Rice as Dessert: Glutinous Black Rice Pudding

Rice is quite a versatile ingredient as it can be used either as dessert or otherwise. It's mainly starch, a safe starch that is converted to glucose used by the body for energy, among other things. I love rice, I am Asian in general and a Malay in particular so rice is a staple in my diet. 

Recenty I have a strong craving for something coconutish. Since adapting back to eating healthily, I find that I started to crave for traditional food more and more, food that I used to eat when I grew up as a child in Singapore. Coconut and rice are two major ingredients used in most traditional Malay dishes including desserts. I have 2 packs of black rice in my kitchen cabinet, perfect for making Bubur Pulut Hitam, or Glutinous Back Rice Pudding!

Traditionally, pandan leaves are used, but none are sold in Japan so I used the Madagascar vanilla beans instead, the same beans I used for making ice-cream. It is also traditional to use freshly squeezed coconut milk for the pudding, where the santan pekat, or "thick coconut milk" is used for the topping while the santan cair, or "thin coconut milk" is used to cook the black rice.

I used: 

• 2 cups glutinous black rice (soaked for at least 4 hours or overnight, and washed)
• 4-6 cups water (may need more)
• 6-8 tablespoon sugar to taste ( I can't remember exactly how much I used but adjust to your liking. I used Okinawa black sugar and unrefined cane sugar together)
• vanilla (I used vanilla beans. If you can find pandan leaves, use that instead)
• 1 can coconut milk (scoop out and reserve some of the cream ("thick coconut milk") that has settled on top of the can and save the rest with the water ("thin coconut milk") that has settled at the bottom of can for cooking later)

Method:

1. Put water, black rice and vanilla in a pot deep enough to hold all that water.
2. On medium-high heat, bring it to a boil.
3. Once boiled, turn heat down to medium-low and cook for 30-45 minutes until rice is cooked through and soft enough to bite. Ensure to stir every few minutes to cook it evenly. It should have the consistency of a thick, soupy porridge.
4. Add the sugar, start with 6 tablespoons, and gradually increase until you are happy with the level of sweetness. 
5. Add the "thin coconut milk" and bring it to a boil for a minute or 2 and turn off heat.
6. Add a pinch of salt to the reserved "thick coconut milk" and mix well. This is the usual practice, but optional. I like it with salt.
7. Serve the pudding hot, topped with the "thick coconut milk".
8. You can refrigerate the pudding up to 3 days. To warm it up, just nuke it for 40s-1minute. Alternatively, you can eat it cold!

Of course, you can Google around and find that there are several ways to making this simple, hearty and healthy dessert. I love rice and coconut (it's a superfood in my opinion, including the fat) and a bowl of hot Glutinous Rice Pudding satisfies my craving nicely for traditional dessert. I ate it for 3 days in a row, 3 times a day!

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