Elevate regular rice with this Coconut Lime Rice! Perfect for serving with stir fry or any main dish, this rich and fluffy rice has amazing texture and flavor to enhance any meal.
After sharing my Crispy Bang Bang Salmon Bites Bowls, a reader asked me if I had a recipe for coconut lime rice.
The alarm bells went off because no, I did not have one, but yes, I wanted to share one.
You see, I have a history with adding coconut milk to rice.
Many years ago, I went on a coconut rice kick, which involved me adding a can of coconut milk to rice nearly every time I made it.
While I love regular coconut rice, I took a page out of my experience with Cilantro Lime Rice and determined adding lime zest was just the next natural step to ultimate gratification.
All we need is a handful of basic ingredients: white rice, canned coconut milk, fresh limes, and some form of sweetener (I use pure maple syrup).
What results is tender rice with richness from the coconut milk, a boost of citrus and a little sweetness to make your simple rice dish really pop!
Let’s discuss the basic ingredients for this easy recipe, because there is some nuance here.
Coconut Lime Rice Ingredients:
Long Grain White Rice: While you can use any kind of rice to make coconut lime rice, I find long-grain white rice such as jasmine rice or basmati rice results in the best texture.
For those of you who like cooking with whole grains, you can definitely use brown rice. It just takes longer (about 30-40 minutes) and the texture isn’t as soft.
Canned Full Fat Coconut Milk: The all star ingredient that turns plain rice into an actual dream! Canned coconut milk contains a decent amount of fat, which imparts richness and subtle coconut flavor on the rice.
For the best results, stick with full-fat coconut milk rather than using light coconut milk for creamy texture and milk coconut flavor.
Fresh Lime Zest and Fresh Lime Juice: Fresh lime zest and lime juice bring a citrus zing to this easy side dish, giving it some extra spunk.
Pure Maple Syrup (or Sugar): It may sound strange to add sweetener to rice, but trust me on this one. It excels. I like using a couple tablespoons of pure maple syrup, but you can also use regular cane sugar or brown sugar.
This ingredient can easily be omitted if you prefer, or you can adjust the amount to your personal taste.
Sea Salt: Season to taste using sea salt.
Recipe Customizations:
- For savory flavor, use chicken broth or chicken stock instead of cold water to cook.
- To make cilantro lime coconut rice, stir in ¼ cup to ½ cup of chopped fresh cilantro once the rice has finished cooking.
- You can use different types of rice, but my onion is that long grain rice turns out the best. Use sushi rice for sticky coconut rice.
- I have read that coconut rice recipes can be prepared in a rice cooker. If you’d like, use your rice cooker instead of a saucepan to prepare this recipe.
- If you prefer lemon, you can always swap out the lime for lemon zest and lemon juice.
Now that we’ve covered the basic ingredients, let’s make coconut lime rice.
How to Make Coconut Lime Rice:
Soak the rice in cool water for at least 15 minutes (up to 12 hours). This process helps remove lectins and arsenic. The soaking process also helps hydrate the rice, resulting in tender rice with amazing texture.
After soaking, drain the water from the rice. I use a saucepan with a lid to soak rice so that I can use the lid to strain out the water.
Transfer all of the ingredients for coconut lime rice to a medium-sized pot and give it a big stir. Cover the pot and bring it to a full boil on the stove top over high heat.
Once boiling, stir the mixture to ensure the coconut milk has melted and all of the ingredients are combined.
Replace the lid and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 15 minutes, or according to the time provided on the package of rice.
Remove the lid and fluff rice with a fork. This ensures the grains of rice don’t clump together as they cool.
Serve coconut lime rice with your main dish and enjoy! It is the perfect side dish for any combination of meat and veggies, and is great in burrito bowls.
Store leftover rice in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
The next time you’re planning on making plain white rice, consider whipping up this delicious side dish! This easy coconut lime rice recipe is the perfect accompaniment to Asian-inspired meals.
Looking for ways of putting coconut lime rice to use? Here are some delicious dinner recipes where this easy side dish goes to shine.
What to Serve with Coconut Lime Rice:
- Garlic Sesame Chicken Bowls
- 10-Minute Salmon and Rice Bowl
- Jamaican Jerk Chicken
- Easy 30-Minute Paleo Mongolian Beef
- Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry
- Healthy Cashew Chicken
- Salmon Poke Bowls with Crab Salad
Level up your weeknight meals with this amazing rice dish!
Coconut Lime Rice Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups long grain white basmati rice
- 1 (15-oz) can full-fat coconut milk
- ½ cup water
- 1 Tbsp lime zest two limes zested
- 1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
- 2-3 Tbsp pure maple syrup to taste
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Soak the rice in cool water for at least 15 minutes (up to 12 hours). This process helps remove lectins and arsenic. Use the lid of the pot to drain out the water.
- Transfer all of the remaining ingredients to the pot and give everything a good stir. It's okay if the coconut milk has solid chunks. They will melt as the cold water becomes hotter. Cover the pot and bring it to a full boil on the stove top over high heat. Once boiling, stir the rice mixture until it is creamy. Replace the lid and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 12-15 minutes, or go by the time listed on the package of white rice.
- Once rice has finished cooking, immediately remove the lid and fluff rice with a fork. Serve coconut lime rice with your main dish and enjoy!
- Store leftover rice in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
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This sounded delicious so I bought the limes since I already had everything else. I used brown basmati and it’s a delightful dish. Put the lime in the coconut… Never knew how good that would be. It paired beautifully with Peruvian chicken.
Surprisingly, I actually had the ingredients in the house to make this side dish last night- well, no fresh limes, but I did have some key lime juice.
What a delicious, fragrant and creamy rice dish. Simple to make. Was a nice pairing with grilled shrimp. I have no doubt that the lime zest would have cut the heaviness in the coconut flavor- and I wish I had it in the house.
The leftovers- It actually made a lovely breakfast this morning with some fresh fruit – tangy pineapple and mandarin oranges. I will definitely make this again.
I had never heard of lime rice before- very glad I tried it. Thank you!!
My pleasure, Annie! I’m happy you tried the recipe! I love the idea of pairing it with shrimp – sounds fantastic! My husband also enjoys the rice in a sweet application too…sometimes he treats it as dessert 😉