Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice takes your average cilantro lime rice up a notch by cooking the rice in coconut milk to create a sweet and savory side dish perfect for tacos, curry, or just about any protein or veggie.
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Raise your hand if you love some white rice 🙋🏻♀️🙋🏼♂️ it is a staple in our house. Michael will eat it multiple times a day with meals. Today I’m stepping up the typical white rice with this coconut cilantro lime rice!
I’m not sure if I have met a person that doesn’t like rice. It is a staple food in more than half of the world’s population. Even the word “meal” is synonymous with rice in both the Chinese and Japanese language. Learn something new everyday don’t ya.
We eat a lot of white rice in out house. And here is why:
- My husband loves it
- It’s cheap
- It’s a good source of carbohydrates
But I get the same question all the time. Is brown rice better than white rice? It’s not such a black and white answer.
Is White Rice healthy?
White rice is refined, meaning the germ and all of the bran layers (hull, husk, and bran) are removed so that what remains is a simple starch (the endosperm). This endosperm digests quickly and can provide a nice carbohydrate boost, but is not a nutrient dense food.
It is essentially a blank slate, nothing all that bad, but nothing all that great either. However, it does take a stronger digestive system to digest brown rice, so many people find it easier to eat white rice. It is even being accepted in the paleo community as a safe starch.
What I think about eating white rice
Honestly, it is up to you. If you like white rice over brown, eat it. If you like brown over white rice, eat brown rice. Doing what feels best for you is what is most important.
Rice is a high carbohydrate food, so if you are looking for a lower carb lifestyle for a variety of reasons, you can use cauliflower rice.
We are both pretty active so white rice works well for us. It’s a great carbohydrate to add to our diets and it’s easy to digest as well. And did I say it’s cheap?!
How to make Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice
This coconut cilantro lime rice steps up your average cilantro lime rice (hello Chipotle) and cooks the rice in coconut milk to give it a natural sweetness. The tartness from the lime pairs perfectly with the sweet from the coconut, while the fresh cilantro balances it all out.
And you only need 4 ingredients (plus salt). Here is what you need:
- white jasmine rice
- full fat coconut milk
- lime juice
- cilantro
- salt
First, rinse your rise. This helps remove any residue on it. I add mine to my nut milk bag and run under water in the sink until the water runs cleans. Second, add the rice, coconut milk, and salt to a small sauce pot and mix well.
Cover with a lid and bring to a boil. Remove the lid and let simmer for 15-20 minutes depending on if you want your rice more al dente or softer. The longer you cook it, the more the coconut milk with absorb into the rice. A lesser time will leave you with a more sticky rice.
Finally, mix in the lime juice and cilantro. You are left with a delicious sweet and savory side dish!
Instant Pot Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice
If you are an Instant Pot fan, then luckily for you, you can totally make this in an Instant Pot. Simply rinse the rice, add the rice, coconut milk, and salt to the pot and close the lid/set to seal.
Set Instant Pot on manual for 5 minutes and let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes. Then manually release the rest of the pressure and stir in the lime and cilantro. It takes essentially the same time as the stove, but is more hands off.
Make a batch of it on Sunday for the week to pair with your protein of choice and a side of veggies. Easy peasy weeknight dinner.
Can I make Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice in a Rice Cooker?
Unfortunately, I never have any luck with my rice cooker and using something other than water or broth. I think the weight of the coconut milk throws it off and it usually says it is done long before it actually is.
I also have a really old rice cooker, so that could be why. If you give it a shot with yours, let me know how it goes!
Can I use Lite Coconut Milk?
If you are looking to save some fat macros/reduce the calories some, you can use lite coconut milk. I like the full fat version better as I find it is a little more flavorful, but lite coconut milk will also work.
What to serve with Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice
Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice
ingredients
- 1 cup white jasmine rice
- 2 cups full fat coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons lime juice
- 1/2 cup packed cilantro, roughly chopped
- salt, to taste
instructions
Stove Top Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice
- Rinse rice through running water a few times. I used a nut milk bag.
- Combine rice, coconut milk, and salt in a saucepan. Cover with a lid and bring to a boil. Remove the lid and reduce heat to medium-low, and let simmer for 15-20 minutes or until desired doneness. 15 minutes rice will be more al dente and creamier, 20 minuets the rice will be softer and the liquid fully absorbed.
- Stir in lime juice and cilantro. Enjoy!
Instant Pot Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice
- Rinse rice through running water a few times. I used a nut milk bag.
- Combine rice, coconut milk, and salt in Instant Pot. Close lid and make sure it is locked and valve is set to sealed. Set to manual mode for 5 minutes. Let pressure release naturally for 10 minutes and then do a quick release for remaining pressure.
- Stir in lime juice and cilantro. Enjoy!
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might as well eat a coconut
can this recipe be tripled? What adjustments? I’d love to serve this tomorrow evening for a dinner party.
Thank you
Yes, you would just triple all the ingredients. Hope that helps!
I cannot believe how delicious this rice is. The lime ads just the right pop to the sweetness of the coconut milk. I will be making this again.
So glad you enjoyed it, Renee! Thanks for trying it!
There is WAY TOO MUCH LIME! It tasted like a cleaning product. Start smaller. One tablespoon would have been more than enough. With that change, it would be delicious!
Sorry to hear you didn’t like it, Sarah. Feel free to adjust down according to your tastes.
You can make coconut rice in a rice cooker. I have the Zojirushi Electric Rice Cooker which most chefs use in their personal kitchens. You need *equal parts* thick liquid to rice, keep some reserve to add in after the rice is cooked for taste when you’re ready to serve. Also you’ll need to wash your rice before you put it in the cooker to remove the starch or it will effect liquid and solids aborption like and will clump together and effect the texture. For the cook setting, just do the “softer” rice option for thicker liquids. I do this all the time with poblano rice too which is just blended cooked/roasted poblanos, cilantro and chicken broth and is a thicker consistency to coconut milk. For coconut milk, solids and liquids tend to separate, so mix it in the can before you measure out the equal liquid to rice ration. Hope this makes things a little easier for those that want to use a rice cooker.
Thank you so much for sharing that Sarah! I don’t have a rice cooker so I wasn’t sure but this is a huge help!
So good!
Love for an easy side dish!
I LOVED this recipe! I used brown jasmine rice and cooked in the Instant Pot. It was amazing! I have no doubt the leftovers will be even better tomorrow when I pair it with a chicken satay I am making. Can’t recommend this enough!
Yay!! So glad you liked it Jamie! I love the leftovers and they are really so versatile! And chicken satay sounds amazing! Thanks for trying 🙂