South Indian coconut rice is flavorful and delicious! It’s also easy to make in an instant pot. Grated coconut makes this pulao fluffy and filling, and the curry leaves add great aroma and flavor.
Coconut rice is a mild rice dish that’s so good you can enjoy it on its own, or with a pickle.
Everyone in my family loves this rice. It’s a nice change from our everyday plain basmati rice. Whenever I make instant pot coconut rice or my lemon rice, our meals feel a little more special.
What is Coconut Rice?
If you’re new to coconut rice, this is a popular dish from South India, where coconuts and rice are aplenty. It’s eaten as both an everyday meal and it’s also a dish served during festivals and special occasions.
While this is a dish that can be eaten alone, you can always serve it with raita or dal or a simple veggie dish to make it a more filling meal. I love pairing it with this coconut lentil dal and my beet thoran.
While freshly grated coconut would taste amazing in this dish, I always use frozen grated coconut (unsweetened), available in the frozen section of your local Indian grocery store.
I can’t wait to hear what you think of this coconut rice!
Want More Rice Recipes?
Instant Pot Coconut Rice
Instant Pot Coconut Rice
Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati rice soaked for 15-30 minutes (this is the brand of basmati I love)
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 1 tablespoon split chickpeas (chana dal)
- 1 tablespoon split and skinless black lentils (split and skinless urad dal)
- 15 curry leaves
- 15 cashews split in half
- 1 Serrano pepper or green chili slit but still intact
- 2 cups frozen, grated coconut*
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Soak the basmati rice in cold water for 15-30 minutes. Drain, rinse and set aside.
- Press the sauté button, and add the coconut oil. Once it melts, add the mustard seeds, split chickpeas, split/skinless black lentils. Once the mustard seeds begin to pop and the lentils turn golden in color, add the curry leaves, cashews and Serrano pepper. Stir for 30 seconds.
- Add the coconut and stir for another 30 seconds, then add the rice, water and salt. Mix well.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 6 minutes at high pressure.
- Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes.
- Open the valve to release any remaining pressure.
- Fluff the rice with a fork, and serve.
Notes
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*Find frozen unsweetened grated coconut at your local Indian grocery store.
Sonal says
I love this Rice. I like your all recipes.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Sonal, I’m so glad to hear that 🙂 Thank you.
Sarah says
HI! I’m looking forward to making this for a group this weekend, along with a bunch of other dishes. If I double the quantity, does the cook time stay the same? Also, if I make it slightly ahead of dinner time (say, an hour or so,) and keep it on the warm function, will it make it soggy or ruin the texture? Thank you so much for the recipe and for your help! I’ve never made rice in my instant pot before 🙂
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Sarah! I haven’t tried doubling this but think it’ll be fine. And yes, you can leave it on warm for a bit – the coconut helps absorb extra liquid so it shouldn’t get soggy. Let me know how the party goes – would love to hear!
Colleen says
Yummy, yummy, yummy. I love your recipes! I used brown basmati rice and soaked it for 30 mins and then pressure cooked it for 22 mins and it came out excellent.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Colleen, that’s great! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
Payal Maskara says
I have dries unsweetened coconut from Costco. Can I use that? If yes then the same quantity?
Esther says
As a Tamilian living in the US and loves using her instant pot, thanks you so much!!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Happy to hear that! Thanks, Esther 🙂
Wait Up says
This was delicious. I didn’t have shredded frozen coconut, but I added coconut chips just before serving and it was fine. Great flavors together.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Salma says
I’d love to try this recipe but as I live in a small apartment it’s not always convenient for me to lug out the Instant Pot. I was wondering if I want to make this on the stovetop, how much water should I add and is there anything else I might need to do differently?
Thank you… 🙂
Shashi Jain says
Loved this recipe. Even my daughter, who dislikes coconut, enjoyed this. I served mine with leftover rajmah and it was amazing. Thanks as always!
My Heart Beets says
Shashi, that’s so great to hear! Thanks for letting me know how the rice turned out 🙂
Maya Gupta says
Love your recipes! For this and other rice recipes, do you have a recommended cook time for brown basmati as opposed to white? I made the Lemon Rice last night with 22 min at high pressure + 10 min natural release and it was still a bit crunchy, so I put it back on a few mins at high pressure and it was fine. Do you think 25 mins at high is a good general rule for brown basmati or does it depend on whether we’re soaking first? Thank you!
My Heart Beets says
Thanks Maya! I always soak basmati rice and so for me 22 minutes works for brown basmati but if you’re not soaking then it probably is a good idea to cook it a bit longer especially if you find that it’s still crunchy. Just fyi – if you buy “quick cooking brown basmati” (can easily find this at trader joes) that cooks in the same amount of time as white basmati and would be a better option if you’re making something that calls for veggies (so they don’t turn to mush). Hope that helps!
Neha says
I would like to double this receipe. What would be the cooking time in my instant pot.
My Heart Beets says
Double the ingredients but keep the cook time the same 🙂
Erin Libby says
Can dried curry leaves be used in place of the fresh curry leaves? If so, is there a reduction in the quantity? Thank you! Me and my family really enjoy your recipes! They are always perfect as written.
My Heart Beets says
Erin, I’d go with the same amount – I know most of the time dried herbs are stronger in flavor but that’s not really the case for dried curry leaves in my opinion. Let me know how it goes!
Carey Letts says
It’s impossible to describe how much I loved the coconut rice! It was absolutely perfect!!! Soooo delicious and the aroma was to die for. I told my husband it’s all I’ve ever wanted out of a rice dish 😁
Ashley, I’m curious about the urad and chana dal… Years ago I made a coconut chutney and that recipe also called for the addition of one of the dal’s in a small portion like for the rice. Is it added as a textural thing or is there another reason behind it?
Thanks again!
My Heart Beets says
Carey, I’m so happy to hear that you like the coconut rice so much!! Those two dals add texture and they also adds a really nice nutty flavor when toasted. Because they are split dals, they toast/cook easily too in oil 🙂
Juhi says
Loved this recipe. Being a North Indian It was first time that I tried coconut rice for a small group of guests. It was a hit! The best part is that it was super quick and easy recipe with nice flavor. Thanks!
My Heart Beets says
Juhi, I’m so happy to hear that!! Thank you for letting me know how it turned out for you and your guests 🙂