Back in Europe I always regarded Coconut milk as something super fancy and difficult to come bye
Honestly, 10 years ago you would literally have to hunt down a can of coconut milk and the best place to find a lonely can of coconut milk would be in an Asian grocery shop.
Those are still rather a rarity in the Austrian alpine villages but at least some super markets tend to have those in display.
However, commercially available coconut milk in Europe kind of tastes strange and even my mum agrees.
One fine day we had a Skype call so I can teach her how to make homemade coconut milk from scratch.
After that call, I figured it was about time to just simply post it here.
What’s the point of writing a food blog and not post things like this, right?
I confess, posting mini recipes, such as coconut milk or ginger garlic paste, isn’t really my thing.
A feeling of guilt usually creeps in when sharing such basic recipes.
But nothing beats making these basic recipes with fresh ingredients rather than using store-bought ones prepackaged ones.
I thought it would be nice to have all these simple everyday recipes all in one place.
I am not sure what you guys would call them.
Maybe DIY recipes, or basic recipes or primary recipes, any of those titles sound appealing?
Anyway, a few months back I created a pinterest board called Basic recipes.
I keep basic recipes such as homemade ricotta cheese, vanilla sugar, almond milk, homemade butter, homemade rosewater and so on.
The board should give you an idea what I mean, do check it out.
Coconut milk easy as 1, 2, 3…
Back to the Coconut milk…. Did you know making homemade coconut milk is super easy?
You just need two things, an electric blender/mixer and some fresh coconuts.
To find a fresh coconut might be a challenge for some.
You can always check your local grocer, or any Asian markets that are near by.
Once you have your coconut you will have to split it into two.
The easiest way to do this is with a big chopper (not kidding!).
Locals in Goa sit on a special coconut scraping stool with a chopper/knife thing attached to one end so to scrape out the coconut easily.
That’s how they do it here in the tropics, but I figured you might not be able to do that at home.
Here you will find useful coconut breaking and scraping tips.
How to make coconut milk?
Once you have scraped your fresh coconut into small pieces, blend it with some water to thick milk-like consistency.
Strain the precious homemade coconut milk and place the strained coconut mash back into the mixer with some more water.
This reduces wastage and you can get the most out of the coconut.
Repeat the straining process once more.
After that you can discard what is left from the coconut.
You can use you fresh coconut milk straight away or store it in the fridge for further use.
This was easy right?
Coconut milk is often used in curries and sweet dishes but it can also be used in beverages.
Sometimes I just mix some sugar into the coconut milk and drink it just like that.
You can also add a pinch of cinnamon powder to it which transforms the homemade coconut milk into a special indulgence.
Recipes with Coconut Milk
- Virgin Pina Colada
- Strawberry Banana Smoothie without yogurt
- Easy Indian Chicken Curry
- Tom Kha Gai – Thai Coconut Chicken Soup
- Vegan Potato Curry
- Rasta Pasta
Homemade Coconut Milk
Ingredients
- 200 grams freshly scraped Coconut about 1 coconut, depends on the size
- 500 milliliter Water
Instructions
- Place all the freshly scraped coconut into a big blender jar and add first only 400 milliliter water to the jar, the remaining water will be required for the second round.
- Blend the whole content to a smooth milk.
- Grab a big strainer and bowl and press the coconut mash so that all the juice falls into the bowl.
- Take the coconut mash back to the blender jar and add now the remaining 100 milliliter of water and blend it once more just like the first time.
- Strain again for the last time so that all the coconut milk is collected in the bowl and separated from the mash.
- Discard the mash and either use the coconut milk or store it in a airtight bottle/container in the fridge.
john fernandes says
Thanks for sharing 🙂
Helene Dsouza says
You are welcome 🙂
Carlos Peres da Costa says
Regarding your posting for coconut milk I would recommend ::
1. After dehusking the coconut, there is always some coir left on the hardshell. Try to place the coconut on the burner. The heat of the flame dislocates/dislodges the pulp from the shell and even sometimes cracks the shell due to the heat . After removing the brown skin, the coconut can be cut in pieces and go straight to blender.
2. Use warm water to extract more the precious oil from the kernel.
Helene Dsouza says
Hi Carlos,
Great tips there Carlos, especially that with the flame should come super handy, and yes we want more essential oils on our food! 🙂
Ramona says
This brings me back to my childhood. My mother would do this.. I love it. 🙂
Minnie@thelady8home says
I never used canned coconut milk before coming to US, and I still make it from scratch when I am running short and have some frozen coconut in my freezer. But cans are simply more efficient.
Charles Smith says
Don’t feel bad about posting a “simple” recipe… it may be simple to you, but to many people it’s super useful! I saw this some time before… I just can’t remember where, but seeing your post now has really brought it to the front of my mind so I’m determined to try and make it myself.
I never tried “home-made” coconut milk, but I do think that some brands of coconut milk have a slightly funky taste… almost like cooked plastic or something. Tell me, does it have the same thickness as the stuff you can buy in cans?
I really want to try this, because coconut milk is SO expensive, but whole coconuts are ridiculously cheap!
Bintu @ Recipes From A Pantry says
Man if I still lived in Sierra Leone I would be doing this always….
Shashi @ http://runninsrilankan.com says
You make it seem so easy! Great way to get Fresh coconut milk!
Kitchen Belleicious says
never thought to do this myself! Great idea
easyfoodsmith says
Nothing beats the quality of coconut milk extracted at home. Gorgeous photos there and the tutorial is very helpful.
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef says
I’ve never made coconut milk but I’ve certainly bought a heap of it. We have coconut palms in our garden but we always have the coconuts chopped off as babies because we don’t want to get bonked on the head when they fall. 🙂
John@Kitchen Riffs says
Good recipe. I’ve never made coconut milk – but although I love coconut, I don’t use it much in savory cooking, just in desserts (weird, because I love curries – just not with coconut in them). I think if you wanted a different category for these recipes, I’d call them something like pantry staples. Just because something is “basic” doesn’t mean people actually make it. There’s nothing more basic in western cuisines than butter, for example, and even though it’s simple to make, no one ever does. I posted a recipe for this about a a year ago, and now it’s #7 on the list of all time most viewed recipes! You just never know what people will find interesting.
cquek says
You have a lovely list of things to be thankful for.
themadscientistskitchen says
Never thought I could make a post out of making coconut milk. Guess its everyday food for us. Love the detailed instructions you have here.