Rice and Beans with Coconut Milk
This mouth-watering recipe is a staple in any vegan Latina’s pantry. Vegan Latin food recipes can be difficult to come by, and with a focus on eating more healthy, we’re excited to see old and new adaptions of our favorite foods.
Why we love this Rice and Beans with Coconut Milk Recipe:
- Rich, hearty and filling
- Simple but decadent
- Packed with protein
- Ingredients are easy to find
- Great way to use leftover rice
The Story behind this Latin Vegan Mouthwatering Dish
“Raisanbin” (pronounced similar to English; rice-an-bean) or “casamiento” (which means marriage, as in the marriage of rice and beans in one dish) is how Hondurans commonly refer to this dish.
Casamiento in other regions of Honduras only includes rice and red silk beans, but along the Carribean coast of Honduras where many Garifuna or “Garinagu” live, coconut milk is added as the “secret ingredient.”
The Garifuna people are descendants of West African, Carib and Arawak people, and they live in coastal communities of Central America. In Honduras, the Garifuna music, food and culture have a very strong influence in all of the country, but it is most pronounced in the region on the North Coast where I lived.
Coconut milk and coconut oil are both prominent features of food in this region, and this dish has both. Typically, freshly pressed coconut milk is used, but the recipe below uses canned coconut milk for convenience.
Rice and Beans with Coconut Milk Recipe
Ingredients:
I can full fat coconut milk (or 2 Cups of freshly pressed coconut milk, see our recipe here)
4 cups cold, day old rice from the fridge (do NOT use freshly cooked warm rice)
1 can Central American red silk beans (or black beans; 2 Cups of cooked beans if using homemade)
½ cup diced sweet yellow onion
½ cup diced sweet peppers (green is type most commonly used, but you can use red, yellow and orange sweet peppers as well)
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro (omit if you have an aversion to cilantro)
2 Tbsp coconut oil; extra virgin or refined*
1 clove of garlic; minced
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp of cumin
Directions:
- Add oil, onions and peppers to IP and use the saute function on the medium setting to stir fry for a bit until onions become translucent (or use a heavy bottomed pan on the stove)
- Add garlic and rice and continue to stir fry (crumble and separate the cold rice grains with your hands to remove any clumps)
- Add all remaining ingredients except for the beans and stir
- Press cancel and change to keep warm (or reduce heat to lowest setting on the stove) and then gently stir in the beans
- Put the lid on and let it set until the liquid has all absorbed into the rice and it is thoroughly heated
How to serve it Rice and Beans with Coconut Milk:
For a restaurant-style presentation, scoop it up in a small bowl, pack it down a bit, and then turn it upside down onto a plate. Garnish it with a few leaves of cilantro, avocado or encurtido (spicy pickled onions.)
There aren’t a ton of vegetarians or vegans in Honduras, and this is traditionally served as a side dish with pescado frito (fried fish), tajadas (fried green bananas) and ensalada de repollo (Honduran style coleslaw with a lime juice based dressing). I eat it as a main course and just skip the fish. This is delicious with encurtido de cebolla (spicy pickled onions) and a few slices of avocado as pictured.
Gather around your table and enjoy! Check out more vegan Latin food recipes on Classy Latina. Are you a vegan Latina adapting your favorite recipes? We’d love to hear from you!
Thank you to our contributor Karin Martinez for this mouth-watering recipe!