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Chukuchuk

Balls of cooked rice rolled in freshly grated coconut – a Marshallese side dish for parties and everyday meals.

Eaten in: Marshall Islands

Prep: 20 min
Cooking: 20 min
Total: 40 min
Servings: 6

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About the dish

Chukuchuk is a simple but much-loved dish from the Marshall Islands: balls of warm, slightly sticky rice are rolled in freshly grated coconut, which gives them a gentle sweetness and bite. It brings together two worlds – rice, which arrived with imports, and coconut, always the basis of life on the atolls. Chukuchuk is served with fried or grilled fish, chicken and other dishes, especially at parties, church gatherings and kemem, the big celebration of a child’s first birthday, when it is made in large quantities. It is easy to carry and eat by hand, so it also goes into picnic baskets.

Main ingredients

rice
fresh coconut
salt

Recipe

Chukuchuk

https://foodmap.ominuvo.com/dish/chukuchuk

Ingredients

6 servings

400 g medium-grain rice (e.g. calrose) or jasmine rice
600 ml water
1/2 tsp salt
1 fresh coconut, or 150 g unsweetened desiccated coconut moistened with 4 tbsp warm water

Method

Rinse the rice, add the water and salt, bring to the boil and cook covered over low heat for 15 minutes, then leave to stand for 10 minutes.
Crack the coconut, remove the flesh and grate it finely.
Spread the grated coconut on a flat plate.
With wet hands shape the warm rice into balls the size of a ping-pong ball, pressing firmly.
Roll each ball in the coconut and serve at room temperature with fish or chicken.