The first time I tried rice with Pineapple was in London. My mom had invited me to go away for the weekend and we ended up going to London. I had never been there before and was fascinated by the amount of restaurants and different cuisines. We went to a very small Thai restaurant that we stumbled upon by accident and they served this dish. It was so good as was  everything else they served. I bought a Thai cook book straight away and could hardly wait to get home and start cooking from it. We even went to several markets to get all the ingredients, because I knew I wouldn’t be able to buy them in Spain where I was living at the time. I have tweeked the recipe over the years to a quick version.

It is just such a tropical dish, and whenever I make it,  my mind wonders off to a tropical island. It is really quick to make, and it looks as though you have spent hours in the kitchen. This is a great accompaniment to simple grilled fish or chicken.It is best if you cook the rice in the morning and let it cool completely before frying and adding the other ingredients. Or even make it the night before.

It will make any simple meal look spectacular. If you want to go the extra mile. Cut the pineapple in half, hollow it out and use it to serve the rice. I had already peeled mine when I thought of this, but it’s not to late for you. I’m just thinking that this is probably very good with grilled shrimp too. How about using leftovers as a salad the next day?

Ingredients;

2 cups Jasmine rice

1 C. Water

1  12 oz. Can unsweetened coconut milk

1 teaspoon Himalayan salt

1/2 C. fresh Pineapple, cut in to bite size pieces

1/4 C. fresh chopped coriander

1 red chili, deseeded and chopped fine, stalk removed.

1 tbsp. coconut oil

juice of half a lime

Method;

Rinse and drain rice in cold water. Place in a saucepan with water, coconut milk, and salt. Place the pot over high heat and, bring the liquid to a boil.

Stir and reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting and cover the pot tightly with the lid. Continue cooking for 15 minutes.

Remove the pot from the heat and let stand 10 minutes, covered. Fluff with fork and let it cool.

Put a large frying pan on the heat and add the coconut oil. Add the chopped chili and stir it for about for 30 seconds and add the rice. You don’t want the chili to burn. Stir fry the rice for 5 minutes. Add the Pineapple chunks, and heat through for another 5 minutes. Just before serving add the chopped coriander, reserve some to sprinkle on top. Add the juice of half a lime. Check the seasoning and adjust if necessary. Serve piping hot.