This rice chocolate mousse utilizes leftover rice, which results in a surprisingly smooth and silky dessert. It takes minutes to prep and a little bit of patience.

A spoonful of thick and creamy rice chocolate pudding lifted out of the serving cup.

Yes, you read that right! Leftover rice just became dessert. This rice chocolate mousse is rich, satisfying, and a great way to reduce food waste.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

  • This recipe is a zero-waste win. Channel your inner Scrappy Cooking queen (or king) as you transform leftover rice into dessert.
  • Unlike traditional mousse and rice pudding recipes, this one is fully plant-based, which means that it contains no eggs or dairy.
  • All you need are 5 ingredients and a blender, that’s it. Then, you just have to wait patiently as your rice chocolate mousse sets in the fridge.
  • Honestly, you can’t even tell that there is rice in this chocolate mousse. It tastes rich and fancy when in reality, it’s super simple to make.

Key Ingredients

Ingredients for rice chocolate pudding laid out and labeled on a light background.
  • Rice is the base that blends into a surprisingly creamy texture. This recipe is designed to help you use leftover rice, but you can also make it in advance deliberately.
  • Dark chocolate brings a bold and rich flavor. I recommend to use high quality if you can.
  • Hot water helps everything blend seamlessly.

Hack It!

  • No blender? A food processor can offer an alternative, so long as you don’t mind a different texture.
  • Add a splash of maple syrup or a couple of dates if using extra-dark chocolate.
  • Customize the flavor with a pinch of cinnamon or chili powder for a fun twist. You can also stir in some vegan nutella instead of chocolate for a rich, nutty variation.
  • Add berries, coconut whipped cream, or chopped nuts as your toppings.
  • Turn it into popsicles. Perfect on a hot day!
  • If you don’t like chocolate, turn your leftover rice into vegan rice pudding.

How to Make Rice Chocolate Mousse

Blended rice chocolate pudding still in the high speed blender.

Step 1: Melt the dark chocolate using a double broiler or the microwave. In a blender, combine the leftover rice, hot water, vanilla, and chocolate until smooth.

Pouring the rice chocolate pudding from the blender into a cup.

Step 2: Pour the mixture into dessert cups. Refrigerate for at least two hours until thickened. 

Rice chocolate pudding dusted with cocoa and served on a plate.

Step 3: Once it has thickened, dust with cocoa powder.

A spoonful of rice chocolate pudding being lifted out of the dessert cup.

Step 4: Enjoy!

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the best chocolate for this?

If you can get a high-quality dark chocolate with a high cacao content, it will elevate your rice chocolate mousse to the next level.

You can also use vegan milk chocolate or white chocolate. Bear in mind that the texture may be softer.

How long does it keep?

Since this utilizes leftover rice, I suggest consuming within 24 hours.

Does this work with any rice?

It works best with sticky, starchy rice. But with a high-speed blender, even rice like basmati can turn into a chocolate dessert.

More Plant-Based Scrappy Desserts

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Rice chocolate pudding dusted with cocoa and served on a plate.

The Recipe: Rice Chocolate Mousse

A delicious and somewhat surprising way to use up leftover rice.
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Servings: 4
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Resting and setting: 2 hours

Ingredients

  • 1½ cup dark chocolate, vegan, melted
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup leftover rice, 1 day old maximum
  • ½ cup hot water
  • cocoa powder, for dusting

Equipment

Instructions 

  • Melt the dark chocolate using a double broiler or the microwave. 
  • In a blender, combine the leftover rice, hot water, vanilla and chocolate, and blend until smooth. 
  • Pour the mixture into two dessert cups, and refrigerate for at least two hours until thickened. 
  • Once it has thickened, dust with cocoa powder, as desired. Since this is made with leftover rice, I suggest consuming the same day as you make it!

Notes

  • No blender? A food processor can offer an alternative, so long as you don’t mind a different texture.
  • Add a splash of maple syrup or a couple of dates if using extra-dark chocolate.
  • Customize the flavor with a pinch of cinnamon or chili powder for a fun twist. You can also stir in some vegan nutella instead of chocolate for a rich, nutty variation.
  • Add berries, coconut whipped cream, or chopped nuts as your toppings.
  • Turn it into popsicles. Perfect on a hot day!
Calories: 418.7kcal, Carbohydrates: 49.3g, Protein: 6.6g, Fat: 21.3g, Saturated Fat: 19.6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.4g, Cholesterol: 0.7mg, Sodium: 72.7mg, Potassium: 442.6mg, Fiber: 2.7g, Sugar: 23.2g, Vitamin A: 6.8IU, Vitamin C: 0.3mg, Calcium: 208.6mg, Iron: 0.9mg
Cuisine: American
Course: Dessert
Author: carleigh