here's my recipe for vegan roz b haleeb (rice pudding) !! it's very delicious and also very inspired by Yasmin Khan's apricot and rose water rice pudding recipe from her cookbook Zaitoun.
in general, roz b haleeb recipes tend to use more milk, less rice, and some sort of thickening agent (such as rice flour or cornstarch). this method is perfectly fine and creates a more pudding-based dish as opposed to a more rice-based dish. however, i really like Khan's recipe because it uses more rice per cup of milk (1c rice:4c milk vs. 1/2c:4c) and also does not rely on any thickening agents, which means the final pudding has a lot of rice texture instead of just a few specks of rice here and there. so that's the rough method that i'm following, but if you prefer the more milky/pudding style roz b haleeb, you can just half the amount of rice in this recipe and then add 1-3 Tbsp of cornstarch to thicken to your personal preference.
2 14 oz. cans coconut milk (unsweetened)
1/4 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla
~1 tsp ground cardamom
pinch cinnamon
> combine all in a saucepan, bring to a boil, and allow sugar to fully dissolve.
1 c rice*
pinch of salt
> add to the milk mixture, cover, and let simmer for ~ 30 minutes (until rice is very soft), stirring every few minutes to ensure it doesn't stick to bottom.
> if there is not enough liquid to cook the rice, or if the consistency isn't as you like, add water or plant-based milk as you like**
* most recipes will tell you to use pudding rice/ short grain rice but i've used basmati several times and it works perfectly fine
** if you overcook coconut milk it can separate and become really oily, so make sure to watch it carefully. it may also become more oily as it chills, so i prefer to eat it warm.
1-2 Tbsp rosewater OR orange blossom water, to taste
> remove the mix from the heat and then stir the rosewater or orange blossom water in.
> you can serve warm or chilled but canned coconut milk tends to solidify when chilled, so i prefer warm. you can garnish with chopped pistachios or walnuts, rose petals, or a dash of cinnamon if you like.
~ enjoy! ~