Peeling/Cracking Coconuts

[helenas]

Recently i bought my first fresh coconut to use it freshly grated in an african sauce for chicken.

I won't embarass myself in front of egullet describing the process of opening this thing to get to the flesh (but if you remember the scene of a can opening from "Three Men in a Boat (to Say Nothing of the Dog) book, you got the idea). But the taste of the fresh coconut was oh so worth the pain.

But we (my dog was part of the tasting) still have a question: what is the best way to remove the inner skin? And in general, do you have any tricks to deal with fresh coconuts: selecting, cracking, peeling, grating, storing, eating...

[nerissa]

You might think of posting this in the India/Asia forum as coconut is central to many Asian cusines.

We usually put a coconut in sealed bag and drop it, or bang it on a hard surface.

Does your dog like coconut? Good dog.

I have a story about coconut water which will point to its many uses. My boyfriend's family was on a flight back from India to NYC, and one of the passengers went into some sort of arrest. The plane could not land immediately, and my bf's mother, who is a physician was carrying fresh coconuts back with her to the states. She was able to break the coconut open (I don't know how) and gerrywrig an iv, using the coconut water as iv fluid (because it is sterile and nutritious), to stabilize the patient until the plane could land in safe territory.

[CathyL]

Helena, I was flipping through David Thompson's Thai Food and noticed a discussion of this. Of course, I don't remember what he said...I'll check when I get home tonight.

[Dave the Cook]

... my bf's mother, who is a physician was carrying fresh coconuts back with her to the states.  She was able to break the coconut open (I don't know how) and gerrywrig an iv, using the coconut water as iv fluid (because it is sterile and nutritious), to stabilize the patient until the plane could land in safe territory.

Brilliant. Just brilliant.

[helenas]

Thanks Cathy: i have the book and will definitely check it.

[jhlurie]

We should have an overall topic called "what the best way to peel/open/crack..." with the last part varying!

For example, I learned that the best way to open garlic is to briefly microwave it (I used to hear "pounding it with the flat part of a knife", but that's moved to second place).

[elyse]

Not an expert here, so maybe I should just shut up, but strick something sharp into the eyes and drain the milk. Put the coconut in a hot oven (350 maybe...) and it should crack. Then you can get the flesh out easily. If you want to take off the skin, try a rasp.

[wingding]

First pound a nail through the 3 eyes.Drain out the water.Put the coconut in a 350ish oven on a pan until it cracks in a few places.Remove from the oven and give it a hock with a hammer.This should make peeling the outer shell off pretty easy.The trick is to try and keep the broken up pieces large-then you can peel off the inner shell with a vegetable peeler.

[elyse]

JINX! 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10!

[Adam Balic]

I had the same problem with opening fresh coconuts recently. My solution was to take my heavy chinese clever and tap on the surface of the coconut (use the back of the clever blade), while rotating it in my hand. Nothing happens for a few minutes, then a hairline crack apears which rapidly travels the circumference of the shell, it then falls apart in to halves. Draining the liquid inside through the one soft eye first is advisable.

Use a knife to prise of large pieces of flesh, used veg, peeler to remove brown skin layer. Use coarse grade Microplane to get nice large flakes of flesh. Slowly toasted in the oven until starting to caramelise they are delicious in salads or eaten out of hand.

[Miss J]

"Tap?"

Or do you mean you actually smack the hell out of the coconut with the back of the cleaver to get the crack to appear?

[Vanessa]

I've always kept a good strong hammer in the kitchen

v

[Adam Balic]

Hammer also works, but you don't have to hit it that hard really.

[RickBehl]

Does anyone have tips on making fresh coconut milk and cream, as used

in Thai recipes ?

I tried to make it once but was not too successful.

Also, is there much of a difference between fresh cream/milk and a good Thai brand in a tin when used to make curries for instance ?

Thanks

Rick