This is my vegan style rendition of a classic porridge made with nutritious brown rice. It is super creamy made with plant based milk, spices and packed with abundance of flavour.
I'm so excited to share this sweet rice porridge with my lovely readers because it is an absolute favourite of mine. This Caribbean breakfast is packed with tons of energy thanks to the slow releasing carbohydrates.
Have this for breakfast and I promise you that this amazingly tasty porridge is guaranteed to sustain or as island people say "hold you" until the lunch time.
The Caribbean is known for it's variants of porridge - cornmeal, cream of wheat, green banana, cassava, plantain, hominy etc..
However, with that being said, rice porridge is the least popular but don't let that deter you from making it. We are simply more partial to the former (no reason why just preference).
My beloved grandmother would fix us a bowl of rice porridge especially during the harsh UK winter time and boy was I happy to drink a bowl or two. It felt as if I had to wait forever for her to cook it because granny made sure the rice was extremely soft.
Despite having to wait a lifetime for some Jamaican rice porridge I have to admit, it certainly was worth the wait.
I would stand by her side and watch her prepare this huge pot of rice before adding the remaining ingredients - milk, condensed milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and a pinch of salt.
My rice porridge recipe is a vegan rendition of what my grandmother taught me. It is plant based inspired and even I took the liberty of using brown rice and using my trusty vegan Coconut Condensed Milk.
A far more healthier choice of grain as opposed to using white rice which contains zero nutritional value. I also omitted the use of flour, a common ingredient that you will find featured in most of the traditional rice porridge recipes.
Prior to preparing this recipe dairy free I never felt the need to include flour (used as a thickening agent).
My grandmother made her porridge without flour and she would only use it if she become heavy handed with the liquid to grain ratio but this was seldom.
How to make Jamaican rice porridge
The key to making a good plant based style rice porridge is to ensure the brown rice is cooked thoroughly then add my homemade coconut condensed milk
I am a huge fan using this in all my recipes and adjusting grain recipes with brown rice.
Unlike white rice, brown has the germ and bran in tact giving it a nutty taste and texture. Furthermore, brown rice also takes a little longer to cook.
Rice porridge benefits
- It's super filling and delicious
- Gluten/wheat free and safe for vegans since it is dairy free
- You can make a big batch to eat for breakfast throughout the week.
- A great alternative to oatmeal or smoothies in the morning
- It's a rice porridge breakfast with a taste of the Caribbean
Notes and tips
- Presoak the rice grains in warm water - a few hours or preferably overnight add 1tablespoon of lime to remove the starch and ease digestion (this is an optional step).
- The porridge may thicken even more as it cools down so add some more water/milk to loosen it up.
- Use any plant based milk you want to Coconut Milk, Almond, Cashew etc...
- The porridge should be soft but slightly nutty in texture
- Aim to cook the rice for quite some time 20-25 minutes (approx)
- Be careful not to over saturate the rice with liquid. If the liquid levels seem low add a ¼ cup at a time. Remember the finishing product should look similar to risotto.
Other porridge recipes to try
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Jamaican Rice Porridge (vegan)
Ingredients
- 1 cup of brown rice
- 3 ½ cups of water
- 1 ½ cups of almond milk
- ½ cup of coconut milk optional can use just one plant based milk
- 1 teaspoon of nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- ¼ of himalayan pink salt
- 1 jar of coconut condensed milk see post for recipe link, sweeten to taste
Instructions
- Presoak the brown rice grains in lukewarm water mixed with 1 tablespoon of lime. Leave this for a few hours or preferably overnight to soften. This is an OPTIONAL step!!
- Drain off the lime water and rinse the grains several times.
- Pour the rinsed off rice grains into a large saucepan with 3 ½ cups of water and bring to the boil.
- Reduce the heat to a low simmer for 20-25 minutes (approx) with the pot covered.
- During this time the water level will reduce so check periodically as you don't want the liquid to completely recede (any more water if needed). You only need ¼ worth of liquid leftover which should happen 20 minutes into the cooking time.
- Add the milk after 25 minutes and allow to simmer for a further 10-15 minutes, stir occasionally so the rice doesn't stick to the bottom of the saucepan (check the consistency of the porridge as you may want to add more milk if it's too thick).
- Finally stir in the spices - cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and pink salt.
- Carefully pour in the coconut condensed milk and sweeten according to taste.
- Serve accordingly
Notes
- Presoak the rice grains in warm water - a few hours or preferably overnight add 1tablespoon of lime to remove the starch and ease digestion (this is an optional step).
- The porridge may thicken even more as it cools down so add some more water/milk to loosen it up.
- Use any plant based milk you want to Coconut Milk, Almond, Cashew etc...
- The porridge should be soft but slightly nutty in texture
- Aim to cook the rice for quite some time 20-25 minutes (approx)
- Be careful not to over saturate the rice with liquid. If the liquid levels seem low add a ¼ cup at a time. Remember the finishing product should look similar to risotto.
I used organic brown rice and sweetened with Agave and Organic cane sugar.
This was remarkable! Thank you!
You are welcome!!
No problem Nekema I have started to use various sweeteners since making this recipe too.
Thanks for sharing your fond memories, so nice to read. I am the weirdo who likes savory better than sweet, so I love me a version of porridge with brown jasmine rice and steel cut oats cooked in herbed veggie broth. or miso and nooch... using the porridge setting in my Instant pot.! So nice to just set it and forget it and it even keeps warm until I am ready to eat. Funny, I never even thought of porridge until I was gifted with the instant pot...but it needs to make a comeback, so simple, comforting and cheap!
I don't think you are a weirdo at all. We all have our preferences and I too like savoury foods, infact I never thought of making a savoury version of porridge. What you described sounds like true comfort food 😉 thank you!
After Green Banana (or what we call "green fig" in Trinidad) portidge, this is going to be my favorite morning meal.
Awesome! Glad to hear it Roxanne
I too make this, but mine is little more runny
I bet your version is just as nice Hena
It looks fantastic!
Thank you!
I'll admit that I know NOTHING about Jamaican cuisine. This looks lovely though. And fab that it's vegan too!
Thanks Emma, you're learnt a tad bit about our culture today 😉
I can't believe I've never tried rice porridge! This looks like a perfect warm dish for a cold morning. I especially love that you used coconut milk!
Thank you Christina
Confession here: I have never had porridge. But your recipe definitely has me tempted. I am looking for more vegan recipes and this one looks like a winner. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you I hope you get to try it.
This sounds delicious! Total comfort food!
Thank you!
I love how this recipe is such a connection to your grandmother ... even with the modifications you made, it still sounds like a bowl of happiness! For my family, the breakfast food that does this is pancakes. Memories in every bite!
Thank you so much for commenting Noel.