Our Coconut Rice Pudding is traditionally served during the Christmas Holidays in Puerto Rico. We refer to this dish as Arroz con Dulce or Arroz con Coco. The Coconut Rice Pudding is prepared differently in every household due to personal taste. The three main ingredients that are consistent in making this dish are milk, rice and sugar. However, I prepare this dessert with whole cloves, fresh ginger, raisins, nutmeg, cinnamon sticks and fresh coconut milk for a more flavorful rice pudding with a sweet and creamy texture.
A Little Bit of History!
The history of rice pudding is really unknown due to many countries claiming its origin. However, Puerto Rico was a Spanish Colony for 405 years. As a result, Spain introduced this sweet rice pudding that originated in Andalusia, Spain to Puerto Rico. In Spain, the rice pudding is referred to as “Arroz con Leche.” The Spaniards prepared this dish with regular milk that was sweetened with sugar which was then infused with many other spices.
In Puerto Rico, we prepare many dishes with coconuts. Therefore, we add coconut milk to our rice pudding. Don’t forget that the palm tree without coconut is native to Puerto Rico known as the Royal Palm (La Palma Real). Conversely, the palm tree with coconuts were brought to the island from West Africa. We also use the short or medium grain rice for this recipe to achieve a creamy sticky rice texture. Since the short or medium grain rice is softer and moister, the rice tends to stick together when cooked.
Soaking the Rice!
Soak 1½ cups of short grain rice for 2 hours or overnight before preparing this dish to cook evenly and to shorten the cooking time.
Preparing the Coconut Mixture!
In a 3-quart saucepan, add 4 cups coconut milk, 1 teaspoon salt (low sodium), ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg, 3 cinnamon sticks, 10 whole cloves and
Note: Click on this link to learn how to prepare homemade coconut milk for those individuals interested: Coconut Milk.
then add 1½ ounces of fresh ginger (cut into ¼-inch slices).
Stir until all the ingredients are well blended.
Bring coconut mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cover saucepan with lid. Simmer for 15 minutes.
Straining the Coconut Mixture!
Place sieve over bowl and strain coconut mixture through the sieve.
Here you have coconut milk infused with many different flavors! If you notice the coconut mixture no longer has a solid white color after simmering with all the spices.
Cooking the Rice for Coconut Rice Pudding!
Pour the flavored coconut mixture that we just strained back into the 3-quart saucepan.
Bring to a boil before we can add the rice.
Drain the water from the rice (1½ cups of short-grain rice) before adding to the boiling coconut mixture.
Stir rice well into liquid. Reduce heat to low. Cover saucepan with lid and simmer for 20 minutes.
Note: Do not stir the rice while simmering for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes of cooking, the rice has absorbed most of the liquid.
Adding More Ingredients to the Coconut Rice Mixture!
We can now add 1½ cups sugar (you can use brown sugar if you prefer), ¾ cup seedless raisins and
Note: If you use brown sugar, the coconut rice pudding will have a darker color.
pour 1 cup of coconut milk over raisins and sugar.
Turning the Coconut Rice Pudding!
Gently turn the rice by inserting a spoon at the bottom inside edge of saucepan.
Bring the bottom rice to the top. Continue this process to mix all the ingredients.
We just finished mixing all the ingredients.
Cover saucepan with lid after turning the rice and then simmer for 15 minutes or until liquid is mostly absorbed.
Note: Stir rice at least once during the 15-minute simmering process.
Check the rice for tenderness after simmering for 15 minutes. Make sure rice has absorbed most of the coconut mixture.
The rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed. The Coconut Rice Pudding has a creamy texture.
Serving the Coconut Rice Pudding!
You can serve this dessert in a large bowl or individual small plates. I love to sprinkle ground cinnamon on top.
Click on the bottom below to watch my YouTube video on How to Prepare Coconut Rice Pudding (Arroz con Dulce/Arroz con Coco)!
