Mer's Coconut Rice with Raisins
2 cups rice (Mahatma Jasmine rice or another long grain or basmati rice)
1/2 can coconut milk
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup finely shredded *unsweetened* coconut
2 tbs Amontillado sherry
1 tsp kosher salt
The rice will be cooked in a total of 3 cups liquid, including the coconut milk and sherry. Part of the liquid consists of water used to soak the raisins and coconut. Just make sure the total liquid volume is 1.5 times the volume of rice.
Soak the raisins and coconut for about 1 hour in:
2 tbs sherry plus 2 cups minus 2 tbs water
Combine the soaked raisins/coconut, coconut milk, any extra water needed to reach 3 cups, salt and rice in a microwave rice steamer (cheating, I know, I am ashamed, for about 15 minutes!)
Cook on full power with lid off for 9 minutes - stir well, and return to microwave with lid covering steamer. Microwave on full power for another 4-6 minutes.
The sugars from the raisins, coconut milk, and sherry will caramelize a bit on the bottom of the pan - this is called titoté in Columbia. Kind of reminds me of soccorat, the crust that should happen at the bottom of paella - just be careful not to burn. Leave the rice in the steamer for another 5-10 minutes to soften before serving. My version does not use sugar - I find this sweet enough for me. I first had this in Panama, but found a version of it on a blog about Columbian Recipes, and then I modified a version I found in:
