Caribbean Rice and Beans
Enjoy a flavor explosion with my Caribbean rice and beans recipe. Garlic, onions, and delicious spiciness from bay leaves, thyme, scotch bonnet pepper, and coconut milk create an incredible one-pot meal!
I want to say that with what the world is experiencing right now, every day should be a gratitude day. So, I’m beyond thankful for this gift of life and my beloved family by my side.
And while I’ve been daydreaming about my next Caribbean trip, a tropical food trip in my kitchen, starting with this rice and beans recipe, will have to do. Or if you’re into Jamaican food, it’s rice and peas.
What Type of Beans Works Best
Traditionally, Caribbean rice and beans use red kidney beans. However, it’s just as delicious with black or pinto beans or pigeon peas. The look may change slightly, but that’s about it.
How to Make Caribbean Rice and Beans
- Wash rice until the water runs clear, then drain. (Photo 1)
- Sauté the onions, garlic, thyme, and hot pepper for about a minute. (Photo 2)
- Stir the rice into the pan, then add the beans and cook for about 2 minutes. (Photos 3-4)
- Pour in the coconut milk, bay leaf, bouillon powder, Creole seasoning, and broth, and simmer until rice is cooked (about 20 minutes). Stir occasionally to prevent burning. (Photos 5-7)
- Serve – Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper. Discard bay leaves. Enjoy! (Photo 8)
Recipe Notes
- Swap the Creole seasoning with jerk seasoning for a different flavor profile.
- Please don’t skip rinsing the rice because it removes excess starch and keeps it from getting sticky.
- Pigeon peas, kidney beans, and black beans are all conventional choices. You can also use other beans, such as pinto beans, red beans, or lentils.
- Replace the meat-based broth with vegetable broth for a delicious vegan version.
- Taste the rice to avoid overcooking. It should be tender but still have a slight bite, and the beans should be tender but not mushy.
- Almost any chili pepper, such as habanero and jalapeño, will work if you don’t have a scotch bonnet.
Make-Ahead and Storage Instructions
Cool the rice and beans after cooking and freeze them in meal-size portions in airtight containers for 2-3 months. They’ll last in the fridge for 3-4 days—the same for leftovers.
Thaw frozen rice and beans in the refrigerator overnight. Then simmer (stirring occasionally) in a pot until it bubbles. Add water or broth as needed to keep it from burning—a microwave works, too.
What to Serve With Caribbean Rice and Beans
It’s traditionally served with chicken, beef, or pork. It goes wonderfully with brown stew chicken, Jamaican curry goat, and jerk chicken. Fried sweet plantain and Caribbean coleslaw are wonderful sides.
More Popular Jamaican Dishes to Try
By Imma
Watch How to Make It
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This blog post was originally published in February 2014 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video.
Caribbean Rice and Beans
Ingredients
- 2 cups (320g) uncooked long-grain rice
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) vegetable oil (any neutral-flavored oil works)
- ½ medium onion, diced
- 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 sprig fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
- 1 whole scotch bonnet pepper
- 1 15.5-ounce can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 13.5-ounce can coconut milk (about 1¾ cups)
- 2 small bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons (9-10g) Creole seasoning
- 1 teaspoon (3g) paprika (optional)
- 1 teaspoon (4g) chicken bouillon or vegetable bouillon for a vegetarian version (optional)
- 2¼ cups (530ml) chicken broth, vegetable broth, or water (see notes)
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Wash rice until the water runs clear, then drain and set aside.
- Heat a saucepan with the oil. Then add the onions, garlic, thyme, and hot pepper, and sauté for about a minute.
- Add the rice to the pan, followed by the beans, and cook for about 2 minutes. Then add coconut milk, bay leaves, bouillon powder, Creole spice, and paprika with 2¼ cups of broth or water.
- Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat, cover with a lid, and simmer until rice is cooked (20 minutes, more or less). Stir occasionally (but not too often) from the sides to prevent burning, and add more water as needed.
- Discard the bay leaves. Adjust seasonings for salt and pepper. Serve hot.
Tips & Notes:
- Use 3 cups of liquid for really moist rice and beans. If you want your rice to look just like in the picture, use 2 cups of liquid. Too much liquid and stirring will make your rice mushy.
- Vegetable bouillon and broth are a quick hack for a vegan version.
- I used paprika and Creole salt to enhance the rice’s flavor. It’s not traditional, so feel free to omit them.
- If you don’t like coconut milk, replace it with 2 cups of water.
- I use uncooked long-grain rice. No need to parboil; just rinse until the water runs clear. One of our readers used Japanese short-grained rice and loved it. Brown long-grain rice works, too.
- For an Instant Pot, a reader shared this: sauté everything like you usually would and cook for 3 minutes at high pressure with a natural pressure release.
- You can add your favorite cooked protein to the mix, like shredded smoked turkey, diced chicken, ground meat, sausages, and so on.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.
