I love the coconut flavor! Knowing how healthy the coconut is for my body I could eat it every day. And on most days I do; if not the raw flesh, then at least the virgin coconut oil, the milk or the water from young coconuts. More often than not, the coconut milk comes pasteurized and I would rather have it unprocessed. Wouldn't you?
Organic coconuts from the Ivory Coast
This morning I bought three mature organic coconuts from the Ivory Coast with the idea of making my own coconut milk from their flesh. This, of course is not as easy as it may sound. Coconuts are quite stubborn and do not easily give up their treasure.They have to be cracked open and cracking a coconut may became an adventure in its own right.
Once a coconut has been cracked open, the process of milk making is rather easy and quite gratifying. All you need is shredded coconut flesh and water, but before you start there are a few steps you have to take to get ready.
Ingredients:
- flesh of one mature coconut
- coconut water, whatever comes out of the coconut
- 1 to 2 cups purified water, depending on how much liquid came out of the coconut
Method:
- If you are using coconuts, wash the coconuts under running water. You may want to use a vegetable brush to remove the dirt.
- Crack open your coconuts. The easiest way to do it is to first pierce the softest of the three "eyes." Find the softest of the three "eyes" - usually the biggest one - and pierce it with the help of a sharp, long nail, or a similar object. You may need to use a hammer. Watch your fingers!
- After you made the hole drain the coconut water. Save it for later use. The old coconuts do not contain as much coconut water as the young ones and the water has a less refreshing taste.
- Once the soft "eye" is pierced, the inner tension lessens and it is much easier to crack the nut open. It took me a few minutes, but I finally managed.
Coconut cracked open with a hammer
- Extract the flesh with a spoon. Warning: this is not always easy. You may want to use a large spoon or even a knife. Be careful not to cut your fingers. The extracted chunks of coconut flesh are covered with a rather hard brown skin. You can leave this skin on or peel it off with a sharp knife. Rinse the coconut flesh, if necessary.
Coconut flesh
- Transfer the chopped coconut into a jar of your high power blender, add the previously drained coconut water and enough purified water to cover the coconut chunks completely and a little more. Blend for a few minutes on high using the tamper. Blend until you get a thick, milky liquid. If you do not have a Vitamix or any other high power blender, you can shred the coconut chunks in a food processor using the S blade, and then blend the shredded coconut with water in your blender. In this way you will not cause any damage to your precious kitchen tool.
- Use a nut milk bag to extract the milk. If you do not have a nut milk bag, cover a sieve or a colander with a few layers of clean cheesecloth and place it over a wide rimmed jar or pitcher.
- Fill the nut milk bag or the covered sieve with the blended coconut and allow the liquid to flow through.
- Squeeze the nut bag to extract all the milk. Or, if you are using the cheesecloth, pull the edges together and squeeze the milk out using both hands. Squeeze as much milk as you can. Ready!
Homemade coconut milk
Once your coconut milk is ready you can store it in the fridge for a couple days. I prefer to use it right away as a base for a delicious smoothie and dessert.
To make a coconut cream, use 1 cup shredded coconut, a little more than 1 cup of water. You can add some sunflower lecithin if you want to. Lecithin will prevent the separation of water from coconut solids in milk and allow you to store the cream in fridge for a little longer. It will also make cream, creamier.
If you cannot obtain whole coconuts, buy raw shredded coconut, or raw coconut chunks, and shred them in a food processor. Follow all the other steps to make the milk.
There is a different way to make the milk. You do not need a blender, but you will have to use warm, but not hot water. The higher the water temperature the better the extraction of milk from the coconut flakes. However, if you are very particular about raw food being really raw, do not use boiling water. Instead, boil the water and let it cool off to no more than 115°F or 46°C. Follow the instructions given above. Once you made the milk, allow it to settle in a pitcher for a moment. After a while you will see a thick layer forming on top. This is the coconut butter. Scoop it gently and use it in smoothies or desserts.
There is a different way to make the milk. You do not need a blender, but you will have to use warm, but not hot water. The higher the water temperature the better the extraction of milk from the coconut flakes. However, if you are very particular about raw food being really raw, do not use boiling water. Instead, boil the water and let it cool off to no more than 115°F or 46°C. Follow the instructions given above. Once you made the milk, allow it to settle in a pitcher for a moment. After a while you will see a thick layer forming on top. This is the coconut butter. Scoop it gently and use it in smoothies or desserts.
Tip: Save the spent coconut flakes. Use them as a base for desserts or dehydrate them and grind them in a blender to make coconut flour. Use the flour in your raw soups, raw breads, and more.
Wishing you a great adventure with coconuts, in radiant health - passionately raw - Dominique
Dominique Allmon©2012