Fluffy coconut rice eluded me for years. And finally, I’ve cracked it! The trick is to use the oven rather than the stove. The coconut rice comes out super fluffy, not gluey and mushy. It’s just like you get at restaurants.
Coconut Rice
Truly fluffy coconut rice eluded me for years. I felt like I tried every variation possible, but when I lifted the lid, I’d stare at dismay at into a pot of mushy rice, thick with coconut milk scum. Usually with unevenly cooked rice grains – some hard, some overly soft – and almost always with a scorched base.
The making of my cookbook gave me the excuse I needed to commit to cracking coconut rice, once and for all. 30+ tests later, I’m so happy to say my team and I have cracked the secret code.
And every since then, I’ve never looked back. Fluffy coconut rice every. single. time WITHOUT FAIL!
The secret to fluffy coconut rice – BAKE IT
The trick to fuss-free fluffy coconut rice is to bake it rather than cook it on the stove. The coconut rice comes out perfectly fluffy every time, and no scorched pot!
How to make perfect coconut rice
Rinse the rice – this is a must to remove excess starch. I don’t do this when cooking normal white rice. It’s essential for coconut rice because coconut milk is thicker than water so it can make the rice a gluey mess. Just rinse the rice until the water is pretty clear. It will never be 100% clear.
Soak rice for 1 hour – this essentially gives the rice grains a bit of a head start in the water absorption phase. This is critical to ensure the rice cooks through evenly because coconut milk is thicker than water which makes it harder for the rice grains to absorb the liquid.
Can’t just use coconut milk – it’s just too thick, the rice can’t absorb it properly. It needs to be diluted with some water. I find the perfect flavour / rice texture is achieved by using 1 can (400ml/14oz) coconut milk with 1 cup of water (just over 2 1/2 cups) for 2 cups of rice.
Bring coconut milk and water to boil first – This is quite key as well! We need to heat the liquid before adding into the rice in a baking pan to get the cooking process started as soon as the rice is in the oven.
If you just pour cold water and room temperature coconut milk over the rice, it takes a good 10 to 15 minutes for the liquid to heat up in the oven during which time the rice is just wallowing in lukewarm liquids which causes it to bloat and cook unevenly.
Bake, covered with foil, for 40 minutes at 200°C/400°F (180°C fan). By covering the rice, we are essentially making steam rice just like you do on the stove. Except, we don’t to worry about scorching the base of the pot and the heat distributes much more evenly through the rice so it cooks through evenly!
Rest 15 minutes – Take the pan out of the oven and rest, covered in foil, for 15 minutes. This step is essential so do not skip it or shortcut the resting time. During the resting time, the rice will finish cooking through evenly and the wetness on the surface of the rice grains will be absorbed, leaving the rice fluffy.
And that, my friends, is the secret to fluffy coconut rice.
It’s a lot of words. But don’t worry, actually cooking it is super duper simple. Just pop it in the oven and leave it to do its thing!
How to rinse rice
I find it easiest to rinse rice in a bowl. Just pour the rice in a bowl and fill with water, then swish it around. Drain (just pour the water out best you can, no need to use a colander), then fill with water again and repeat 4 to 5 times until the water is pretty clear.
The water will never be completely clear! My rule of thumb is 4 to 5 refills of the bowl.
BONUS coconut milk powder option: There’s another way to make fluffy coconut rice on the stove using coconut milk powder. The result is not quite as fluffy as using the oven and the coconut flavour is not quite as intense. But it’s still very good, much better than stove-top using coconut milk, and a good option for those times when you don’t have an oven.
I’ve popped that extra recipe below the coconut milk recipe (ie scroll to bottom of post). It’s an extra because coconut milk powder isn’t as common as coconut milk. While I always have coconut milk on hand, I don’t usually have powder!
How to make Thai / Asian Coconut Rice
To get a true Asian restaurant coconut rice, the secret is to add pandan leaves. If you can’t find pandan leaves, kaffir limes leaves also add a similar fragrance.
This is what pandan leaves looks like. It’s sold at some Harris Farms in Australia, as well as Asian stores.
To prepare them for use, just knot them – this breaks the leaves, releasing the flavour so it infuses into the rice.
What to serve with coconut rice
Coconut rice is a rice dish that is used in cuisines such as Caribbean, Tropical (Hawaiian!) as well as South East Asian foods such as Thai and Malaysian foods.
But don’t let “rules” restrict you. Use it as you wish – and I promise you, it’s so delish, you can even eat it plain, straight out of the pot!
Hope you enjoy! – Nagi x
Coconut Rice will go great with…
Everything Thai and Vietnamese
Jamaican Jerk Chicken and Jerk Fish
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Restaurant Style Coconut Rice (Coconut Milk)
Ingredients
Coconut Rice
- 2 cups jasmine rice (Note 1)
- 400 ml / 14 oz coconut milk , full fat or light (Note 2)
- 1 cup water
- 5 tsp white sugar (Note 3)
- 1/2 tsp cooking / kosher salt
Asian Restaurant Style flavour – use ONE:
- 1 pandan leaves , knotted
- 2 kaffir lime leaves , crushed in hand
Optional Garnish:
- 1 tbsp desiccated coconut , toasted, to garnish
Instructions
- Rinse rice in water until the water runs pretty clear. (Note 1)
- Soak & drain – Drain rice then soak in water for 1 hour. Then drain in a colander and leave to drain well for 5 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 200°C / 400°F (180°C fan).
- Rice in pan – Place the rice in a 20cm / 8" square pan (metal or ceramic). Add pandam or kaffir, if using.
