Tropical Rice Bowl
Every component of this Tropical Rice Bowl is like it’s own mini flavor explosion. It’s hard for me to pick out my favorite part. We’ve got coconut-lime rice (you’ll never want to make plain rice again!), curried plantains, spiced sweet potatoes, black pepper pineapple, zesty guacamole and a couple extra toppings for good measure. Because you always gotta have some extra toppings (= fourth truth in life).
I can’t even deal. This bowl has got it going on.
OK, now I bet you’re eyeballing the ingredient list and thinking that this recipe seems a bit involved. But trust me. It isn’t. It just looks long because of the way I’ve compartmentalized the ingredients. In fact, all we are really doing is cooking up some rice, roasting up some vegetables and fruits and smashing an avocado. Easy peasy. You got this!
Ingredients
- For the Coconut-Lime Rice
- 1 (14 ounce) can light coconut milk
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/8 tsp. salt
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 cup basmati or jasmine rice
- Zest and juice of 1 lime
- For the Plantains
- 1 plantain, green to light yellow in color
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp. agave nectar (you can substitute maple syrup)
- 1/4 tsp. curry powder
- For the Sweet Potatoes
- 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- 1/4 tsp. cumin
- 1/4 tsp. chili powder
- For the Pineapple
- 1 1/4 cups fresh pineapple, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- For the Guacamole
- 1 avocado
- Juice of half a lime
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1 tablespoons fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
- The Extras
- Roasted cashews
- Fresh cilantro
- Lime wedges
Instructions
- Make the coconut-lime rice. In a medium saucepan bring the coconut milk, water, salt and olive oil to a low boil. Stir in the rice and turn the heat down to low. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. I find that I have to keep the heat a bit lower than I normally would, as the coconut milk has a greater tendency to over boil or scorch on the bottom. After 15 minutes, turn off the heat, keep the lid on and let the rice sit for 5-7 minutes. Then remove the lid and fluff with a fork. Gently stir in the lime juice and zest. Cover to keep warm.
- While the rice is cooking, pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees.
- Peel the plantain by making a long, vertical slice along the peel and removing it with your fingers. Slice the plantain into 1/2-inch thick disks. Toss in a medium bowl with the olive oil, agave and curry powder. Place on a large rimmed baking sheet in a single layer.
- Using the same bowl, toss the sweet potatoes with the olive oil, salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder. Add them to the same large baking sheet, keeping the sweet potatoes separate from the plantains.
- Using the same bowl, toss the pineapple with the olive oil and pepper. Add the pineapple to the same baking sheet, keeping it separate from the other ingredients.
- Transfer the baking sheet to your pre-heated oven and roast for 10 minutes. Stir the sweet potatoes and pineapple. Use a pair of tongs to flip the plantains. Then roast everything for an additional 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- Make the guacamole. Cut the avocado in half and remove and discard the pit. Scoop the flesh from the avocado and add it to a small bowl along with the lime juice, salt and cilantro leaves. Mash with a fork.
- Assemble the bowls. Divide the rice evenly between two bowls. Then top with the plantains, sweet potatoes, pineapple and guacamole, dividing everything evenly. Garnish with some cashews, extra cilantro and lime wedges, if desired. Serve immediately.