I really like the flavor but the rice has too much moisture I want it to look more like the picture
Once it’s finished cooking & the liquid has been absorbed, turn the stove off, leave the top on. It will kind of “steam” the rest of the way, maybe about 5-10 minutes & then remove the top & fluff the rice with a fork. I hope that helps. It’s how I cook regular rice.
this is a great recipe my family loved it will make it again
One of my favorites!! So hearty and delicious. I really appreciate it that it doesn’t take much time to put together 🙂
So so good! Thanks so much. This recipe will be keeper.
I have made your awesome rice many, many times. Making it right now as I type this message! My whole family enjoys it every time I make it. I don’t change a thing to the recipe. I serve it with jerk chicken. Went on vacation to Playa del Carmen. Found a small Jamaican restaurant. Ordered the jerk chicken and rice. Well your rice tastes exactly like the one from that restaurant! Thanks again.
I usually just make my own version but I got a request from a friend for beans and rice Caribbean style, found this recipe and it came out great. It’s very tasty and I friend was pleased. Thanks
Great recipe, easy method to follow, I made it with white basmati rice and used sweet pepper instead of the scotch bonnet, as the curry goat I served with it was already packing a punch, came out delicious, great flavours! My Jamaican Grandma was very impressed! Saved and will be using regularly! Many thanks!
I’ve made this recipe several times and it’s amazing. I always use chicken broth and the coconut milk, and always leave out the scotch bonnet pepper….ion like spicy lol
Imma – you are fantastic! I found your website through this recipe and not only has this become a staple for us, but I love exploring and trying your other recipes. I share your site whenever I can. Just delicious!
HI Heather! Thanks for sharing! Glad you liked my recipes!
I absolutely LOVE this recipe and the flavor. I happen to be a huge fan of Caribbean food- across countries and this was authentic. I added a little coconut flake too . Thank you
Hi Bonice! Thank you! And I am so happy you liked it! I love Caribbean too!
Can I use scotch bonnet pepper instead of the actual
Scotch bonnet pepper? I’m unable to find it.
Hi Lisa! If you mean what to substitute with scotch bonnet pepper, you can use Cayenne Pepper, Fresno Peppers, Habanero Peppers, Pequin Peppers, Serrano Peppers, or Thai Peppers.
I have the scotch bonnet pepper sauce because I couldn’t find the pepper. Would that work or should I just use a green pepper I have?
You can use approximately 1/4 teaspoon of it. Alternatively, you can also use Jalapeño or serrano peppers.
This was awesome!!! Made it tonight!!! So fragrant and full of flavor! Thank you!!
Thanks imma. Made this a few times now along with the curried goat. In one word “ Incredible “
Delicious, I added 1 stalk of celery, 1 orange bell pepper, Aleppo pepper (dried) instead of scotch bonnet, and whole onion instead of half. My husband said it’s one of the best things I’ve made.
I recently found your site through Pinterest and I am so happy I did. This dish was amazingly delicious! My mom and husband raved about it. I look forward to trying more of your recipes. Thank you!!!!
I’m looking forward shortly to trying this recipe as I was privileged enuf to live in the Carribbean some time ago. Now I’m in a small town in Texas and items such as coconut milk and scotch bonnet are not available in my one store Texan town and I hate to use just plain milk. Any advice to make this recipe almost as good?
Hi Sue, you can order both from websites like Amazon.
https://smile.amazon.com/ORGANICALLY-Scotch-Jamaican-Heirloom-Non-GMO/dp/B07KQ11GJY/
https://smile.amazon.com/Thai-Kitchen-Organic-Coconut-Unsweetened/dp/B00M8VSKW4/
Sue Kubecka, I keep a small bottle of Coconut extract and add just a couple drops to a cup of regular or plant-based milk. (I usually use soy milk since I can’t tolerate dairy.) The coconut extract might be with the vanilla extracts; hopefully your store carries one. With this substitution, I can always make coconut milk and don’t have to worry about buying separate cans from an online source. One bottle of extract lasts a long time. Good luck!
Thank you for sharing your story. It’s always good to know substitutes that turn well for the recipe.
I was never much of a cook before. I made this rice to go with jerk chicken. It came out so good I pat my own self on the back! I’ve made this recipe several times since and it always come out delicious.
Nice nice! I am happy to know that the recipe works well for you!
This has become one of my go-to recipes! The taste is amazing and that creole spice is awesome
I use Brown Basmati rice and it’s amazing, and obviously healthier as its whole Grains
Is the red kidney beans the already cooked version or do they need to be raw?
This is excellent!!!! Everyone loves it!!!
Thank you, Linda! I have another Beans recipe that you might want to give a try, too – Southern Baked Beans with Bacon 🙂
This rice was absolutely incredible! I didn’t have a scotch bonnet pepper but I did have scotch bonnet hot sauce and was able to sub that in. Will definitely be adding this to my rotation of dishes
Thank you, Lauren! Enjoy! 🙂
I just made this. Followed the recipe exactly and used Habanero peppers. It’s is sooooooo good!
Thank you for the recipe ❤