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10 April 2021

Rice Sides Spicy

Lazy Rice and Peas

Name: Lazy Rice and Peas
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 2 cups long grain rice; 1 tin kidney beans; 1 tin coconut milk; 1 spring onion; 1 large sprig fresh thyme; 1 scotch bonnet; 1 large clove garlic (sliced); ½ tsp salt; ½ tsp black pepper; 1 tbsp sunflower oil

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WHAT'S SPECIAL!

Creamy coconut rice with hearty kidney beans!

Jump to Recipe

This classic Caribbean rice dish of Rice and Peas, is often served as a hearty side dish. All you need for these Lazy Rice and Peas is rice, kidney beans, coconut milk, scotch bonnet, garlic and spring onion. This rice is super fragrant and cooked in coconut milk and fresh spices! Try this great rice dish with your next curry, you are in for a real treat!

Why Lazy Rice and Peas?

Traditional rice and peas are cooked with fresh beans not tinned. This recipe calls for tinned kidney beans. Want to save time and effort? Using tinned beans is great for those days when you have not planned ahead. Mummy if you are reading this, I’m sorry but aint’ nobody got time to be soaking beans overnight!?! Am I right? I love traditional rice and peas and my mother makes hers using fresh beans. They are delicious but us millennials want things quick and easy right? This recipe can be prepared in less than 30 minutes from start to finish and is just as delicious and satisfying!

What do i need?

I use long grain rice for this recipe. This is what is traditionally used in many Caribbean countries.
The rice is going to be cooked in a combination or water and coconut milk to get that beautiful creamy nutty flavour to the rice.
Kidney beans are the ‘peas’ part of the rice. My favourite tinned bean brand is Epicure. They have both normal and organic ranges at very reasonable prices. I also like Biona organics. You can buy both these brands from Waitrose and Ocado.
The recipe calls for fresh spring onion this is going to give a lovely flavour to the rice and is essential.
The scotch bonnet is back again! This super spicy chilli is just as popular in the Caribbean as it is in Nigeria. You will leave the chilli whole in the rice, giving your rice the perfect level of heat.
Don’t forget to grab some fresh thyme from your herb garden and some freshly sliced garlic for extra flavour!

Tips & Tricks

Wash you rice please! This is a very important step of making any rice dish. Rice is full of starch which must be removed as much as possible before cooking. If you don’t you can end up with extremely overcooked and glutenous rice.
Don’t fiddle with your rice, it does not need constant stirring. Rice is mostly cooked with steam and opening your pot will let that essential steam escape.
If you have a pestle and mortar, try using your mortar to seal your pot lid further by placing it on top.
Good quality coconut milk is key. There are lots of brands out there and some are more watery than others, we want to avoid these. We want a nice coconut milk that has lots of cream on top. I use Natco coconut milk. I buy this from Costco for just £5.69 for 6 tins! The important thing to remember is to buy a brand you know and don’t choose the reduced fat or ‘light’ options.

Rice and Peas Serving Suggestions –

Lazy Rice and Peas can literally be paired with anything you want. Today, I paired my rice with my all-time favourite home cooked Chinese recipe – Braised Pork Belly! If you love spicy food and Chinese flavours this dish is for you! Head over to the recipe you will not regret it!