Tamarind Coconut Rice

Day 3 of Quarantine: Cooking rice for a crowd.

I could eat rice everyday. Actually every meal. It’s one of my favorite stapes in the kitchen for sweet or savory dishes. I bought a huge bag of Basmati rice last week in anticipation of the quarantine. This dish is aromatic, tangy, savory, and sweet. We eat it at 10am for brunch and then had more for an early dinner. I topped it with a salty, fried egg in the morning and for dinner (if I had them) I would have added grilled shrimp. It’s also delicious without any additions.

Next time, I’m going to use a red onion and add some garlic. You choose your own adventure and add whatever you are craving.

What you need:

1 1/2 Cup Basmati rice
1 large white onion, thinly sliced
2 tsp tamarind paste
3 Tablespoons unrefined coconut oil
1 Tablespoons sesame seeds
1 3/4 Cup unsweetened flaked coconut
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds

Cook the rice (I used my favorite kitchen electric- my rice cooker!) and set aside. In a skillet, dry toast the coconut flakes, the cumin and the sesame seeds over medium heat until golden brown and fragrant. Set those aside in a bowl. In the same skillet, add the oil, onion and salt and cook over medium heat for several minutes (about 10-12) until caramelized. Turn off the heat, add the tamarind paste to the warm onions and stir well. In a large bowl, add the rice, then the onion/tamarind mix and the coconut/spice mix and stir everything together. Enjoy warm! I cooked fried eggs in the same skillet right afterwards to put on top.

Toasted coconut, cumin & sesame

Dry toast (meaning don’t add any oil) in skillet until golden brown.

Aromatic and Tangy

Tamarind is one of my favorite flavors

And the leftovers are delish

Just re-heat in skillet or microwave!