Young coconut question

[bananaberrie]

Okay, I have a question. How long are young coconuts good for. Would you recommend freezing the meat. The reason I ask is. I live in a rural area. We don't have a Trader Joe's, a Whole Foods, but I have found a great organic produce co-op where you can order any kind of produce. The thing is, is that you either have to buy a case of something or get something that is popular enough that others are going to split the case with you. I have requested young coconuts for a few weeks now, but apparently I'm the only one because the never come in. A case is 9..I think. I don't want to get this many and them have half of them go bad, but I have seen so many great things that you can do with them. I just don't know how far 1 coconut will go, or what i can do to storage...ect.

Any tip, advice or help? Thanks

[damaru]

I'm not positive on this but just about anything can be frozen and so I would assume that coconuts would be the same! I would empty out the milk from them all and drink that in a couple days, scoop out the meat, freeze it and use it for recipes. ALthough personally I can never get meat out of coconuts. I either don't have the right tools or have never been taught how to do it properly. So I'm NOT an expert, but certainly nothing should stop you from buying these coconuts in bulk! :)

[siennagray]

I think I have read of people freezing coconut icecubes. Damaru, have you had normal coconuts, or young coconuts? It is not too hard to remove the meat from a young coconut. I just use a spoon. I would blend the meat and water, and pour that into ice cube trays, and then empty those into a freezer bag when frozen.

If you get any that are discolored, I would not mix them with the rest. My 2nd coconut was purple when I opened it up. It seems like some people think coconuts are purple when they are super young and the meat hasn't developed. Others think they are purple when they are going bad and suggest returning them to the store. Some suggest tasting it to determine whether to use it. Mine tasted fine, and I used it in a smoothie with no ill effects. If you get one of these and decide to use it you probably should use it on the spot instead of keeping for later.

[bananaberrie]

I have a hard time getting the meat out of coconuts too. But I have never tried on a "young" coconut. Aren't they suppose to be easier?

[DebB]

Hi ~ I freeze young Thai coconut meat ALL the time! I have a freezer full right now. I've also frozen the water successfully. Yes - go ahead and freeze it - it will be fine. I've always frozen the meat separate from the water.

I'm currently eating coconuts that I've had in the fridge for over a month. That's a first for me to have stored them that long - but so far, so good. It's a gamble though - I wouldn't have thought they would keep that long... *Ü*

[bananaberrie]

Great! Thank you everyone who replied. Looks like I will be getting some coconuts soon. Can't wait to try all the new recipes I've been wanting to try.