Coconut Milk and Cream

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2007

Show: Good EatsEpisode: Coconut Cake Revival

Rated: 4 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (5)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(5)

Cook Time:
15 min
Level:
Intermediate
Yield:
1/2 cup each milk and cream

Times:

Prep: 25 min
Inactive Prep: 1 hr 0 min
Cook: 15 min
Total:: 1 hr 40 min

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Ingredients

1 coconut, see Cook's Note

For the milk:

2 ounces freshly grated coconut, approximately 1/2 cup
1/2 cup boiling 2 percent milk

For cream:

4 ounces freshly grated coconut, approximately 1 cup
1/2 cup boiling 2 percent milk

Directions

Cook's Note: To open a coconut: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the coconut onto a folded towel set down in a large bowl. Find the 3 eyes on 1 end of the coconut and using a nail or screwdriver and hammer or meat mallet, hammer holes into 2 of the eyes. Turn the coconut upside down over a container and drain the water from the coconut. Store the water in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Place the coconut onto a 1/2 sheet pan and bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven. The coconut should have cracked in several places. Using an oyster knife or other dull blade, separate the hard shell from the brown husk. Using a serrated vegetable peeler, peel the brown husk from the coconut meat. Rinse the coconut meat under cool water and pat dry. Break the meat into 2 to 3-inch pieces. With the grater disk attached to a food processor, grate the coconut.

For the milk:

Place 2 ounces of the coconut into a small mixing bowl and pour over the boiling milk. Stir to combine. Cover tightly and allow to sit for 1 hour. Transfer the mixture to the carafe of a blender and process for 1 minute.

Place a tea towel over a mixing bowl and carefully pour the mixture into it. Gather up the edges and squeeze until all of the liquid has been removed. Discard the coconut. You may use the milk immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

For the cream:

Repeat the same procedure as above only using 4 ounces of freshly grated coconut.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Coconut Milk and Cream
Rose New Orleana, LA 01-27-2010
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The best cake I ever made!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

It's a lot of work, sure, cleaning and grating fresh coconut, but I wouldn't take any shortcuts with this recipe. I followed... the directions to the letter. Even people who normally did not like coconut loved this cake.Read more
recipe Coconut Milk and Cream
SALLY petaluma, CA 08-01-2009
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Wow, Yum...cool....YUM!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This is so cool. I am making this for the second time. The cake was fabulous, best cake I think I have every made, and I've... made some good cakes. I don't understand why you wouldn't just use all coconut cream in the cake, because the coconut flavor is very mild. But this was great. It was way easier to prepare the coconut the second time, far less intimidating. Food processor is immensely helpful. I had some coconut cream leftover and the kids & I made some fresh (from our tree) peach & coconut milkshakes. They were soooooo good!! Yay! Thanks Alton...you are the KING of bringing back flavor & tradition!!! Read more
recipe Coconut Milk and Cream
Anonymous 08-09-2007
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Great!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I made both the coconut milk and cream when I made AB's Coconut Cake with Seven Minute Frosting. I made them just as he... directed. They were both very good and added a lot to the cake. The second time I made the coconut cake, I was pressed for time and had to use purchased coconut milk. I found the homemade version to be just as good. BTW, the coconut cake is superb and well worth the effort!!!Read more
recipe Coconut Milk and Cream
Anonymous 07-24-2007
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COCONUT CORRECTION
Rated: 1 stars out of 5

That is not how to make coconut milk. Your suppose to take water and fresh grated coconut mix water and coconut in a bowl.... Using your hands pick up the soaked coconut water mix and squeeze over a strainer and bowl. To open coconut, use the backside of a knife having both tips of the coconut pointing east and west in the palm of your hand and using the backside of the knife to tap hard on the coconut which would open the coconut. To take out the coconut out of the shell. Using the tip of the knife glide it around the inside as if you were to do as in a cake to seperate the cake from the pan.Read more
recipe Coconut Milk and Cream
Anonymous 07-17-2007
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The best ever
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

DELICIOUS