Sweet and Tangy Coconut Rice

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My favorite recipes are the ones I stumble over while trying to figure out something to do with leftover ingredients from other dishes. Partly this is because I don't like to waste, but partly it's because I know I usually will have these ingredients handy, since they're from recipes I make frequently.

This recipe came about this very way. I had just made Whipped Coconut Cream and had coconut water left in the cans after removing the heavy separated cream. I bought a bottle of coconut water in the juice isle once and tried it: I hate the taste as a drink, so I was about to toss the stuff in the cans down the drain, when I thought, "wouldn't this make a nice ingredient in something?"

Because I like contrasting tastes (sweet and salty, sweet and spicy, tart and sweet, spicy and earthy, etc) and rarely care for "pure" in food flavor, I decided not to use shredded coconut and instead to use lemon zest. Here's a hint: instead of struggling with a fancy lemon zester, which has never worked for me and tends to zest my fingers instead of the lemon, I just throw the peel in my food processor, set it on spices, and grind the heck out of it. The nice thing is you can load up on it when you have lemons and stick it in a bag in the fridge: it'll last for a long time. If you use shredded coconut instead of lemon zest, use 2T and choose an organic, unsweetened variety.

Ingredients:

2 T pure olive oil

2 C medium or long-grain white rice. Basmati is my favorite.

1/2 C chopped organic celery optional

3 C coconut water (if you're using can leftovers and don't quite make 3 C it's okay to dilute with water)

1 T lemon zest

Directions

1. Cook rice with olive oil in a large pot, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat, until it just barely starts to color. Add the celery, stirring constantly for about 4 more minutes.
2. Add coconut water and lemon zest. Increase heat, stirring frequently, until it starts to simmer. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer 15-25 minutes (check directions on your rice, since different varieties cook faster or slower). Remove from heat. Allow to sit with cover for 5 minutes. Serve.

Last updated: 21 Feb. 2012