Making your own Thai Coconut Rice at home is so easy - no restaurant needed! All you need is a few simple ingredients and a rice cooker or pot.
Let's talk about Coconut Rice. I have been trying to make coconut rice for years. I was comparing it to the coconut rice I had been eating at my favorite Thai restaurants and was not getting anything like what the restaurants made.
As it turns out, I was trying to make it too healthy. I was using just a little bit of coconut milk along with water hoping I'd get the rich coconut flavor I got with my takeout.
Nope. It turns out that you need to use a whole can of coconut milk, and no other liquid, to get the perfect coconut rice. And you need to add sugar. And salt. Now you've got a Thai Coconut Rice that you might mistake for takeout.
How to make Thai Coconut Rice
The first step of this recipe is one you need to make sure not to forget: rinsing the rice. This is very important not only to coconut rice but anytime you make any kind of rice. You need to rinse off all the excess starch so your rice doesn't stick together and get a brown (burnt) film on the bottom.
I've found that the easiest way to do this is to put my rice into the pot of the rice cooker and cover it with water. Then I swish it vigorously with my hand. The water turns milky white, and I drain it off (use a lid to hold back the rice, or simply pour it through a strainer). Then I cover it with more water and swish again.
I keep repeating this until the water remains clear. I like to do it in my rice cooker pot because it's black and I can see the color of the water very easily. You could also do it with a dark pot or bowl, or in a clear bowl over a dark towel.
After that important step, this recipe is so easy, and takes only minutes to prep. Simply pour the rinsed rice, coconut milk, sugar, and salt into your rice cooker and turn the rice cooker on.
Don't have a rice cooker? You can make it in a pot on the stove too. Stir the ingredients together in a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until the liquid is absorbed, around 15-20 minutes.
Can I use an Instant Pot to make my Thai Coconut Rice?
While I normally use my Instant Pot to make rice, I don't recommend doing it for this recipe. Every time I've tried, I get the burn error.
Thai Coconut Rice Ingredients
- Long grain rice - Basmati rice, jasmine rice, or rice that is simply labelled "long grain" will work.
- 14 ounce can of coconut milk - Don't try to use light coconut milk here. I've tried, and you simply won't get the rice coconut flavor that you'll find at your favorite Thai restaurants. You'll also want to make sure that the coconut milk you buy is unsweetened.
- Granulated sugar
- Salt
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Thai Coconut Rice Nutrition Notes:
I wouldn't classify this as a healthy side dish. Coconut rice is high in fat, particularly saturated fat from the coconut milk it's made with. I did try to reduce fat by using "lite" coconut milk, but unfortunately, the flavor was not there.
I did also try to reduce the sugar content, but wasn't happy with the flavor. So we'll say this: leave the recipe as it is without trying to make it healthier but enjoy a reasonably-sized portion of it (note that the nutrition information in the recipe below is for half a cup of cooked rice).
This Coconut rice is gluten-free, vegan, and dairy-free.
Thai Coconut Rice
Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
- Mix 1 ½ cups long grain rice, 1 14 ounce can coconut milk, 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar, and ¾ teaspoon salt together in a rice cooker. Start rice cooker. When finished, fluff with a fork and serve.
Nutrition
Notes
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