COCONUT RICE WITH JELLOF RECIPE...............

How to Cook Nigerian Coconut Rice

coconut rice

Nigerian Coconut Rice is always a welcomed dish in many homes, parties or events.
       Although it looks a lot like the  Jollof Rice, it is quite different in aroma and the ''coconuty'' taste, isn't what you get with Jollof Rice. 
     Nigerian Coconut Rice can also be made plain without stews or tomatoes, making it look more like plain Boiled rice, but with the distinctive coconut taste.

                         Ingredients for Coconut Rice
 *500g Parboiled Rice (Here's how to Parboil Rice)
*150ml Tomato Stew
*100ml Coconut Milk(Here's how to make extract coconut milk from whole coconut)
*100 ml Chicken or Beef stock
*1 medium sized Onion bulb
*Ground Crayfish(optional)
*Stock cubes/stock powder/ Seasoning  of choice 
*Pepper (to taste)
*Salt (to taste)

Preparations Before cooking the Nigerian Coconut Rice

 *Hard object for cracking/breaking the coconut(preferable, A hammer)
*A knife for prying out the coconut milk
*A sieve/strainer(with very tight holes) or a cheese cloth
*A blender or dry mill or grater
*Bowls
*Hot water(as needed)

 Preparation
 * First crack open the coconut with a hard object or hammer , and place a cup over it to collect the coconut water(you can drink it, it very refreshing :))

* Now break the coconut to smaller pieces;Using a small knife, pry out the coconut meat from the shell and place in a bowl of clean water.Wash the coconut meat and cut it into several pieces and place in a blender or dry mill.
  If you don't have a blender, don't cut the coconut meat into tiny pieces, simple grate the coconut using the smaller sides of your grater.

* If you are using a blender, add a little warm water into the blender and grind the coconut meat into a very smooth paste.
  If you are using a dry mill, grind the coconut meat without any water added.

*Next pour the grated or milled  coconut into a wide bowl , add a little warm water, mix well and leave to sit for 5 minutes.

*Now pour out the mixture through a sieve/strainer(with very tight holes) or a cheese cloth and squeeze with your hands to make sure that you get all the milk out.
  Place the coconut chaff into a bowl and add a little more warm water .Repeat the same process until the milk you get is no longer ''milky''
**If you don't have the canned coconut milk, here's an easy method on How to Extract Coconut Milk from whole coconut.
Coconut oil can also be used in the absence of coconut milk.
**Cook  the chicken/beef, grill/fry and set aside;reserve the stock(liquid from cooking the meat)

**Grind the crayfish and set aside
   
Now to Cook the Coconut Rice

* In a large pot, pour in the tomato stew, meat stock and the extracted coconut  milk.Leave to boil for 5 minutes

* Pour in the parboiled rice to the pot, add the ground crayfish, stock cubes, pepper and salt to taste.Make sure that the liquid in the pot is at the same level as the rice in the pot, if not, add some more to top it up.

* Now cover and leave the rice to cook on medium heat until the liquid in the pot is dried up.
  Tip: High heat will make the rice burn before it is cooked, while low heat will make the rice soggy and will also burn at the bottom.

*The rice should be properly done when there is no more liquid in the pot.Serve with the grilled/fried meat and enjoy.


Note: Coconut rice always turn out a bit sticky because of the oil in the coconut milk used in the recipe.
 
Nigerian Coconut Rice is usually served with Salad, Moi Moi or Fried Plantains.