Instant Pot Coconut Brown Rice: Delicious, healthy brown rice with coconut milk is quick enough to make on a busy weeknight thanks to pressure cooking.
My daughter is eating healthy. (Good for her!) Every weekend she preps her school lunches, making a big batch of grilled chicken breasts with southwestern spice rub, steamed broccoli, and brown rice. Now, that seems a little boring to me, and I know she loves my regular pressure cooked coconut rice, so I adapted the recipe to give her some rice variety.
Jump to:
And, geez - listen to me. “Adapted my recipe.” This is hardly a recipe; it’s barely a technique. Stir 2 cups rice, 2.5 cups liquid (a mix of water and coconut milk), and a little salt in an Instant Pot. Lock the lid, pressure cook for 20 minutes, and the brown rice is ready to go.
If it’s not for school lunches, I’ll fancy it up a bit with toasted coconut flakes and minced cilantro. It works with grilled chicken breasts (of course), but it’s also the ideal side dish with a pressure cooked Thai curry.
Ingredients
- 2 cups brown Jasmine rice
- 1½ cups water
- 13.5-ounce can coconut milk
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
How to make Instant Pot Coconut Brown Rice
Everything in the pot
Pour the rice, water, coconut milk, and salt into the Instant Pot (or other pressure cooker). Give it a quick stir, breaking up the coconut cream from the can.
Pressure cook the rice for 20 minutes with a quick pressure release
Lock the lid and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes in an electric PC ("manual" or "pressure cook" mode in an Instant Pot), or for 16 minutes in a stovetop PC. Quick release the pressure.
Serve
Stir the rice a bit to spread out the coconut cream that floated to the top of the pot. Transfer to a serving bowl, fluff with a fork, serve, and enjoy.
What kind of coconut milk?
I prefer full fat coconut milk for this recipe, but lite coconut milk will also work. Just don't get "cream of coconut", which is sweetened coconut milk. Cream of coconut is for Pina coladas, not for rice.
Tips and Tricks
- Toasted shredded coconut garnish: A sprinkling of shredded coconut on top of the rice is a nice touch, if you have the time. Turn the instant pot to Sauté mode adjusted to low heat. (Medium-low heat in a stovetop cooker). Pour a thin layer of unsweetened shredded coconut (aka coconut flakes) into the pot and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned. And…please pay attention. Coconut flakes go from browned to burnt in a heartbeat.
- Types of rice: You can use any long grain brown rice in this recipe; I like the flavor of jasmine rice, but brown basmati rice is also good, and the recipe will work with plain long grain brown rice.
- Rinsing rice: I don't bother rinsing my rice, but if you want your brown rice to be a little less sticky, you can rinse it. I rinse rice in a fine mesh strainer, running water through it for a few minutes. Then I let it drain and add it to the Instant Pot.
Storage
According to the USDA, Leftover brown rice will last for three days in the refrigerator, or three months in the freezer, as long as it is refrigerated (or frozen) within an hour of cooking in an airtight container. (I portion out my leftovers into 2-cup containers before I put it in the fridge or freezer.) Also, be sure to reheat the rice all the way through - to be precise, an instant read thermometer should read 165°F in the middle of the rice. (This only takes a few minutes in the microwave.)
Print
Instant Pot Coconut Brown Rice Recipe
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 cups 1x
Description
Instant Pot Coconut Brown Rice. Jasmine rice, coconut milk, and pressure cooking make this healthy, slightly sweet side dish, perfect for Thai curries.
Ingredients
- 2 cups brown Jasmine rice
- 1 ½ cups water
- 13.5-ounce can coconut milk
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- Everything in the pot: Pour the rice, water, coconut milk, and salt into the Instant Pot (or other pressure cooker). Give it a quick stir, breaking up the coconut cream from the can.
- Pressure cook the rice for 20 minutes with a quick pressure release: Lock the lid and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes in an electric PC ("manual" or "pressure cook" mode in an Instant Pot), or for 16 minutes in a stovetop PC. Quick release the pressure.
- Serve: Stir the rice a bit to spread out the coconut cream that floated to the top of the pot. Transfer to a serving bowl, sprinkle with the garnishes if you're using them, and enjoy.
Equipment
Buy Now → Notes
Make sure to get unsweetened coconut milk. “Cream of coconut” or other sweetened coconut milks are great for piña coladas…not so much for coconut rice.
Can’t find brown Jasmine rice? Any long grain brown rice will do.
Toasting shredded coconut: Turn the instant pot to Sauté mode adjusted to low heat. (Medium-low heat in a stovetop cooker). Pour a thin layer of unsweetened shredded coconut (aka coconut flakes) into the pot and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned. And…please pay attention. Coconut flakes go from browned to burnt in a heartbeat.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: Pacific Rim
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
Pressure Cooker Brown Jasmine Rice
Pressure Cooker Mexican Brown Rice
Pressure Cooker Brown and Wild Rice Pilaf
Instant Pot White Rice
My other Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Recipes
Enjoyed this post? Want to help out DadCooksDinner? Subscribe to DadCooksDinner via email and share this post with your friends. Want to contribute directly? Donate to my Tip Jar, or buy something from Amazon.com through the links on this site. Thank you.
Dara
Beyond perfect
Mike Vrobel
Thank you!
Cher @ Designs by Studio C
Great recipe! Found it when searching and happened to have all of the ingredients for it… Simple to make and very, very good!
Mike Vrobel
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!
Christy Favazza
I love this recipe. Turns out perfect every time! Thanks for sharing.
Mike Vrobel
You’re welcome!
Colleen
Absolutely the best intant pot coconut rice recipe I've tried. This will be my go-to from now on. I really like that you used brown rice, which is a little bit healthier.
Mike Vrobel
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Samantha
Came across this recipe while I was trying to make coconut rice in the IP instead of on the stove to save time. Recipe turned out great! Thanks for sharing!
Jerome
Hi, I was wondering if you use the lite or full fat coconut milk? Thanks for the recipe!
Mike Vrobel
I generally use full fat, but the recipe works with light coconut milk too.
Fran
Perfect. I made this in my instant pot DUO. I also added a chicken bullion to the 1 1/2 cup boiling water. Brown rice came out just right. Thanks so much for this!
Bonnie
Excellent recipe! Came out perfect and so yummy! Thank you for sharing
Mike Vrobel
You’re welcome!
Aaron Friedman
Your original brown jasmine rice recipe calls for a 15 minute natural release. Did you find that it comes out better with the quick release?