I’ve been lucky to be exposed to Caribbean food through friends back home in the US (specifically amazing dishes from the Dominican Republic), and it reminds me of home when I get the chance to recreate some of it, and use the same flavors and ingredients.

While a lot of Caribbean food has meat, there are some amazing side dishes that don’t, and you can easily turn a humble side dish into the main star. This time, I’m going to share one of my favorite comforting rice dishes – it’s really easy, and you can bump up the complexity with just 5 extra minutes of time, by starting the coconut milk off with a few bonus flavors.

You might have already guessed from the photos and the title, but this not-so-mystery dish is Jamaican coconut rice with black beans. You could also make it with kidney beans or pigeon peas (the traditional Jamaican way) but I had black beans in the cupboard, and I really like them, so in they went.

With a few cupboard staples, you can pull this together about 20 minutes. It’s rich and savory, comforting and exotic, versatile and unmistakable. You can serve it alongside spicy baked chicken, or make it into a vegetarian meal with some spiced up sauteed peppers and onions, and maybe a salad, on the side.

Thanks to Grace Foods for providing the rich, silky coconut milk and the super flavorful and heavenly-smelling hot curry powder in a great basket of treats to celebrate Caribbean Food Week. I also used Grace black beans, but they just happened to be in my cupboard, because they have a great texture and are a great price. The recipe, and the feelings about what I’ve made and used, are entirely my own.

Serves: 4
Time: 5 minutes preparation, 20 minutes cooking

On the Counter

200 g (1 cup) dried white, long grain rice
1 400 mL (14 oz) can of Dunns River coconut milk
1 400 mL (14 oz) can of Dunns River black beans, drained and rinsed
1 large clove garlic, chopped finely
1/2 tbsp Dunns River Jamaican Hot Curry Powder
1 dried bay leaf
2 tsp coarsely ground salt (or kosher salt)

What to Do

Combine the coconut milk, garlic, hot curry powder and bay leaf in a medium sauce pan, and simmer it on very low heat for at least 5 minutes. It shouldn’t get anywhere near boiling.

Give the rice one quick rinse and drain, and then add it to the coconut milk. The rice should be 1/2 the volume of the coconut milk. Add in a little more water if you think it needs it. I use the can, so I can make sure to get all the coconut into the pot. Stir in the salt.

Cook the rice in the coconut milk, covered, on medium/low heat for between 10 and 12 minutes, testing it. You can stir it occasionally to make sure it doesn’t stick. When the liquid is mostly absorbed and the rice is still very slightly chewy, stir in the rinsed and drained black beans. Heat it all up for about 5 more minutes, until some of the black bean-ness incorporates with the rice, and everything is hot.

And that’s it! Spoon it onto the plate or into a big bowl for family-style sharing.

Join me in sharing the Caribbean Food Week fun on Twitter and Facebook.

The best-laid plans…

Lately I’ve come to discover that I’m inspired to blog at the wrong times. I have about 3 or 4 posts in draft form, some with photos, and some just with recipes.

I have some that seem like they would be ready for prime time – until I try to write something about them. Then, I have times when I can’t be bothered to take the camera out for something I’m just whipping up quickly. Of course, lately that means as soon as I take my first bite, I realize I should have been ready to blog about it.

Like in this case. For now, all I have are photos snapped quickly on my iPhone, too hungry to bother getting a photo this time.

But this is the kind of meal I should have had my camera ready for – inspired by a recipe that was inspired by another recipe, and similar to many meals before it.

It also tastes a bit decadent, which, maybe it is, but it has coconut milk … and coconut milk is good for you. And tasty. And dairy-free. And creamy. And usually pretty cheap.

While I can’t say it’s Thai food, I can definitely say that it has Thai-inspired vegetables and flavors, plus some other fun ingredients that don’t sound like they’ll work, but they do. The creamy coconutty chicken sauce, the soft and meaty shiitake mushrooms and the sweet and colorful red peppers all hang out together in harmony.

PS: My Kitchen Counter has an instagram account now! Check me out @mykitchencounter.

Note: If you’re hard-up for star anise, you can skip it, but even for a liquorice-hater like me, it added a nice dimension that I wouldn’t miss out on.

Inspired by the Kitchn.

Serve (over rice, if using rice) with sauce and vegetables on top. Garnish with chopped scallions (spring onions) and cilantro (coriander leaves), and with lime wedges on the side.