- Heat coconut milk – Heat coconut milk, water, sugar and salt in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil and stir to dissolve the sugar.
- Bake 40 minutes – Working quickly (to minimise heat loss), pour hot liquid over rice, stir quickly to spread rice evenly. Cover with foil then bake in the oven for 40 minutes.
- Rest 15 minutes – Remove the pan from the oven. Take a quick peek to ensure the liquid has been absorbed (tilt pan to check). There will be coconut cream on the surface – that's normal. Rest rice, covered, for 15 minutes. Do not shortcut this!
- Fluff with rubber spatula. Garnish with toasted coconut, if using, then serve. Marvel at fluffy rice!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
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Fluffy Coconut Rice – Coconut POWDER
Ingredients
- 1 cup jasmine rice (or long grain) (see notes)
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 packet coconut milk powder (1.75 oz / 50 g) (see notes)
- 2 kaffir lime leaves , crumpled in your hand OR 3 pandam leaves, knotted – OPTIONAL, for Asian restaurant style
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 tsp sugar
- 1 tbsp desiccated coconut , toasted, to garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over high heat. Place lid on.
- When it comes to the boil (watch it, you don’t want it to boil over), turn down the heat to low / medium low so it is simmering gently.
- Leave it to simmer for 12 to 15 minutes until all the liquid has been absorbed.
- Remove from heat and rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Fluff with fork. Garnish with toasted coconut, if using, then serve.
For NEXT LEVEL FRIED RICE start with 1 day old Cocoanut rice . . . For a truly caribbean vibe include griddle charged pineapple & chilli to taste
What a winner! I always have coconut milk powder in the house as so handy for recipes which don’t need a full can. So using the stovetop recipe there with the powder means 25 mins from scratch for delicious coconut rice. My waistline hates you!!! 🤣
With the coconut powder version, can i use rice cooker instead of cooking on the stove?
I know all about the gluggy mess that stovetop coconut rice looks like so I thought I’d give this a spin. Added dedicated coconut and removed the foil about 5mins before done to add a crunchy top like our local Thai restaurant does. Very impressed with the results.
Came out perfectly. We loved it! Served with your delicious Asian glazed Barramundi. Thank you for your amazing recipes.,
Turned out so delicious. I only soaked the rice for twenty minutes, and then cooked it in a saucepan on the stovetop with the coconut cream and water,as per the recipe. I just bring the coconut milk and water to the boil, put the rice in, turn the hob down to very low and wait for 20 mins. Then take it off and let it sit for about 10 mins. Really good.
Best coconut rice light and sweet, I’ve been using this recipe for a while now. Recently started adding a bit of sesame oil it adds a nice little nutty flavour. <3
I’ve been looking for the perfect, no-fail coconut rice recipe after others have been disappointing, and this is the one! Best, most fluffy coconut rice ever. It’s now a staple in our house. Thanks.
Nagi, you are the bomb!!! I decided today that I would cook up some garlic prawns on a bed of rice.. I decided to google a recipe for the rice & your recipe was the first to come up and as I follow you my first thought was ‘let’s go’. Followed the recipe to a tee, and it was a hit. My son & daughter-in-law happened to be here & enjoyed the meal immensely. Everyone commented on how fluffy the rice was, so it’s immediately become a go to. My only addition was about 1/8 TSP of turmeric for a bit of colour.
Great recipe and rice was perfect. Due to time constraints I did not soak rice but cooked it in a saucepan with 1tsp oil until grains start to turn opaque. So only took an hour !!!
Our favourite rice by far!! Well worth the time it takes to make!! Just dropped some off to a friend and she was requesting the recipe almost before I got home!!
Two hours to make rice for a family is too long. I usually don’t know what my entree will be until I think about it driving home from work. Maybe it’s worth the time on the weekend.
You can eliminate the soaking time if you use the coconut powder instead of milk. I do agree it’s a time investment, but I’d expect some kind of time investment for a recipe that promises not standard rice but fluffy, restaurant-style coconut rice. If you’re looking for something simple to feed your family, you’re probably in the wrong place.
This was DIVINE!! Earned me major points with my partner, too 😆 Served with homemade sweet and sour tofu. Perfection!
I often forget the 1hr soaking so instead I rinse the rice as per the recipe and then boil the kettle and pour it over the rice and soak for 10 mins before draining and cooking. The result still seems perfect to me…!
Can a dutch oven be used for the cooking part versus a casserole dish with foil? We have a family member with cancer and among the things the oncologist recommended was NOT to use tin foil anymore.
Made the coconut rice tonight. Followed instructions and it turned out perfect. Thank you so much. No more burning rice on the stove top
the recipe is incredibly deceiving. It states 5 mins of prep time but then you need to soak the rice for an hour. Dinner is now an hour late because I made the mistake of reading the top line of the recipe and not the instructions in detail first. please correct so that others don’t make the same mistake as me
About to make this and head’s up – the Total Time on the recipe header is wrong. 5 + 40 + 15 does not = 17 minutes! And that’s ignoring the 1 hour soaking time. I nearly had a dinner disaster!
It was insanely good! Thank you!
A lot of effort compared to normal boiled rice but so worth it I didn’t have pandam leaves but I did use instead kaffir lime leaves and it was delicious had it with Massamam lamb shanks
Looks amazing. Can I double or triple this recipe?
Admittedly I’m not great at cooking rice and I’ve struggled to get coconut rice for aaaaaages. This recipe worked first time and every time after I’ve made it. 10/10