Boas Comidas

Glossário Culinário

Coconut

Ingrediente

Também chamado de
coconut palm fruit, shredded coconut, coconut milk

Coconut is the fruit of the coconut palm, with white, fatty, aromatic flesh plus the refreshing water of the green coconut. In the kitchen it moves from sweet to savory: it stars in cocadas and beijinhos, but also in moqueca, bobó and coconut rice.

Characteristics

Green coconut has thin flesh and lots of water; mature coconut has firm flesh that yields shredded coconut. At the market it comes fresh, shredded, flaked, toasted, dried and sweetened, plus coconut milk, coconut oil and coconut sugar. Fresh flesh is moister and more fragrant; bagged shredded coconut is practical and works well in cakes and fillings. Coconut milk lends creaminess and aroma to moquecas, bobós, soups and sweets.

Uses in the kitchen

In sweets, it goes into cocadas, beijinhos, quindins, chilled cakes, pavés, pies and pineapple fillings. In savory cooking, coconut milk is the base of moqueca, shrimp bobó, vatapá, soups and coconut rice. Toasted coconut finishes cakes and ice creams with crunch, and flakes decorate pies and pavés.

  • Cocadas, beijinhos, quindins and coconut cakes
  • Moqueca, bobó, vatapá and soups with coconut milk
  • Coconut rice and festive farofas
  • Toasted topping for cakes, pies and ice creams

Substitutions

Homemade coconut milk, blended from fresh flesh with warm water, replaces the store-bought kind with fresher flavor — and the store-bought kind saves the recipe with convenience. When fresh shredded coconut is missing, the bagged kind handles cakes and fillings. For creaminess in savory dishes, heavy cream or blended cashews can pinch-hit, but they change the signature flavor.

Fun facts

When picking a mature coconut, shake it by your ear: the more water sloshing inside, the fresher it is. To open, crack it on an edge until it splits and warm the flesh to release it from the shell with ease. Toasting shredded coconut in a dry skillet, stirring constantly, boosts the aroma — but it burns in seconds, so do not walk away. Leftover fresh coconut goes to the freezer in portions.

Recipes with coconut

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