Stupid question... getting inside a coconut?

[Matusalem]

No, not a knock, knock joke. Two part question:

What honestly is the best way to get inside a fresh coconut? Hit it with a hammer or what? I'm familiar with getting the leche/jugo out (with a drill) but if I want the actual inners? Sort of an impulse buy I grabbed a fresh (small) coconut while picking up my other, umm... lab materials (eventually I assume I'll be awarded a Nobel Prize).

Second (and this actually precedes the above question), is it practical to take the fruit out to infuse or flavor rum? I've seen and tasted several "coconut rums" over the years but tend to believe they were flavored via other means, i.e. chemistry or concentrated.

I'm not closed to the thought, but drilling a hole and filling the coconut with rum probably isn't practical for me... depending on storage after the fact. That and it's a baby of a coconut, I seriously doubt it would hold more than about 8oz.

Suggestions?

[Tiare]

If you man the brown ones found in the supermarkets, they are not fresh, they are actually in their last stage of maturity. Fresh nuts are green, then they turn yellow and finally brown and dry. Drill in two of the 3 eyes first and drain the water out in a bowl.
After draining the coconut juice, you can put the coconut in an oven, at about 350 (180° C) for 20 minutes. This will cause the meat to contract causing partial separation from the shell.
If the coconut is not green and you want to get even halves, hold the coconut side against a thin stream of tap water. Rotate the coconut so as to make the water create line all around the coconut. Turn the coconut several times. Then use a heavy knife to hit along this line. A few blows should crack the shell along the line drawn by the water.
Once the meat is out of the outer shell, a potato peeler works nicely to peel off the inner husk.
If nothing works you can wrap the coconut in a towel, then hit it with a hammer..

[Rum Runner]

Mat..You need to learn how to wield a Machete. It's the only painless way I know of to open up a green or mature one.

The locals here are masters at it.

My neighbour lady (who is 70 something) walked over one morning very animated (she speaks Spanish only) saying she wanted some of the green cocos hanging on one of my trees. I walked into my yard with my 12 inch Machete and promptly cut her a stalk. I carried them across the street for her and asked what she wanted them for...She said she was going to make "coco dulce " a local sweet. She then pulled out a 2 foot Machete and proceeded to disect the cocos in a way that would make a Forensic Patholigst blush.

She told me to come back the next day and collect my share. I walked back to my place with my little machete between my legs.

P. S. Tiare...You have a future in the Caribbean!!!!!

[Rum Runner]

And then to answer your question...I too am interested in infusing coconut from the fresh and dried stage. Often I find an artificial component in the flavor of most I have tried. In it's fresh state coconut meat is very mild and ephemeral...as is the water..Which makes for a great local drink with rum..Jeez..How did I get there?

[Edward Hamilton]

As Tiare pointed out there are many different stages in a coconut's life. Green coconuts, called water nuts in some places don't actually have much white coconut meat in them at all. As the coconut matures the water dries out and the white meat coalesces inside the brown nut. Once the outside of the coconut has turned brown, coconuts can be stored for months without doing anything to them. The coconuts Rum Runner's neighbor was after were nuts in which the white meat was still soft and not well-formed so as to be easily removed from the still-soft inner nut.

I usually have a few coconuts knocking around on the deck of my boat but let them dry out so I can remove the hardened white meat from the nut with a machete and a hammer. I like to bake the broken bits of the nut in the oven for about fifteen minutes with a little sea salt on them and eat the baked coconut as an appetizer with my first drink of the day.

In their green state the pithy outer shell is much more difficult to remove and most people simply cut the nut open without removing the outside covering of the nut.

[mcmachete]

What else can I be expected to say but: with a machete, of course.

And I had a Dominican GF once upon a time whose mother made an amazing coco dulce. It was so sweet, she'd just scoop it onto a big spoon instead of serving on a dish. But I digress...

Ed, I will have to try that sea salt idea of yours. I've always just baked them as they were, how does it differ?

Matusalem - I also enjoy a good coconut rum (I've always been partial to Don Lorenzo from the Bahamas, though it's been many years since I've had a bottle and cannot confirm if my fond memories are merited) and would love to try to infuse some of my own. If you attempt it, I hope you share your results.

[Tiare]

I`m also curious to know about the seasalt. Years ago i remember we roasted broken bits of coconut in the oven sometimes but didn`t use salt.
As Ed pointed out the water dries out the more mature the nut get and the flavor also changes.
I like the fresh green nuts best but rarely get to taste them. In Thailand i drank loads of fresh coconutwater and ate coconutjelly..yum.
BTW coconut jelly is the white meat not yet become hard but is jelly-like.
You can find fresh and prepared "coconut-drinks" wrapped in plastic in the fridge in the Thaishops here sometimes, but they often destroy them by adding sugar to the water.
Oh i love to talk about coconuts..i`m a rum, tikidrink, vanilla, coconut and sugarcanegirl. I really miss those green nuts..

[Hank Koestner]

I have seen some talented Islanders whack off the top of the coconut with a machete, then pour the rum inside. Rum and fresh coconut water is very good. I too, love all things coconut. There is nothing like eating the fresh meat out of one.

[RobertBurr]

Jane Barbancourt Coconut Rum is the best I've tried. Bought some in the islands, not sure which island, and was thoroughly impressed with the natural, well balanced flavor.

in South Florida you can buy coconut water in a standard soda can, some of it comes with bits of immature coconut floating in the drink. It's not uncommon to see a roadside stand selling coconuts with the top chopped off and a straw placed in ready for consumption right from the nut.

One of the best local tropical fruit stands in South Florida is on my self-guided tour of the countryside. Rob's Redland Riot, my fruity, tropical history tour leads you to 11 of my favorite places to get "goodies" while enjoying a leisurely drive through the Redland farming district, along with a few notes about local history.

Robert Is Here Fruit Stand (http://www.redlandriot.com/RobertIsHere.html)