How to know your coconut is fresh

[Jenifae]

I have done a search and I can't seem to find out how to know if a coconut is fresh. I bought 2 today and I opened up one and the meat looks okay I guess but, the water is not clear. It a little cloudy. Is this normal?

Any hlp is appreciated. Thanks.

[RawKnitster]

Sometimes I keep them in the fridge for a couple weeks and the water gets a little dark and/or cloudy, but it tastes okay. Unless it is pink, give it a taste test. Pink is mold.

What are you planning on doing with it? :)

[Jenifae]

Well, the water is a little cloudy and not sure if I saw pink. I guess I have to get used to seeing them. I get confused easily.
I have no idea what I plan on doing with them. hehe.........any ideas.

[klomasius]

Sometimes the water in my coconuts is cloudy, I've never bothered worrying about it.

The ultimate test is how it tastes, if it tastes fine, I reckon it IS fine. But yeah, pink is usually BAD.

When shopping for young coconuts (the white ones) I check the bottom to see if there is a purplish patch. If there is one on the coconut then it's less than fresh. I'll still use it but there's a chance that it might not be good and if there are ones without the purplish patch then I'll preferentially chose those. Also, is the tip of the pyramid at the top brownish? Again this may be an older coconut.

You can shake the coconut to check how much water it has, the more the better. But if you can't hear any water and the coconut is heavy, it might actually mean that there's so much water it's filled the entire chamber, this is a good thing. Again, check what it looks like on the bottom.

As for using them , I have heaps of ways of using the flesh, in custards and creams, in pie fillings, in smoothies, as icing on cakes, on it's own, as 'noodles' in savoury dishes, in savoury sauces and soups etc.

[rftm0115]

What to do with them? Gosh. I just like drinking the juice and spooning the meat afterwards. They'll be lucky if they last a day. Let alone trying to prep them into a meal. NO WAY! :p

[RawKnitster]

If your think you see pink, it is still okay. When you do see it, there won't be any doubt, it is really pink! :p

My favorite way to use them is blending the water and meat in the vitamix. Yesterday I opened one to blend with pineapple, but ended up eating the pineapple and making ice creme with the coconut.

Water and meat from young coconut
juice of a baby lemon or half a large lemon
seeds for 1/2 a vanilla bean or 1/4 t. vanilla extract
2-4 T. agave syrup
1-2 T. coconut oil
1/2 - 1 cup cashews (more if you want if thicker)

Blend until smooth

It will set up a bit in the the fridge.

Or blend in some cacao powder and/or whatever suits your fancy and freeze it to make ice creme. Heavenly!

[Jenifae]

If your think you see pink, it is still okay. When you do see it, there won't be any doubt, it is really pink! :p

My favorite way to use them is blending the water and meat in the vitamix. Yesterday I opened one to blend with pineapple, but ended up eating the pineapple and making ice creme with the coconut.

Water and meat from young coconut
juice of a baby lemon or half a large lemon
seeds for 1/2 a vanilla bean or 1/4 t. vanilla extract
2-4 T. agave syrup
1-2 T. coconut oil
1/2 - 1 cup cashews (more if you want if thicker)

Blend until smooth

It will set up a bit in the the fridge.

Or blend in some cacao powder and/or whatever suits your fancy and freeze it to make ice creme. Heavenly!

Thanks for the Scrumptous reciepe. Well, I wish I would've seen your post before I threw it out. I thought I saw pink but, didn't know and worry about things being bad. Oh well. I gotta another one to crack.

[Jenifae]

Sometimes the water in my coconuts is cloudy, I've never bothered worrying about it.

The ultimate test is how it tastes, if it tastes fine, I reckon it IS fine. But yeah, pink is usually BAD.

When shopping for young coconuts (the white ones) I check the bottom to see if there is a purplish patch. If there is one on the coconut then it's less than fresh. I'll still use it but there's a chance that it might not be good and if there are ones without the purplish patch then I'll preferentially chose those. Also, is the tip of the pyramid at the top brownish? Again this may be an older coconut.

You can shake the coconut to check how much water it has, the more the better. But if you can't hear any water and the coconut is heavy, it might actually mean that there's so much water it's filled the entire chamber, this is a good thing. Again, check what it looks like on the bottom.

As for using them , I have heaps of ways of using the flesh, in custards and creams, in pie fillings, in smoothies, as icing on cakes, on it's own, as 'noodles' in savoury dishes, in savoury sauces and soups etc.


Thank you so much for the great info on how and what to look for. :)

[RawKnitster]

Thanks for the Scrumptous reciepe. Well, I wish I would've seen your post before I threw it out. I thought I saw pink but, didn't know and worry about things being bad. Oh well. I gotta another one to crack.


Darn! I'm sorry. I suppose "when in doubt, throw it out" is the safest policy. I've thrown out a few that looked questionable. Good luck with the next one!

[Jenifae]

Darn! I'm sorry. I suppose "when in doubt, throw it out" is the safest policy. I've thrown out a few that looked questionable. Good luck with the next one!

Thanks :) I think I'll wait til later and I'm actually going to do something with it.

[klomasius]

Hehe, nah, I just eat stuff if it still tastes good. I wouldn't have thrown it away, but oh well. :(

Sometimes I wonder if we are just getting too unnecessarily fussy about what our food looks like and what bugs might be in it.

I'm of the belief that we have evolved for millions of years eating 'dodgy' natural foods, so I think I'll continue with this millions of years old tradition.

No worrying about bugs that may or may not be there, just eat it if it tastes good.

I ate dirt when I was a kid, played in muck, got really down and yucky. Made sure my son did the same thing (even though watching him do it must surely have raised my BP to alarming levels, certainly raised my stress levels!). I wonder if this is the reason we both have cast iron stomachs! :D

I wish I had a coconut now.. :(

[steveoregon]

If you think you see pink, it is still okay

X2

I've been using Thai coconuts in my smoothies for some time. If the water and meat have a slight purplish tint, that is because it isn't ripe. You can tell this because the meat is very thin and not fully formed. However, it is still usable.


.

[Jenifae]

X2

I've been using Thai coconuts in my smoothies for some time. If the water and meat have a slight purplish tint, that is because it isn't ripe. You can tell this because the meat is very thin and not fully formed. However, it is still usable.


.

Ah-Ha! Thank you very much. This sounds exactly like the I shouldn't have thrown out. :rolleyes:

[Jenifae]

I just opened my 2nd Coconut and I see the difference.
This water was clear, it tasted sweet, and the meat was thic and smooth. :D

Yay! I'm going to make a Green Smoothie with it!

[Jenifae]

I have another question.

I opened a coconut a couple of days ago and put the water in meat in the fridge right away. How long does it stay fresh after opening?

Thanks

[MelissaO]

I am so glad you decided to try young coconuts - aren't they soooo good. Most of the times for breaksfast I will use the meat, liquid, two banana's, maca powder and few ice cubes for a smoothie (this is also good if you add raw cacao powder)


I freeze the meat sometimes and it will last a few months with my foodsaver bags frozen. Normally they never make it to the fridge ----- I eat them as soon as I open them.

[klomasius]

Hmmm, not sure how long it lasts, I'd estimate about 2-3 days in the fridge.

I usually drink it quicker than that. :D