I mentioned to her that I did not know what to do with a coconut. She offered to show me how to make coconut milk if I would bring a blender, strainer and some containers. I was back in just a few days with all the equipment and Marguerite and Liam in tow. I think she was surprised to see me, but she obviously is not aware of my busy schedule here in Grenada.
First, she bashed (mashed up) the coconut on a concrete step. She made it look very easy but when I tried to do this at home I almost broke my arm and the coconut didn't even crack. I think it takes some practice.
Next, she took the flesh out of the shell and cut it into strips. If I ever get my own coconut open, she advises that the coconut can be sharp and I should be careful when cutting it up. The rest of the steps are simple, I'll let the pictures tell the story.
Cutting out the flesh of a coconut - she barely even looked at her hands while doing this, I would have cut a finger off
Coconut pieces ready to go in the blender
Blend the coconut with water
Pour out the contents of the blender, squeeze the pulp to release the milk
Last step, strain (that yogurt container is my "Tupperware")
The fresh coconut milk was nutty, light and not too sweet. Refreshing compared to the canned version. This combined with fresh pineapple slices, a bit of vanilla ice cream and rum made the best pina colada I've ever tasted. Seriously, we can and should try this at home.
I used the rest of the coconut milk to cook a Pad Thai dish and make a roti filling in cooking class. It felt great to take advantage of the fresh ingredients available on the island. Now if I can just figure out how to crack a coconut by myself.
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