"coconut water" news and stories

Are you tempted to buy a whole coconut, but too timid to even think about cracking it open yourself?

I first tasted coconut water when I was in Indonesia. I was 22 and fresh out of college, traveling with some friends before accepting adulthood and entering the work world. That coconut water was sipped straight out of a young coconut and a spoon was provided so that we could scrape the tender flesh off the sides.

While O.N.E.'s Coconut Water isn't consumed straight out of a coconut, if I close my eyes while drinking, I can almost imagine I'm back in Bali, holding onto a coconut instead of a small, 11-ounce container. My sister Raina has similar associations, writing:

One of my favorite summer drinks is a thai young coconut that's been chilling in the fridge. You take a large knife or a machete and hack the thing open (it takes finesse if you don't want to lose a drop) pour out the nectar and scoop out the perfect white flesh. It is a messy and wonderful process that can't be thrown in your purse. O.N.E. Coconut water is a great substitute in a really portable package, although second best to the real thing. Coconut water is also a terrific summer treat because it is full of amino acids and very hydrating.

Unfortunately, neither of us loved the other flavors as much as we enjoyed the coconut. The Amazon Acai is good on initial sipping, but is a bit too sweet. I like the Coffee Berry Juice but Raina nearly spit it back out at me. And the Cashew Juice has a slightly bitter aftertaste. All that said, all of these juices would make good players in summery mixed drinks.

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When you hear the phrase "coconut milk," the image that might stick in your mind is the juice that is found inside the center of a coconut. At least, that is what most people assume that it is. Actually, the liquid endosperm inside a young coconut is known as coconut water. It is fat free and low in calories, but is a good source of potassium and other nutrients.

Coconut milk is made by pureeing a mixture of coconut meat and water, then straining it to remove some of the fat. A second straining will yield a lower fat coconut milk. Coconut cream is made in the same way as coconut milk, but it is made with a higher ratio of coconut to water. Sometimes, coconut cream will form on the top of canned coconut milk. The two are pretty much interchangeable in recipes, though they have slightly different consistencies. For the curious, some other drinks, such as almond milk, are made in the same way.

Cream of coconut is not the same as coconut cream. It is the creamy liquid often added to pina coladas (and various other drinks and dishes). Though it starts out as coconut cream, sugars and stabilizers are added to give it an especially creamy consistency and to make it more palate-pleasing in drinks and desserts.

I remember going to the Expo West trade show in Anaheim the last few years. It's a giant trade show for natural, whole and organic products. Unfortunately, I didn't get to go this year, but I did pop over to Epicurious' Daily Dish to find out what kinds of new products are on the horizon. One of them is coconut water.

Coconut water, not to be confused with coconut milk or coconut cream, is the liquid inside young, green coconuts that eventually gets absorbed into the coconut's flesh as it matures into those hard hairy things. Coconut water isn't of course, new, as people in the tropics have been drinking the stuff for years, but it is now being bottled and marketed as the new sports drink. Coconut water is naturally fat free, is very low in calories, and is very high in potassium and other electrolytes (just like Gatorade!).

[photo: maria brazil]