coconut

Have you ever purchased a fresh coconut? They are so fun, but they can be very challenging to open. When we were writing the Muy Bueno cookbook I cracked open a couple to use for photoshoots, but it was not easy. I placed it on our driveway and tried to hammer it open. It was bouncing all over the place and wouldn’t crack. Finally after a few whacks it finally busted opened, but all the precious liquid ran down the driveway.

Melissa’s Produce sent us a box of coconuts for some of our fresh coconut water cocktails in the new Latin Twist cocktail book. Luckily for me, Jeanine had a clever idea and suggested we YouTube an easier way to open a coconut. Duh, why didn’t I think of that? We searched, and we found a few videos of how to open a coconut with it’s hard as a rock shell without needing a machete or cleaver.

After a few attempts experimenting with different tools, I discovered that a hammer is still my tool of choice. Check out my video to see how I open a coconut.

First, you pierce the top of the coconut using a clean screwdriver and drain the liquid in a cup. Over a large bowl, hold the coconut in your hand (firmly) to support the weight. Then you want to give it a good whack making a crack around the parameter of the fruit. It might take more than one whack to bust open, so don’t give up.

If you are not going to use all the coconut the same day, place it (either in chunks or grated) in a plastic bag and refrigerate up to 2 days. To keep fresh longer, wrap the prepared coconut in plastic and then in aluminum foil, and freeze for up to 2 months.

Enjoy fresh coconut water to drink straight, mix in a cocktail, or grate the meat to garnish a dessert.

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Written by Yvette / Photo by Jeanine / Video by Pure Cinematography