This is a recipe for exceptionally fluffy, coconut rice! No gluggy coconut milk scum left on the surface, each grain is clean and fluffy. The trick is to BAKE it rather than use the stove. No scorched pot, and the rice grains are evenly cooked!Make it Asian-restaurant style by adding pandan leaves OR kaffir lime leaves. Or finish with a sprinkle of toasted coconuts. Serve with: tropical, Caribbean, Indian and Asian foods. See recipe card below for stove-top COCONUT POWDER version (no rice rinse, no soak).
Recipe by Nagi | RecipeTin Eats on November 11, 2014
Prep time: PT5M
Cook time: PT40M
Total time: PT17M
Rating
4.95 stars (326 reviews)
Keywords
Coconut rice
Ingredients
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
1 pandan leaves (, knotted)
2 kaffir lime leaves (, crushed in hand)
1 tbsp desiccated coconut (, toasted, to garnish)
Categories
Rice
Side
Cuisine
Asian
Steps
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!
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 148 g
Calories: 192 kcal
Reviews
Jaclyn Boyd on 2026-06-25 (5 stars): We keep 3 days max religiously
Jaclyn Boyd on 2026-06-25 (5 stars): We love this new rice recipe its absolutely amazing! People need to stop complaining and just try it. I have done both the old recipe version of hers in the stove and this one. The stove one failed for me in flavor and texture. This recipe is supreme it makes legitimate restaurant quality rice. I do agree the prep time needs to be updated to reflect the true time though. The rice including soak time takes about 2 hours. I add coconut cream to mine and a bit more sugar. (I use the coconut milk recipe not the powder one) recipe is amazing as is! But I like to use one 13.88oz can full fat unsweetened coconut milk, 1/2 cup coconut cream, 7 tsp sugar, 1 tsp non iodized salt and 1 1/2 cups filtered Water. Simply mix and bring to boil as normal. Put rice in 8x8 aluminum pan and pour boiling mixture over, give a quick mix and cover well with foil. I place the 8x8 pan on a lined sheet pan to catch drips and make taking it in and out of the oven easier. Bake 40 minutes at suggested temp dont peek or open oven door at all. When 40 minutes is up take out and set aside for 15 minutes leaving it covered ! When 15 minutes is up fluff and serve. It's amazing! I also rinse it 5 times then allow it to soak 1 hour in water before cooking then drain for 5 minutes all that is essential! Simply follow her directions and you'll have amazing rice! My way just makes it a bit more coconut flavored and sweet.
Gina on 2026-05-10 (5 stars): A fantastic, foolproof recipe! So great to concentrate on BBQing Thai Gai Yang Chicken, knowing the rice was quietly becoming perfect in the oven.
Anna Balyasov on 2026-05-02 (5 stars): Amazing rice, may family couldn’t stop asking to put one more!
Thank you for detailed explanation, all steps are important.
Katherine on 2026-04-15 (5 stars): Important tip: Instead of pouring boiling liquid over rice, in step 5 boil the coconut milk/water in an oven-proof pan. Then add the rice in and cover with lid. Place pan in oven.
I've made this countless times and it's amazing!
Jo on 2026-03-26 (5 stars): Darling your recipes are perfect. Thank you for your most excellent explanations and delicious recipes. Every time I'm looking for something vegetarian and your name appears I'm very excited because your recipes work.
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge with us. X. Love from a fellow Australian. X.
Tracy B on 2026-03-19 (5 stars): This is by far the most amazing coconut rice I’ve ever had!! Absolutely delicious!! Thank you so so much for sharing this recipe. Even my hubby liked it, and he’s not a fan of coconut.
Mark M on 2026-02-19 (5 stars): This rice is amazing !
Made it using light coconut milk and about 2 teaspoons of mon fruit sugar substitute. I missed the part about soaking (my mistake) but did rinse the rice well. Added in some lime zest and chopped cilantro. Also put in two whole jalapeno peppers. Baked as directed and it was AMAZING. Fluffy, no stickiness, subtle flavors from the jalepenos, lime zest, and cilantro noticeable but did not overwhelm the coconut flavor. Definitely will become a go to recipe.
Kim Bedward on 2026-02-16 (5 stars): I just made this to go with a beef rendang tonight. It came out perfectly, and I will definitely be using this method for coconut rice in future.
Mina on 2026-02-12 (5 stars): To an commenters reading this review, please disregard it. The lack of common sense and display of misplaced blame is not reflective of Magi's work. "at the 30 minute mark I checked it,,,completely dry,…almost burning! I continued on for the total time" is incredibly negligent on the posters end and nothing Nagi could have controlled for in her testing. To see something going awry and then CONTINUE is utterly wild.
Wendy Morrison on 2026-02-08 (5 stars): Thank you for your comment. Exactly what I was looking for! I don't have time to check my rice tomorrow, and using my rice cooker will be perfect.
Julie on 2026-02-02 (5 stars): Made it with sweetened coconut milk and excluded the sugar. This rice was the bomb! Yum!!!!!
