coconut primer??

[sdevine]

Ok, twice I've tried to get fresh coconut for my crabs and twice I've failed miserably. First time the hub got some wierd white thing, I'm not sure what it was, they were not interested.

This time we indeed get a actual coconut and managed to get into it and it smelled like windex. So I'm reading that was a bad one.

So here's my question, could some of you that have used fresh coconut a lot put together some tips for those of us that don't eat it?

How do I know I'm buying a good one and not a windex one? What is the best way to drain and open and leave the outside intact to make huts?

Thanks!!

[wodesorel]

The weird white thing was most likely what they sell as a "young coconut". I bought one for the crabs once, and they were not interested in any part of it, including the really soft thin layer of meat on the inside. (I on the other hand couldn't stop eating it, and I can't stand the taste of coconut!)

I think there's always a risk of running into bad coconuts since the freshness is so hard to judge. My problems is that I buy them and then forget about them for a while since they do take some time to work on and I keep putting it off. Look for a store that sells a lot of them, or at a store that has really good prices so that the stock is always turning over. My Walmart sells them for $2 and we're there enough to notice that they really do sell plenty! And then make sure to tackle them as soon as you get home. (I've been buying about one a month lately.)

Always smell them - if they smell like anything other than EE then they're too ripe. (Never buy one that smells like coconut as it's too far gone.) Slosh them around as well as there should be water moving inside. It should be a faint sound and very much like water, as a very rotten coconut will turn to slushy mush inside the shell! If you do get a bad one don't hesitate to return it to the store for a replacement - it happens.

Once you get them home you have to drain the water out through one of the three eyes. Usually only one will be weak enough to punch through. A knife can work if it'll fit, but I usually grab a screwdriver to make a nice sized hole so I'm not standing over the sink all night waiting for it.

I've tried many things to crack them in half, and I always go back to the Coconut Rock in my backyard. A large oblong rock is probably the best thing to use as it's easy to control and it has a broad narrow end to smack along the score line. I usually do this on the concrete patio or driveway, but I've also done it on a cutting board on my cellar floor in winter. A hammer can work, but I've found that it tends to make the coconut bounce around too much. Use short blows to start and turn the coconut as you hit so that all areas of the score line are hit evenly to loosen it, then try a few harder blows on the score line to get it to separate. Sometimes hitting lightly all around the coconut before you split it can help to loosen the flesh inside as well!

Getting the flesh out will always be a battle! It gets easier every time you do it though. I use a sturdy paring knife to get it out. I wedge it all the way around the edge of the half (Between the membrane and the shell), prying the whole thing loose as much as I can before popping out chunks. The stuff in the center of the half is the hardest to get out since it's concave and hard to get a tool underneath. If you're not steady with a knife them try one of those small crowbars made for staples, or a broad screwdriver. Leave the brown membrane on as the crabs will pick at that as well and it's too hard to remove.

I then boil the halves in salt water to clean off any leftover flesh and to make the huts look a bit neater since the heat pulls the fibers tight. (The crabs don't mind them either way.) After they've cooled then you can use a dremmel to cut out a very tidy doorway. If you don't have a dremmel then before you boil them you can knock out a doorway using a hammer and a few careful blows to the same spot - make sure to hit the inside of the coconut.

[Gabrielleh]

Man, wodesorel you are pro at this! Lol the first time I challenged a whole coconut, I used a hammer and screwdriver. Lets just say it took me about 40 minutes, was messy, and my cocohuts ended up being lopsided. Good memories!

[sdevine]

very cool. Yep we got this one at walmart, but, being clueless it sat around for a week before the drill and the hammer came out. Round two this weekend.!!

Thanks!!

[wodesorel]

I think I do it too often! The first time I did a coconut it took me an hour, I had to clean the kitchen afterwards because it was everywhere, and I ended up bleeding from jabbing the knife into my thumb. This last time though - ten minutes, start to finish. It's muscle memory of what's worked in the past, that's all!