Coconut Rice

Ingredients

• 300 g jasmine rice
• 1 tin of coconut milk
• 150 ml water
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 pandan leaf, knotted (optional)
• 20 g coconut flakes, toasted

Method

1. Rinse well

   Rinse the rice until the water runs clear. Coconut milk is already rich, and leaving the surface starch on makes the finished rice gluey rather than tender.

2. Coconut milk and water

   Combine the rice, coconut milk, water, salt and pandan if using. Coconut milk alone is too fatty — the water is what lets the grains actually absorb liquid and swell.

3. Bring up slowly

   Bring to a gentle boil, stirring once so nothing sticks, then cover and drop to the lowest heat. Coconut milk catches and scorches far more easily than water.

   5 min

4. Steam and rest

   Cook 12 minutes covered, then off the heat for 10 more without lifting the lid.

   22 min

5. Fluff and top

   Fork it through, remove the pandan leaf, and scatter with toasted coconut flakes. Good with anything hot and sour — its job is to be the calm thing on the plate.