Coconut Rice

Coconut Rice has a rich texture from the coconut milk with a light coconut flavor. Serve with your favorite chicken, beef, or fish recipes.

My son asked me to make coconut rice after having it at a restaurant while on vacation. Now that we’ve figured out how to make it this coconut rice recipe is one of our favorite side dishes!

Start with washing the jasmine rice and draining it well. As you can see in the photo above, when you add water to the rice it becomes cloudy. To wash the rice, keep adding water to the pan and draining it until the water is clear. This will take about 5 rinse and drain cycles.

Next comes the canned, unsweetened coconut milk. The coconut milk separates in the can and needs to be mixed before measuring. Pour the contents in the can into a bowl and whisk until combined. Then, measure out the amount that you will need. Store the remaining coconut milk in an airtight container in the refrigerator for another use.

Put the coconut milk, water, coconut extract, and salt in a saucepan and stir to combine.

How do you make coconut rice taste like coconut?

After making coconut rice several times using different methods, we kept asking ourselves how do you make coconut rice taste like coconut. The coconut milk has a very faint coconut taste but it gives the rice a great texture. We tried using more coconut milk, reducing the coconut milk and making a sauce. Finally tried adding a little bit of coconut extract and that did the trick! It gives the coconut rice a light coconut flavor which is perfect.

Add the jasmine rice and stir to combine.

Bring it to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally.

Turn the heat to low, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

After 15 minutes, check to see if the rice is ready. Use a fork to pull back some of the rice to see if there is still liquid on the bottom of the saucepan. If the liquid is gone, it is ready. If there is still standing liquid, cover the saucepan again, and continue simmering it for the remaining time.

Once the rice is cooked, remove it from the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes with the cover on.

Then, remove the cover, fluff the rice with a fork, and serve.

What should I serve with coconut rice?

Coconut rice is delicious with chicken, beef, pork, and seafood. We had them at the restaurant with tropical chicken kabobs. Here are a few recipes to try serving with coconut rice:

Mango Chicken Kabobs have a tropical flair with mango and pineapple pieces as well as coconut milk, pineapple juice, and ginger used to marinate the chicken!

Juicy Cilantro Lime Chicken is bursting with flavor! Cook it on the grill or stovetop for an easy weeknight dinner with rice and veggies.

This is an easy grilling recipe for Spicy Pineapple Chicken Kabobs. The chicken is marinated in a sweet pineapple marinade and the kabobs are brushed with a spicy pineapple sauce during grilling.

Grilled Hawaiian Steak Kabobs with tender steak, sweet pineapple, and grilled veggies are so easy to make. Summer meals should always be this delicious!

Want more side dish recipes? Try these next:

This Pineapple Salsa recipe has a delicious combination of sweet and spicy. It can be served with grilled chicken or fish or as an appetizer with chips.

Caramelized Oven Roasted Vegetables are the best side dish and a great way to get the family to eat more veggies! We make them for every holiday dinner.

Mouthwatering Mexican Street Corn slathered with spicy mayo, sprinkled with cotija cheese and cilantro and drizzle with lime juice.

Cowboy Caviar is a healthy appetizer that is perfect for parties! Serve as salsa with tortilla chips or as a flavorful side salad with chicken and fish.