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Dairy-Free Rice Pudding with a vegan option! This humble dessert recipe is made on the stove top with only a handful of basic ingredients, yet it turns out so magical!
The first time I enjoyed rice pudding was in high school, when my Bolivian friend made it for her whole family. Arroz con leche has been one of my personal favorites from that day forward!
Classic rice pudding is nearly impossible to beat, and I make it dairy-free for a belly-friendly version everyone can enjoy. I promise, you won’t miss the dairy in my rendition of arroz sin leche 😉
For me, it is the ultimate comfort food, and I love that I can make it at a moment’s notice due to the relatively low cooking time. For me, this dairy-free version has the perfect texture and just the right level of sweetness to honor my sweet tooth.
The simple ingredients can be found at any grocery store!
Ingredients for Dairy-Free Pudding:
Short-Grain White Rice: Pick up some short-grain rice, such as arborio rice (risotto rice) or sushi rice to make the best rice pudding! While long-grain rice works too, it has a grainy texture compared to the soft and squishy texture of sushi rice or arborio rice.
Full-Fat Canned Coconut Milk: The majority of the creamy consistency in this dairy-free rice pudding recipe comes from canned full-fat coconut milk. For the best results, stick with full-fat coconut milk from a can, rather than replacing it with a lighter version.
Lower fat milks do work, but you will need to add extra egg yolks to get the proper creaminess. Coconut cream works too if you’re able to get ahold of a can.
Pure Maple Syrup: The sweetener here. I like using pure maple syrup or honey because they are unrefined sweeteners. That said, you can stick with regular white sugar or brown sugar.
Egg: One egg gets tempered and mixed in with the pudding in order to add more richness and thickness.
Non-Dairy Milk of Choice: In addition to a can of coconut milk, another milk source is needed. I use oat milk, but any kind of milk works, including almond milk, rice milk, cashew milk, soy milk, more coconut milk, etc. The goal is to add creaminess without a lot of excess fat since the coconut milk is covering the fat requirement.
Ground Cinnamon and Cinnamon Sticks: The combination of ground cinnamon and cinnamon sticks brings a warmly spiced flavor that makes rice pudding so desirable.
Pure Vanilla Extract: Adds luscious warm flavor for the tastiest enhancement. If you have vanilla beans on hand, feel free to add the scrapings from your vanilla bean pod.
Ways to Customize
- Make it Creamier: Everyone has a different preference for how thick or thin they like their rice pudding. Add your favorite dairy-free milk to achieve your desired thickness and consistency. Rice soaks up a huge amount of liquid, so you may end up adding more milk than you would anticipate.
- Make it Sweeter: Adjust the amount of sweetener to your personal taste. The recipe as written is lightly sweet, and most people will prefer a sweeter rice pudding. I recommend staring with one cup of sugar if you know you enjoy sweet treats and adjust from there.
- Make it Vegan: Skip the egg for a vegan rice pudding recipe. It will still have excellent taste and texture without the egg!
- Add Booze: Mix 1 to 3 tablespoons of rum or brandy into the still hot rice pudding for a little boozy kick.
- Add Raisins: Some people love raisins in their rice pudding! Feel free to add in ⅓ cup or to your personal taste.
Now that the main ingredients are covered, it’s time to make this easy recipe!
How to Make Dairy-Free Rice Pudding:
Heat the rice, water, coconut milk, cinnamon sticks, and sea salt in a medium saucepan.
Bring to a full boil, covered, reduce the heat to low heat and cook at a gentle simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the ground cinnamon, pure maple syrup and vanilla extract.
Microwave 1 to 2 cups of oat milk (or non-dairy milk of choice) for 1 minute to 90 seconds, or until warm but not very hot.
Whisk the egg in a small bowl, then slowly add the warm milk, whisking continuously, to temper the egg.
Transfer the egg mixture to the pot with the rest of the rice pudding and stir well.
Take the temperature of the pudding after adding the tempered egg. If it is not 165 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, heat it back up on the stove top, stirring constantly, until it comes to temp.
Serve rice pudding warm or chilled with an extra splash of milk and/or sweetener for an amazing dessert! Fresh fruit, a dollop of jam, and/or homemade whipped cream are amazing additions as well.
Storage Options
- Refrigerator: Store leftover rice pudding in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: For longer term storage, transfer any leftovers to a large zip lock bag (or freezer bag or freezer-safe container) and freeze for up to 3 months.
Recipe Tip
Do note that some cinnamon sticks work better than others, so I suggest waiting until the end of cooking to add ground cinnamon so that you can adjust the amount to your personal taste. One cinnamon stick will do, provided you have used the brand in the past and can verify it lets out a lot of cinnamon flavor.
The next time you’re craving a rich and creamy rice pudding, whip up this tasty treat!
If you’re looking for more classic dairy-free desserts, try out some of my personal favorites.
More Dairy-Free Desserts:
- Dairy-Free Gluten-Free Vanilla Cake
- Almond Flour Orange Pound Cake
- Healthy Sweet Potato Brownies
- 5-Ingredient Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Almond Flour Blueberry Cake
Dairy-Free Rice Pudding
Ingredients
- 2 cups arborio rice or sushi rice
- 2 ½ cups water
- 1 (15-oz.) can full fat coconut milk
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ cup pure maple syrup or brown sugar*
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 to 2 cups oat milk , or milk of choice, to your desired consistency
- 1 large egg
Optional Additions:
- 1 to 3 Tbsp brandy
- ⅓ cup raisins
Instructions
- Heat the rice, water, coconut milk, cinnamon sticks, and sea salt in a saucepan. Bring to a full boil, covered, reduce the heat to low and cook at a gentle simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the ground cinnamon, pure maple syrup and vanilla extract.
- Microwave 1 to 2 cups of oat milk (or non-dairy milk of choice) for 1 minute to 90 seconds, or until warm but not very hot.
- Whisk the egg in a small bowl, then slowly add the warm milk, whisking continuously, to temper the egg.
- Transfer the egg mixture to the pot with the rest of the rice pudding and stir well.
- Take the temperature of the pudding after adding the tempered egg. If it is not 165 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, heat it back up on the stove top, stirring constantly, until it comes to temp.
- Serve rice pudding warm or chilled with an extra splash of milk and/or sweetener for an amazing dessert!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate and comment below!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. You can definitely use brown rice instead of white rice for this recipe if that is your preference. That being said, brown rice comes with the hull of the grain which means the texture won’t be as soft, like traditional rice pudding.
Yes. If you aren’t dairy-free, you can replace the coconut milk with one can of condensed milk, and use regular milk such as heavy cream, whole milk or 2%.
Yes! In fact, I have a dedicated recipe for Chocolate Rice Pudding that uses cocoa powder.
