Best Coconut Milk Recipes

CHICKEN CURRY WITH SWEET POTATOES AND COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325 degrees. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.
• Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add oil. Brown chicken pieces, in batches if necessary, until golden all over, 6 to 8 minutes per batch. Transfer chicken to a plate.
• Stir scallion, ginger, garlic and chiles into pot and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring, until soft, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in curry paste and cook 1 minute. Stir in coconut milk and sweet potatoes. Arrange chicken pieces on top of potatoes, placing breast meat on top. Pour in enough water to come halfway up the sides of chicken. Bring to a boil. Cover pot and transfer to oven. Bake until chicken is cooked through, about 40 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large dry skillet over medium heat, toast coconut flakes until golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mustard seeds and toast until they begin to pop, 1 minute more. Transfer to a bowl and season with a pinch of salt.
• Transfer chicken and sweet potatoes to a platter. Return Dutch oven to the stove and simmer over medium-high heat until cooking liquid has thickened to a saucelike consistency, 5 to 10 minutes. Pour over chicken and potatoes. Sprinkle with the coconut and mustard seed mixture and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP WITH COCONUT MILK AND GINGER

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds; reserve, if desired (see Cook's Note). Drizzle cut side of squash with 1 tablespoon oil and season with salt and pepper. Place, cut-side down, on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Roast until squash is very tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool slightly, about 15 minutes.
• In a 6-quart pot or Dutch oven, heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil over medium. Add shallots and garlic, season with salt and pepper, and cook until shallots are soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Add ginger and coriander; cook until very fragrant, 2 minutes. Stir in broth, 1 cup water, and 1 teaspoon salt. Scoop flesh from cooled squash into pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring a few times, 30 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes.
• Working in batches, puree soup in a blender until smooth. Return to pot; heat over medium. Whisk in coconut milk. Cook until warmed through, 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, drizzled with more coconut milk and sprinkled with toasted squash seeds, if desired. Soup can be stored in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 1 week.

CURRIED SHRIMP WITH COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Heat large skillet over medium heat, then add 1 tablespoon butter. When foam subsides, add shrimp and cook until they just turn pink. Remove from pan and reserve. Add remaining 1 tablespoon butter to pan. When it melts, add onions and stir; cook 5 minutes until softened. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, curry powder, garlic and ginger over the onions, reduce heat to low, and cook gently 5 minutes until onions are softened and translucent. Add red pepper and chayote and cook 5 minutes. Add about 2/3 of the coconut milk and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes to bring flavors together. Add shrimp back to skillet along with scallions, cilantro leaves and lime juice. Taste and adjust seasoning adding more pepper if necessary, adding more coconut milk if desired for a soupier consistency. Serve over rice.

CREAMY COCONUT MILK RICE PUDDING

Steps:

• Bring water and rice to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender and liquid has been absorbed, about 20 minutes.
• Combine rice, coconut milk, sugar, and salt in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until pudding is thick and creamy, 18 to 20 minutes. Stir milk and eggs into pudding, stirring constantly to keep pudding from sticking, at least 2 minutes.
• Remove pudding from heat and stir butter, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg into pudding until thoroughly mixed. Fold peaches and raisins into pudding.

BASMATI RICE WITH COCONUT MILK AND GINGER

Steps:

• Place rice in a fine strainer, and rinse with cold water until water runs clear. Transfer to a medium saucepan. Add 1 cup water, coconut milk, chicken broth and salt. Cover, and place over medium-high heat. Bring liquid to a boil, then reduce and simmer until liquid has been absorbed and rice is tender, about 15 minutes.
• Remove from heat, and stir in scallions and ginger. Add a little more coconut milk if rice is too dry. Season to taste with salt. Serve.

EASY THAI CHICKEN CURRY WITH COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add curry powder and chili paste and cook for 2 minutes.
• Add chicken, onion, and bell pepper. Stir-fry until chicken is no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 5 minutes.
• Add fish sauce and garlic and saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Add coconut milk, chicken stock, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Bring to a low simmer and cook until flavors come together, 7 to 10 minutes more.

CHIA COCONUT PUDDING WITH COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Place chia seeds in a bowl.
• Whisk coconut milk, unsweetened coconut milk, agave nectar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt together in a bowl; pour over chia seeds and stir well. Allow coconut milk-chia seed mixture to soak until thickened, at least 20 minutes, or cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
• Stir pudding and top with strawberries.

EASY SLOW COOKER CHICKEN CURRY WITH POTATOES AND COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Combine chicken, potatoes, bell pepper, and onion in a slow cooker.
• Stir together chicken broth, curry powder, curry paste, cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, and cayenne in a bowl and pour over ingredients in the slow cooker. Mix everything well with a wooden spoon.
• Close the slow cooker and cook until chicken is tender, 4 to 5 hours on Low or 2 to 3 hours on High. Add coconut milk 15 minutes before the end of the cooking time and continue cooking until heated through. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with chopped cilantro to serve.

ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP WITH COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Wrap each garlic half in foil and place on the prepared baking sheet. Add squash, cut-sides down. Add onion, leek, and ginger.
• Roast in the preheated oven until vegetables are golden and squash skin is easily pierced with a fork, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
• Squeeze out roasted garlic cloves and scoop out squash flesh into a food processor or blender with onion, leek, and ginger. Add 2 cups broth and puree (in batches if necessary) until smooth. Transfer to a soup pot.
• Place the pot over medium heat and add remaining broth. Whisk in coconut milk, curry powder, and cayenne pepper. Season with salt and black pepper, and cook until heated through, about 15 minutes.

CREAM OF ASPARAGUS SOUP WITH COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• For the soup: Place a large pot over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the onions, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 6 minutes. Stir in the asparagus and cook for 1 minute.
• Pound the lemongrass with a meat mallet or rolling pin until well bruised (to release the flavor). Stir in the broth and lemongrass and simmer until the asparagus is tender, about 10 minutes. Discard the lemongrass and stir in the parsley.
• Turn off the heat and puree the soup with an immersion blender. Stir in the coconut milk and peas and cook over medium heat until warmed through, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, garnish with fresh lemon zest and the Asparagus Salsa if desired just before serving.
• For the asparagus salsa: Place the asparagus, carrots, radishes and red onions in a food processor and pulse a few times until the vegetables are finely diced but not pureed.
• Transfer to a large bowl and add the dill, scallions, serrano chile, lemon zest and juice. Mix together well, season to taste with salt and pepper and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the flavors to develop if time allows. The salsa can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Makes 2 cups.

PUMPKIN, SWEET POTATO, LEEK AND COCONUT MILK SOUP

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and leek, and cook for a few minutes, until soft. Stir in the pumpkin, sweet potato, and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low.
• Simmer for about 15 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Mash vegetables coarsely using a potato masher. Stir in the coconut milk, season with salt and pepper, and serve.

FISH BAKED IN COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Cut fillets crosswise into strips 2-inches wide. Rub fish with mixture of lemon juice and oil, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In medium frying pan, over medium high heat, fry onion in oil until edges are nicely browned. Add garlic, ginger, and green chile, and stir over medium heat for 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, spice mixture, fennel seeds, and salt, and fry, stirring constantly until tomato pieces break down to form a lumpy paste. Add coconut milk and simmer about 5 minutes until a thick, rich sauce is formed.
• Arrange fish in an oiled baking/serving dish large enough to hold fish in a single layer. Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Pour sauce over fish, cover tightly with aluminum foil, and return to oven for 15 to 20 minutes until fish is opaque.
• Garnish with chopped cilantro.

SHRIMP IN COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Place the shrimp shells in a saucepan, along with the thyme, bay leaves and peppercorns. Add 3 cups of water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until reduced by a third, about 30 minutes. Strain the liquid (you should have about 1 cup) and discard the shells.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over moderate heat. Add the onion, scallions, salt and pepper and saute until soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, tomatoes, aji and reserved shrimp stock and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk, shrimp, lime juice and peas, and cook until the shrimp are pink and just cooked, turning the shrimp once as they cook, about 3 minutes. Serve over white rice.

COCONUT COCONUT MILK CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch cake pan.
• Beat sugar, butter, and egg yolks together in a bowl using an electric mixer until smooth and creamy; add shredded coconut.
• Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl. Stir creamed butter mixture, alternating with coconut milk, into flour mixture until batter is just mixed.
• Beat egg whites in a glass or metal bowl until until soft peaks form. Lift your beater or whisk straight up: the egg whites will form soft mounds rather than a sharp peak. Fold egg whites into batter. Pour batter into the prepared cake pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 45 minutes.

ONE-POT BRAISED CHICKEN WITH COCONUT MILK, TOMATO AND GINGER

Steps:

• Pat chicken thighs dry and season with salt and pepper. In a deep 12-inch skillet, heat the oil over medium-high. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken thighs, skin-side down, and cook, undisturbed, until nicely browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Flip and brown the other side, 4 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
• Turn heat to medium-low, add the onion and cook until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, cumin, cinnamon and red-pepper flakes, and cook until the garlic and the spices are fragrant, about 1 minute. Season with salt.
• Add the tomatoes with their juices and the coconut milk, and stir until combined, scraping up any brown bits that have formed at the bottom of the pan. Nestle the chicken back into the skillet along with any juices that have accumulated. Simmer, uncovered, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened slightly, 15 to 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Divide the rice, if using, among bowls and plate the chicken on top, spooning additional sauce over it. Scatter with cilantro and a squeeze of lime, if you like.

