Living in the orient had lead me to adopt some methods that I would normally never use if I was in India. One such method is freezing coconut. Having lived in a land where fresh coconut is abundant and almost each and every household has at least a couple of coconut trees, it was a shock and disappointment for us when we found that we could no longer prepare our favorite coconut chutney to go with breakfast dishes.
The desiccated coconut found here was sweet and not fit for chutney. Our attempts to locate a coconut turned futile. After searching for it in the vegetable aisle in almost all the malls and the farmers market we would return home bitterly disappointed. Then one day when we were looking for something else, we saw a pack of coconut juice and on the carton was a beautiful picture of a coconut tree and a coconut. With renewed enthusiasm, we approached the girls in one of the counters and showed them the picture of the coconut and asked for it.
She took us to the fruits section and pointed to a shiny brown ‘object’ which has no resemblance to the Indian coconut. Here is what we found……
We picked up a couple of these and came home and had a good laugh. Many a times we had seen this in
the fruit aisle and thinking it was some oriental fruit didn’t even bother to find out what it was. Later I found out that these coconuts were not stocked up often especially in winter.So I always buy a couple of coconuts when they arrive and freeze them so that I have a ready stock whenever I need.
Since I don’t have the Traditional Indian grater to grate the coconut, I cut the coconut into small pieces and pulse it a couple of times in the mixer.[If you let it run for a long time, it becomes a paste]. Then transfer the ‘grated’ coconut into a container and push it into the freezer. I keep them in a couple of containers so that I use up one and then start with the other. Since we have to thaw the coconut before using, if it is in the same box, the change in temperature will reduce the shelf life of the coconut.
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2008 – Jackfruit Kheer
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Nice post. Many times I also face a problem for these coconuts, though I live in India. Here in Vadodara we get coconuts in all shops but still they are not fresh ones and turn out to be mostly stale. So I also pick a couple of coconuts from the Kerala or Tamil Shop. Grate them and freeze them.
wish you happy birthday pj
Even in India I still store grated coconut in the freezer as it saves on time so much.
Love
Sonia
Nice tip PJ.
Vardhini
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That fruit looks like Khopra…anyways nice method will come in handy for people who are always in a rush.
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Very useful post..
Useful and nice tip PJ..
useful post.. guess we do take our coconuts for granted..
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I also do the same thing here, since it comes handy all the time.
delicious dish..yummo..
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Aarthi
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Hmm for me the idea of stocking coconut is simply to beat the rush hours of urban living. so comes handy anyway :)I can understand your plight though, it is difficult to do without some thing we have been thriving on
Nice one PJ..it was interesting to read how it was in the Orient..:)
never need to freeze this..as I hardly use it..but yet it is a useful post..n hey did some one wish u a happy birthday?…well loads of wishes for it…have a blast:))
Yes its khopra, i.e. dry coconut. Good idea to freeze it 🙂
Another informative post from you PJ
We get coconuts here in the US, but as luck has it I usually end of buying a very mature one. So whenever I happen to buy coconut, freezing is exactly what I do too.
nice article.I keep grated coconut in this way,but consume within a week,if not the taste changes,I use the same method to keep coconut chutney too,it is easier to take small containers,one by one everyday
It looks like the dry coconut shell.:)
The coocnuts I get here are most of the time rotten. I almost gave up buying them and instead buy the frozen stuff. I don't need to grate it too.
Very informative. I have drafted a post on grated coconut but wait for another two days to post..
I'm a die-hard fan of coconut. Thks for the tip! Now I can keep my coconut for a longer time 🙂 Enjoy your weekend, dear!
Informative post,I do the same.
Its a pain in the backside but it is so totally worth it! I love to sprinkle fresh coconut on my curries.
I am pretty lazy when it comes to scraping the coconuts, so do it in bulk (cutting and then pulsing in the mixer) and freeze them. They stay fresh for about 2 months – that's the longest I have kept them.
I am pretty lazy when it comes to scraping the coconuts, so do it in bulk (cutting and then pulsing in the mixer) and freeze them. They stay fresh for about 2 months – that's the longest I have kept them.
Thats what I am searching for long..my coconut always becomes oily or dry if I kept it too long in the fridge. nice one
thank God, though i live in middle east, i get coconuts everyday!!! so, i dont freeze them!!!
USeful post for avoiding Morning Madness!!!