My foodie life was changed recently
by the American Chemical Society,
which announced that researchers in
Sri Lanka discovered that cooking
white rice with a bit of coconut oil and
chilling it for at least 12 hours will
change the rice's chemical makeup,
effectively cutting its digestible
calories up to half while adding
healthful properties. And, yes, you
can reheat the rice after the chilling
and the calories will stay cut. I was
OVERJOYED by this news. I’ve made
(white) basmati rice by this method
several times, and I’ve felt the change
in my digestion. The rice acted more
like oatmeal or a bowl of vegetables in
my system (the equivalent of more roughage, as predicted). You can
read more about this discovery in the Washington Post here. Or view
the video of the scientist’s original presentation here. The truth is, I
never could make a lasting commitment to that other rice. You know
(shhh…), brown rice. Now the guilt is gone, along with much of the
unhealthy starch and half the calories. Huzzah to the return of white
and fried rice! See my veggie fried rice recipe on page 3. May you
eat with joy…
~ Cleo Coyle, New York Times bestselling
author of The Coffeehouse Mysteries
The Recipe for Cutting Calories in Your Rice
Yields 1-1/2 cups cooked rice
(1) Add 1 teaspoon coconut oil to rapidly boiling water. (I use 1-1/4 cups water.)
(2) Stir in 1/2 cup of uncooked white rice (non-fortified/non-enriched rice).
(3) Turn down the heat to a simmer, cover with a lid, and simmer for at least 20
minutes or up to 40, or until done. (The 20 minute minimum ensures the chemical
process will take place.)
(4) Chill for at least 12 hours. (You cannot skip the chilling!)
That’s it! You can reheat this rice via microwave, stove, or oven, and it will
retain its lower digestible calorie profile.
Some Q & As
Can you double the recipe? Yes, that's what I do. Read more on the
next page…
Page 1 of 3
Q & As on Making
“Skinny” Rice
Can you double the recipe? Yes. For a
yield of 3 cups of cooked white rice, melt
2 teaspoons of coconut oil into about
2-1/2 cups of rapidly boiling water.
Stir in 1 cup of uncooked, non-fortified
white rice. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover
with a lid, and cook for at least 20 minutes.
COOKING TIPS: Stir the rice at that point to
prevent sticking. Continue cooking until the
water is absorbed by the rice. For a good trick
to prevent burning, turn off the heat when the
cooking process is nearly through. Allow the
hot pan to sit on the warm burner and continue
cooking the rice until the water is absorbed and the rice is cooked.
Will you taste the flavor of coconut? Yes. And I find it delicious. If you're not a fan of the flavor, no worries.
Using the rice in other recipes (like my veggie fried rice below) the coconut flavor is diluted against the other
flavors in the recipe.
Won't the coconut oil add calories? At the American Chemical
Society press conference in Denver, the scientist who presented these
results said that if you stick to the amounts in the recipe (no more and
no less), the chemical process will effectively nullify these calories.
Health benefits: According to the researchers, rice cooked this way
may give you a healthier gut. The transformed starch in the reducedcalorie rice provides a potent energy source to the "good bacteria" in
the human body. And coconut oil is incredibly good for you. It helps
prevent infections; curbs obesity by increasing energy; and boosts
brain function. Learn more about coconut oil's health benefits by here.
What kind of coconut oil? Look for unrefined, cold pressed coconut oil, ideally virgin. Some brands are
better than others. To learn more, visit one of my favorite old recipe posts for Chocolate Ricotta Muffins,
where I shared my favorite brand of coconut oil and a link for more suggestions. Click here for the chocolate
muffin recipe. Or visit my recipe blog – CleoCoyleRecipes.com
Eat with joy! ~ Cleo
Cleo Coyle’s Coffeehouse Mysteries
are bestselling culinary mysteries,
set in a landmark Greenwich Village
coffeehouse. Each includes the
added bonus of recipes.
To learn more and see more recipe,
visit Cleo’s online coffeehouse at
www.CoffeehouseMystery.com
And her recipe blog at
www.CleoCoyleRecipes.com
Holiday Buzz
NY Times Bestseller
Free Recipe Guide here.
.
Billionaire Blend
*Starred Review —Kirkus
Free Recipe Guide here.
Page 2 of 3
Page 2 of 3
Once Upon a Grind
Best of the Year Pick ~ KRL
Free Recipe Guide here
Cleo Coyle's
Veggie Fried Rice
Recipe text and photos (c) by Alice Alfonsi,
who writes The Coffeehouse Mysteries as
Cleo Coyle with her husband, Marc Cerasini.
I love FRIED RICE, which requires that
day-old rice be used for proper texture.
In other words, the overnight chilling
required to cut the calories and unhealthful
starch in your white rice now serves as a
bonus step in making fried rice. Here’s
how I make mine…. ~ Cleo
Makes about 5 to 6 cups
Warm a large skillet or wok over mediumhigh heat. Add a generous splash of neutral oil (vegetable or canola). When hot, add chopped onion (1
medium yellow or whatever you have on hand). Sauté until translucent and toss in finely chopped garlic and
big chunks of peeled ginger (these big chunks are there to flavor the oil and should be removed before
serving). Finally, add a generous splash of sesame oil.
Stir and cook until the onions are light brown (and caramelized) and the oil is infused with the ginger and
garlic. Now carefully add your frozen veggies. Add them carefully because frozen water crystals will sputter
and jump when they hit the hot oil in the pan. Take care not to get burned. What veggies you use are your
choice. I like to add frozen peas, carrots, and sweet corn for a total of about 2 cups. Stir them up to coat with
the delicious flavored oil then cover the pan for 1 minute. Lift the lid, stir again then cover for another 30
seconds or so. This should cook them through fairly well.
Now add your day-old chilled "skinny" rice (add 3 cups, made as directed on page 1) and stir until
heated through and lightly coated with the flavored oil. Push everything to one side and add 2 large
eggs (lightly whisked with a fork) to the hot bottom of the pan. Stir quickly as you would scrambled eggs and
(before they are completely cooked and hard) fold into the rice and veggies. Finish by pouring on a mixture
of soy sauce, rice vinegar, and white pepper. (Mix before pouring. I use about 75/25 soy sauce and vinegar
with a generous sprinkling of white pepper, but the ratio and amounts should be
to your own taste.) Taste test and add more of this mixture if you'd like a more
powerful flavor. Garnish with chopped green onions.
*Variation: For a little spicy heat, add a chopped jalapeno with the garlic and ginger.
(Be sure to remove seeds and white membrane before chopping.)
Page 3 of 3
For a free recipe guide to
our new culinary mystery,
Once Upon a Grind,
click here.