COCONUT MILK STICKY RICE WITH MANGOES

Steps:

• Steam the sticky rice until tender (see Editor's Notes, below).
• Meanwhile, place the coconut milk in a heavy pot and heat over medium heat until hot. Do not boil. Add the sugar and salt and stir to dissolve completely.
• When the sticky rice is tender, turn it out into a bowl and pour 1 cup of the hot coconut milk over; reserve the rest. Stir to mix the liquid into the rice, then let stand for 20 minutes to an hour to allow the flavors to blend.
• Meanwhile, peel the mangoes. The mango pit is flat and you want to slice the mango flesh off the pit as cleanly as possible. One at a time, lay the mangoes on a narrow side on a cutting board and slice lengthwise about 1/2 inch from the center - your knife should cut just along the flat side of the pit; if it strikes the pit, shift over a fraction of an inch more until you can slice downward. Repeat on the other side of the pit, giving you two hemispherical pieces of mango. (The cook gets to snack on the stray bits of mango still clinging to the pit.) Lay each mango half flat and slice thinly crosswise.
• To serve individually, place an oval mound of sticky rice on each dessert plate and place a sliced half-mango decoratively beside it. Top with a sprig of mint or basil if you wish. Or, place the mango slices on a platter and pass it around, together with a serving bowl containing the rice, allowing guests to serve themselves. Stir the remaining sweetened coconut milk thoroughly, transfer to a small serving bowl or cruet, and pass it separately, with a spoon, so guests can spoon on extra as they wish.
• Notes:
• You can substitute black Thai sticky rice for half the white rice. Soak the two rices together; the white rice will turn a beautiful purple as it takes on color from the black rice. Cooking will take 10 minutes longer.
• Unlike plain sticky rice, Coconut Milk Sticky Rice has enough moisture and oils in it that it keeps well for 24 hours, in a covered container in the refrigerator, without drying out. Rewarm it the next day by steaming or in a microwave.

COCONUT MILK CHICKEN ADOBO

Steps:

• In a large pot, heat the coconut oil over medium-high until shimmering. Add the garlic, whole peppercorns, freshly ground pepper and red-pepper flakes, drop the temperature to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is toasted and softened and mixture is fragrant, about 5 minutes.
• Add the chicken, skin-side down, and cook over medium-high, undisturbed, until fat starts to render, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the coconut milk, coconut vinegar, soy sauce, bay leaves and 1 cup water, and let the mixture come to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the chicken feels loosened and just about falling off the bone, stirring halfway through, about 1 hour.
• Increase the temperature to medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened to a velvety gravy, about 15 minutes. Serve chicken and sauce over rice.

RICE PUDDING (MADE WITH COCONUT MILK)

Steps:

• Place rice and cinnamon stick in a pot and cover with water. Bring rice to boil, turn down heat and simmer approx 15-20 minutes or until water is absorbed.
• Remove cinnamon stick.
• Add coconut milk, milk (if using), vanilla and brown sugar. Simmer 15 minutes.
• Add lemon rind and simmer until almost all liquid is absorbed.
• (Make sure there is still some of the creamy liquid otherwise it will become more cake-like.).
• Serve with cinnamon, or mango slices and vanilla ice cream.

THAI CHICKEN AND COCONUT MILK SOUP

Steps:

• Place the chicken stock in a heavy-bottomed pot over high heat. Add the lime peel, lemon peel, ginger root, green chiles, and the cilantro stems and roots. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and cook until reduced to 3 cups. Press occasionally on the solids with a wooden spoon to release flavor. Working with a sharp knife, cut the chicken breasts into broad slices, as thin as possible. Salt lightly, and reserve in refrigerator. When broth is reduced, strain into a measuring cup. Press on the solids in the strainer with a wooden spoon. Place the coconut milk in the soup pot over medium heat. Slowly stir in the reduced broth. Warm rapidly but do not allow to boil (otherwise the coconut milk will separate). When the soup is just below the boiling point, add the chicken slices. Remove from heat after 30 seconds (or when the chicken is just cooked through). Just before serving, mix together the lime juice and sugar in a small bowl. Blend in the fish sauce. Pour mixture into hot soup, season to taste and garnish soup with a little bit of chopped scallion and cilantro leaves. Yield: 6 first-course servings.
• Optional step: If your soup has curdled a bit, or if you'd like a fluffier texture in the soup, before you add the chicken, place the soup in a blender at high speed for 30 seconds. Then return to pot, add chicken and proceed as before. As an appetizer: Looks lovely served individually in six wide, shallow soup bowls. Great starter for many kinds of meals, not just Thai. As a main course: By doubling the amount of chicken and keeping the same amount of liquid, you convert this soup practically into a stew. The six wide, shallow bowls still work well; place a half-cup of steamed white rice to one side in each bowl, then divide the soup/stew among the bowls. Serve a tomato salad on the side that has been dressed with lime juice, sugar, fish sauce, and topped with chopped peanuts and minced cilantro. If you can get the Thai ingredients: for the lime and lemon peel, substitute 3/8 cup Keffir lime leaves, 2 lemon grass stalks chopped, 3 thick slices dried galanga root.

SPICY SHRIMP IN COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Heat oil in lg skillet on med-hi heat.
• Add onions and stir cook for 3 minutes.
• Add garlic and ginger,cook 2 minutes.
• Add next 5 spices, cook 1 minute.
• Add tomatoes,cook 1 minute.
• Add coconut milk,water, and salt, and bring to a simmer.
• Simmer until thickened 5-10 minutes.
• Add shrimp, simmer, stirring for 5 minutes.
• Stir in cilantro.
• Serve with lime wedges.