Recipe and Nutritional Facts!
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. Please refer to our Nutritional Facts Disclaimer for more information.
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Coconut Rice Pudding (Arroz con Dulce)
- Prep Time: 2 Hours 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 50 Minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: 8 Bowls 1x
Description
A sweet and creamy coconut rice pudding that is traditionally prepared during the Christmas Holidays in Puerto Rico.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups short grain white rice
- 5 cups coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon salt (low sodium)
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
- 10 whole cloves
- 1½ ounces fresh ginger, peel and cut into ¼-inch slices or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 1½ cups granulated sugar or brown sugar
- ½ cup seedless raisins
Instructions
- Soak rice for 2 hours or overnight.
- Reserve 1 cup of coconut milk.
- Add 4 cups coconut milk, salt, nutmeg, whole cloves, ginger and cinnamon sticks into a 3-quart saucepan. Stir well and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Cover with lid.
- Strain coconut mixture using a sieve into a bowl.
- Pour coconut mixture back into the saucepan and bring to a boil.
- Drain rice and add to coconut mixture. Stir rice well into liquid. Simmer for 20 minutes and cover with lid.
- Add sugar, raisins and reserved coconut milk on top of coconut rice mixture.
- Gently turn rice, bringing bottom rice to the top.
- Cover with lid and simmer for 15 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed.
- Serve on a large plate or individual bowls. Sprinkle with ground cinnamon if you so desire.
Notes
If you use brown sugar, your coconut rice pudding will have a darker color.
Prep Time includes two hours of soaking the rice in water.
- Category: Desserts
- Cuisine: Puerto Rican
Keywords: Coconut Rice Pudding, Arroz con Coco
8 Comments. Leave new
Your Arroz con Dulce looks delicious. I add my spices to 4 cups of water. Let it boil for 15 minutes then I drain it into a big pot. I then add coconut milk, evaporated milk, Coco Lopez, sugar and raisins and let it boil, covered for an additional 20 minutes. My question is; why don’t you add evaporated milk or Coco Lopez to your recipe?
Hi Norma, The traditional recipe for coconut rice pudding is made just with coconut milk. However, we tend to alter the original recipe and prepare it to our liking. Therefore, I prefer to just add the coconut milk but you can add different milk flavors to your recipe. Many individuals also prepare this dish with brown sugar but I prefer the granulated sugar (traditional ingredient). Make your dish based on your taste preference and enjoy every bite.
Can I soak raisins overnight in rum?
Hi Barbara, Yes, you can soak the raisins in rum overnight if that is your preference. You can prepare any dish according to your taste.
I soaked the rice overnight, followed directions and in the final step, rice has cooked for over an hr and still hard and lots of liquid. Where did I go wrong?
Hi Trish, I wish I could have been there while you were preparing this dish to be able to answer your question. Maybe the coconut milk yield too much liquid after straining? Before you added the sugar, raisins and coconut milk, was there still too much liquid to the coconut-rice mixture in the saucepan? Most of the liquid should have been absorbed. When I turned the rice after adding the remaining ingredients (raisins, sugar, etc.), you can see that the rice was almost cooked (see coconut rice video). In addition, every cooking appliance can vary in the heat temperature. For example, my induction cooker heats the food a lot faster than on top of the stove. If you encounter a lot of liquid and the rice is still hard in the future, I would recommend to cover saucepan with aluminum foil and place a tight-fitting lid and cook until the liquid is absorbed. For this recipe, I used the short grain white rice. I hope I was able to assist.
Aida! I made the recipe and it was delicious. The only thing I changed was to I used 3/4 cup of sugar instead of a 1 1/2 cups. I also have your cookbook and love it – gracias.
★★★★★
Hi Ava, I am so glad you prepared the coconut rice pudding and that it was delicious. You can definitely change the amount of any ingredients to suit your taste. Thank you for also purchasing my cookbook. Enjoy your Sunday!