, combine the water, coconut milk, maple syrup and salt. Heat the mixture over medium-high heat until boiling. Add the rice, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 11 minutes. Place the lid on the rice after 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat, and allow it to sit for a few minutes before removing the lid and fluffing the rice with a fork. Serve immediately.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Notes
*You can use light coconut milk, but the rice won’t be as creamy
**Feel free to substitute with 1 tsp brown sugar
***This recipe can easily be doubled, or tripled! Use the recipe card 🙂
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
Keywords: basmati coconut rice // creamy coconut rice // easy coconut rice recipe
OK, now I want curry with coconut rice for breakfast. WHY do I look at food blogs before I’ve eaten? This sounds delicious, Katherine! Have a great weekend!
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Hahaha I know exactly what you mean Kelsie!! I could totally eat it for breakfast!!! Have a good weekend tooooooo 🙂
Gosh this sounds good! Can you believe I’ve never had coconut rice? I must surprise my hubby with this!
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Whaaaat Annie you must change this!! He’ll be very happy with it, I promise!
I am all for coconut rice! Soo good. I used to make it by tossing the rice in coconut oil before I added water and then when cooked mixing in toasted coconut shaving. Gotta try your method – I can imagine the coconut flavor will be even better. Pinned!
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Oh I like that idea too, Milena! The toasted coconut shaving mixed in with this method would be EXTRA tasty!!!
I love coconut rice!! Probably because I could drink coconut milk, lol. Now I want curry and a HUGE portion of this rice…..for breakfast. I can’t believe how fast the year is flying. Before we know it, it’ll be the holidays. Eeeeeek!! Have a wonderful weekend ahead, my friend! XOXO
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Dawn, I could totally drink coconut milk too. I adore it!!! I use it in so many recipes! I am soooo not ready to talk about holidays! But apparently Costco is starting to put out the trees already!!! Haha happy Friday to you!
Rice is a dinner staple at our house! I will have to try this out for sure!
You guys would love it!!
I made lettuce wraps this week and should have made your yummy coconut rice to accompany them. Would be a delicious pairing!!
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Oh yes! The coconut rice would have been perfect! Thanks Liz!
Katherine, this coconut rice would be perfect with so many curries I make! And I love having a touch of sweet with something spicy. Love it!
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YES I love the sweet and spicy too, Kelly!! Thank you so much! We love curries!
I love taking that kind of simple tasty food to office. Keeper, definitely 🙂
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Yay! Thanks! So happy to hear that!
I love coconut rice! I would eat this rice all the time it weren’t for my picky husband who can take coconut in very limited applications. Those school day are so hectic, especially when I there’s extracurricular activities involved. I don’t envy your schedule, Katherine!
The schedule is definitely feeling a little crazy these days, Thao. Aaah those husbands, they always cramp our style right!? 😉
Coconut rice is always a treat! My Bugs are getting better about actually eating rice and I know they would love it with a sweet coconut flavor! Thanks for another great recipe Katherine!
Coconut rice is one of the very few rice dishes that the boys really dig into! I hope you get a chance to try it out on your girls! 🙂
How have I never tried coconut rice?! This one looks like a nice balance of fluffy and creamy. I can’t wait to try it the next time I make a spicy dish! It would be the perfect side!
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I can’t believe you haven’t tried coconut rice, Leanne! You’ve got to change that STAT!! It is so good with the spicy dishes!!
I could eat bowl after bowl of this coconut rice Katherine! So fluffy!
I love to eat it just on its own! Thanks Mary Ann!
This rice looks so perfect and fluffy, Katherine!! My nephew is crazy for coconut rice but I’ve never known how to make it. I will definitely make your recipe soon when he visits- he’s in for a real treat!! 😀
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Ooh he’ll be so excited, Catherine! My boys really love it! Thanks friend!
Besides my grandmother’s Armenian rice pilaf recipe, coconut rice is my favorite! Coconut milk makes it so rich and creamy, and I could eat this every day!
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Ooh a rice pilaf sounds delicious! I eat so much of this coconut rice, I don’t think I’ll ever tire of it!
this sound delicious Katherine…it looks too yummy and i can’t wait to make it, I will make this coconut rice tomorrow’s breakfast for my hubby…Thanks for shared a beautiful recipe….!
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Ooh it would be so good for breakfast! Let me know what he thinks! 🙂
This is comfort food in a bowl!!! I grew up eating rice 2-3 times a day and with coconut trees in our backyards, coconut was used in every meal, snack and dessert. YUMMM
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Oh I’m so jealous of your growing up, Maria! I love coconut so much!!
How great is that recipe? Can’t wait to make this – so easy and can’t imagine a tastier rice for curries! Yum! – PS, I’ll definitely double this recipe.😉
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Thanks Laura!! I bet you’ll love it. It’s so perfect with a spicy curry! (You’ve definitely gotta double)!
Seriously sounds so good! Way better than regular rice I’m sure. Can’t wait to try it Katherine! Pinning! xo
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Absolutely, Kim! I am always disappointed by regular rice now, hah! Thanks pal!
Fried crisps is my favorite. This is quite a must to make! it looks so good, I’d love to have all of it.
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Thank you so much Mary!!
Growing up, rice was served very rarely in our house…now it’s one of my favourite side dishes. I could eat it everyday! I’m always looking for new rice recipes to try out and this looks like a keeper!
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We eat a ton of rice these days too! The only problem is the mess the kids make of it all over the floor, haha. Thanks Bernice!!
I love coconut rice, but never make it at home. You’ve totally inspired me to try it!
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You’ve got to try it, Marissa! We eat it at least weekly 🙂
Oh yum! I made coconut rice once and it turned out terrible but yours looks so sticky and fluffy and delicious. Pinned for later! Thanks!
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Oh no!! You’ve got to try this method, Kelly. It’s practically foolproof! 🙂
We love coconut rice, and make it a lot, but I’ve never added any sweetener. I can’t wait to try that next time. It would be great with a spicy curry!
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The sweet side of it is PERFECT with a spicy curry!! Thanks Colleen! I hope you love it!
Thank you so much for sharing your recipe for Easy Coconut Rice, Katherine. It is always so nice to have recipes for variations on something we all make often. I never thought to elevate it to epic status with coconut milk as you have – I am looking forward to trying it. Many thanks for sharing.
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Thanks Denise!! I hope you love it. The coconut milk makes it SO creamy.
I’ve never tried coconut rice before…. now that I see how easy (and yummy) it is, I’ll have to give it a try. Thanks for sharing!
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I hope you try it! Let me know if you do. You’ll love it!!