Fresh Roasted Coconut Recipes

SLOW ROASTED PORK WITH COCONUT CURRY SAUCE, CORN TORTILLAS, FRESH TOMATO SALSA OVER BASMATI RICE

Steps:

• For the pork: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Rub the spices into the pork and roast for about 8 hours. Let cool. Pull apart and discard any fat. Put the pork pieces in a large pot and add the coconut milk.
• Meanwhile, for the curry sauce: Saute the curry paste, ginger, garlic, and black beans in sesame oil until fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Add this mixture to the pot with the pork and coconut milk. Add the lime leaves. Braise on low heat for 1 to 2 hours.
• For the rice: Blend the cilantro, jalapeno, garlic, and 1 cup of water. Put this mixture in a pot on the stove. Add the basmati rice. Add 2 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil, and then simmer, covered, until the rice absorbs the liquid, 20 to 25 minutes. When done, add the butter and salt and pepper, to taste.
• For the salsa: Roast the jalapeno and poblano peppers, peel, and remove the seeds. Toast the cumin seeds and then grind. Dice the tomatoes and red onion and mix together in a bowl with the other salsa ingredients.
• Heat the corn tortillas on a griddle. Plate the rice, put the pork with sauce on top, and finish with salsa and tortillas.

TO CRACK AND SHAVE FRESH COCONUT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Pierce softest eye of coconut with a metal skewer or small screwdriver and drain liquid into a bowl to sample (if it tastes sweet, the coconut is fresh; if it tastes oily, the coconut is rancid and should be discarded). Bake coconut in oven 15 minutes.
• Break shell with a hammer or back of a heavy cleaver, then remove flesh with point of a strong knife, levering it out carefully. Remove brown skin with a sharp knife or vegetable peeler.
• Shave edges of coconut meat pieces with a vegetable peeler until you have about 3 1/2 cups shavings.

ROASTED TOMATO-COCONUT SAUCE

Steps:

• In a medium pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, until the onions are translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in red pepper flakes and lemon zest, then add tomatoes and coconut milk.
• Reduce heat to low and cook until mixture just begins to simmer. Immediately remove from heat and season with lemon juice and salt to taste. Serve over fish, tofu or rice. (If you're cooking tofu, press it between two plates for a half-hour first to get the water out.)

HOW TO TOAST COCONUT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325ºF. Place shredded or flaked coconut evenly on a large baking sheet that has been lined with a Silpat baking mat or parchment paper. Put the baking sheet on the middle rack and bake for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes, open the oven and gently stir the coconut with a spatula. Bake until the coconut is golden brown, about 3-4 more minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely. Note: Make sure you keep an eye on the toasted coconut. Once it starts to toast, it toasts quickly!

FRESH ROASTED COCONUT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Test each of the three eyes at the stem end of the coconut to find the softest eye. Use an ice pick and a hammer to pierce the eye, then drain the juice into a glass through a fine sieve, and reserve for another use.
• Tap the coconut with a hammer until a palm-size piece of the shell breaks off. Continue tapping around the broken edge of the shell until it begins to break apart. Place the broken shells on a baking sheet. Bake the shells for about 10 minutes to loosen the coconut flesh from the shell.
• Remove the coconut shells from the oven, and allow them to cool to the touch. Pry out the meat with an oyster knife. With a potato peeler, remove any remaining brown skin from meat. Grate the coconut meat, or slice it with a mandoline.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place grated or sliced coconut on a baking sheet and transfer to oven. Bake until lightly toasted. Let cool before using.

ROASTED COCONUT CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Mix together the curry paste, oil, ginger and lemongrass with 2 tbs of the milk.
• Brush the chicken all over with this. Put the cicken in a roasting tin and pour over the remaining milk.
• Roast for 1 1/2 hours, basting occasionally with the coconut milk.
• Remove from the oven and leave to stand for 10 mins berfore carving.

PUMPKIN SOUP WITH COCONUT MILK

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Wrap sweet potato in aluminum foil; place on an oven-safe dish to catch drips.
• Bake in the preheated oven until soft, about 45 minutes.
• While the sweet potato is roasting, place pumpkin, carrots, and onions on a baking pan. Brush with olive oil; sprinkle with salt, allspice, and white pepper.
• Bake in the preheated oven until soft, 30 to 40 minutes.
• Peel the sweet potato and squash when cool enough to handle. Transfer to a large saucepan; add carrots, onions, nutmeg, cumin, coriander, ginger, salt, and pepper. Stir in chicken stock and coconut milk. Bring soup to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until fragrant, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Puree soup using an immersion blender until smooth.

ROASTED RED PEPPER COCONUT SOUP

Steps:

• Warm oil over medium heat in large stock pot.
• Add the onions, garlic, red pepper flakes, and salt and sauté for about 15 minutes, until the onions are very soft and translucent.
• Remove the pot from the heat and add the tomatoes, coconut milk, water, and the roasted red peppers.
• In batches in a blender, puree the soup until smooth.
• Return it to the soup pot and cook on medium heat until hot.
• Serve immediately.