Not to long ago, my friend, Sha, asked me how to open up a coconut for its juice. Maybe, there was some mis-communication somewhere in our conversation, she ended up with lesser juice than expected and a damaged cleaver. :P
Hence, I made a simple video on how it is done. This is specially for you, Sha! ;)
To make the video shorter, I have cracked the coconut slight first. The coconut I bought was without the husk. If you are from Singapore, you can get them is some wet markets, NTUC and Shop N Save.
Sadly, there wasn't much choice for me to choose from today. So the coconut I bought, as seen in the video, was a bit old. Hence, the pulp was thick and hard and slightly more difficult to open. I should have used the coconut used in the photo above instead.Younger coconut will have very tender pulp which is very nice to eat. :)
The steps to crack open the coconut is as follows:
- With one hand firmly holding the coconut, hit it with the back of the cleaver. Very important to make sure noone is behind or beside you!!
- Turn the coconut around and continue to hit on it until you see a crack-line around the coconut.
- An 'old' coconut will have thick and hard pulp. Don't force it open with your hands. You will end up having coconut juice splashing all over.
- Use a fork or spoon to poke in-between the crack-line into the coconut.
- Twist a little to force open the coconut.
- You can now drain out the coconut juice from the opening.
- Open up the 'top' of the empty coconut to scrape out the pulp.
- If you have problem opening up the coconut, use a knife to cut the pulp first.
- You will be able to open up the coconut easily now.
Note:Here's the video as mentioned ...
- You can control how big the opening you want by hitting on a position of the coconut. Hit it closer to the top, you have have a smaller opening. It's good if you want to drink the juice straight from the coconut.
- Hit it on the position about 1/3 from the top, you will have a larger opening. Good if you want to scrape out the pulp.
Now, I'm off to crack some coconuts to make coconut jellies. :D
Enjoy!
Hi wokkingmum,
ReplyDeleteI didnt realise how easy it is actually to crack open the cococut using back of the cleaver and ard the coconut! i always keep wacking at the same spot using the sharp edge of the cleaver until i get a big hole to get the juice out.as a result wasted some juice and couldnt get the pulp out. ahha.. will try ur method nxt time!
Hi Lady, I can guess you have a Black Belt in cooking, ha ha. Yes, thats the usual way. Infact right now I have a song playing in my blog media player of people breaking coconuts your way to drink the juice. And by experts too....Tahitians.
ReplyDeleteYou have a nice day, and keep a song in your heart, Lee.
Ps, noticed your callsign at Sheoh Yan's place.
I always see these mini coconuts at the supermarket but I don't dare to buy. With your tutorial, I will buy one to try. But I'm not that pro with a knife lol
ReplyDeleteyikessss i am super scared to crack open a coconut. normally i asked SC to drill it or something...scareddd (shaking) hehehe
ReplyDeleteBigmomma said
ReplyDeleteThanxs TEACHER,juz FYI its me'Sha', thanxsss much for the video a step by step guide especially for me.. So HONOURED ! Great site! i will for sure try out your cereal..... Die die
Wah...this is really a useful tip. A side question, could young kids like 3 yr old drink coconut juice?
ReplyDeleteThank you everyone for the comments.
ReplyDeleteChoe Ee, I guess it depends if the child has any medical conditions that doesnt allow him/her to drink it. I gave my kids a small glass when they were younger. No problem.
Chanced upon this thread whie browsing.
ReplyDeleteIf you get a coconut with part of the hask (not whole green coconut, but half shaven), you could use the bread knife (long, thin and with 'teeth') and slowly saw through it.
Oh, one more thing. If you can see the shell, go for the ones that look whiter than slightly brown. Younger coconuts tends to look lighter (I may be wrong but that was what I noticed)
ReplyDelete