Coconut rice

Coconut rice
Nasi liwet, a Javanese recipe of coconut rice, topped with chicken and omelette slices and thick coconut cream.
Place of origin	India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Colombia, Venezuela, Panama
Region or state	South and Southeast Asia, Latin America
Main ingredients	Rice, coconut
Cookbook: Coconut rice Media: Coconut rice

Coconut rice is a dish prepared by soaking white rice in coconut milk or cooking it with coconut flakes.^[1] As both the coconut and the rice-plant are commonly found in the tropics all-around the world, coconut rice too is found in many cultures throughout the world, spanning across the equator from Southeast Asia to the Caribbean.

Coconut rice dishes

Nasi uduk, a Jakartans coconut rice.

Nasi lemak, a popular coconut rice dish in Singapore and Malaysia.

Thai khao tom mat.

Colombian arroz con coco.

Southeast Asia

Burma

In Burmese cuisine, ohn htamin (အုန်းထမင်း), as rice cooked with coconut milk is called, is a ceremonial staple food, often eaten in lieu of plain white rice.^[2] In the most basic version of ohn htamin, rice is cooked with a base of coconut milk, along with fried shallots and salt, adding to the rice's savory and rich flavours.^[3] Ohn htamin is commonly paired with Burmese-style sibyan curries.

Indonesia

The rice cooked in coconut milk is actually quite common in Indonesia, with each region developed their own version of it. In Indonesia, plain coconut rice is usually made from white rice, coconut milk, ginger, fenugreek seed, lemongrass and pandan leaves. The most common coconut rice recipe in Indonesia is nasi uduk from Jakarta.^[4] Another coconut milk rice recipes includes nasi gurih from Aceh^[5] and Javanese nasi liwet.^[6] Nasi kuning is Indonesian yellow rice which is quite similar to coconut rice with addition of turmeric as coloring and flavoring agent. Another similar coconut rice recipe are rice dumplings with thicker texture, such as burasa from Makassar and lemang popular in Minangkabau.

Malaysia

The most popular coconut rice recipe in Malaysia is nasi lemak, and it is considered as national dish of Malaysia.

Thailand

In Thai cuisine, sweet coconut rice is very popular as a dessert or sweet snack. It is made with glutinous rice, coconut milk, sugar, salt and water and most famously paired with slices of ripe mango and an additional dollop of coconut cream. Outside of the mango season, it will also be eaten with other fruits or semi-sweet dishes.^[7] Other popular coconut rice desserts are khao tom mat, where sweet banana is steamed inside sticky rice while wrapped in a banana leaf, khao lam, where the rice and coconut milk mixture is steamed inside a section of bamboo, and khao niao kaeo, a very sweet dessert of glutinous rice, coconut milk, and large amounts of sugar, and most often pink or green in color.

South Asia

India

In India, coconut rice (Tamil: தேங்காய் சாதம்) is famous in the southern regions. In India coconut rice usually made from basmati rice with mild coconut flavours acquired from coconut milk, and commonly served with curries.^[1] It is made with coconut flakes (or grated or desiccated/dry coconut). One way to make this dish is to make the rice separately (preferably using a rice variety which is light and fluffy when cooked) and then mixing it with the coconut mixture (coconut flakes toasted in sesame/coconut oil and spiced with paprika, nuts, curry powder/leaves and other spices).

Sri Lanka

In Sri Lanka, coconut rice is often referred to as "milk rice" or kiri bath. It is widely served across the nation on special occasions to mark the auspicious timings or moments. It is accompanied by lunu miris a spicy onion sambol grinded with red chilli, onions, tomato, lime and salt with umbalakada.

Latin America

Colombia and Panama

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Arroz con coco

On the Caribbean coast of Colombia and Panama, arroz con coco is a typical side dish for fish. It is made from white rice cooked in a base of coconut milk and combined with shredded coconut meat, water, salt, raisins (optional), and sugar.

Puerto Rico

In Puerto Rico coconut rice is usually served with fish and sweet plantains. The rice is sautéed with coconut oil and salt, shredded coconut and coconut milk are then added with the option of garlic, onions, cilantro, raisins, and kumquats. The rice is then coved with a banana leaf during the cooking prosses. Another popular coconut rice dish is arroz con dulce (coconut rice pudding) a dessert made with milk, coconut milk, coconut cream, raisins, vanilla, rum, sugar, ginger, and spice. Puerto Rican rice pudding is popular in Colombia, Cuba, and Venezuela.