Rica Agua de Coco

In the grocery store all of my life I have seen that exotic, hairy coconut. Sometimes I would go over and pick one up and shake it. Sometimes even knock. And always wonder about the holes in the top... like they really were specifically put there for the insertion of a straw and a little paper umbrella. I never bought one though. I didn't know what I would do with it once I got it home.

Finally, here in Mexico, I bought my first, very own coconut. I even had a plan for it. I bought it at the tiangis, a street market, where the seller was kind enough to explain to me how to make a delicious coconut drink. It is the simplest drink ever, but so very good that Iajia and I find ourselves rationing it out. This drink is like a really good song... you want more and more of it and never want to tire of it.


Here's what you do:
1. Buy your fresh coconut. Don't be shy, pick them up and shake'em. Pick one with a good amount of water sloshing about inside.
2. When you get it home, you'll have to hack of the hairy brown shell. They did this for me at the tiangis, but it didn't look too hard if you have the right knife (eh, they were using a machete), a butcher knife might work... any knife good for whacking. It isn't hard to get the shell off- more like peeling a potato, but the skin is too thick to actually use a peeler.
3. After the shell is off, poke a hole in the coconut. Turn the coconut upside down in your blender so the water comes out. Then cut up the coconut and add it to the coconut water in the blender. Blend to pulverization.
4. Once pulverized, take a sieve and push the coconut cream through the sieve and into an empty pitcher. Squeeze the pulverized coconut meat to get the juice/milk out.
5. My coconut gave me about a liter of the coconut milk. You can double this amount with water. So add 1 part water to your 1 part coconut. You could probably add even a wee bit more, but not too much, so that your drink stays creamy.
6. From here, you just need to add sweetener. I used sweetened condensed milk and that's what I recommend. Add to taste. I may have used less than half a can to reach desired sweetness. Just stir and you are done! If you don't do dairy- just add sugar or agave nectar. If you want it more milky try canned goat's milk, or just don't add that much water.