Your Freezer Is The Key To Cracking Open Coconuts

While the average person may not be cracking coconuts open every day, it is definitely a useful skill to those who enjoy the tropical fruit in a smoothie or acai bowl and want to use fresh coconut at home. However, sometimes it may be a little tough to get a coconut open; tough enough that a hungry chef may just ignore the ingredient altogether. Do not fret, though, as there is a way to make the shell easier to crack.

Prep the coconut for cracking a few hours before by putting it in the freezer. Freezing the coconut causes the coconut meat (the white flesh on the inside) to separate from the shell and make it much easier to remove. The coconut water inside will also be frozen, creating a stress- and mess-free crack. Then, use the help of a screwdriver, a hammer, and a cutting board to crack open your coconut the safest way – the fruit will be ready for eating in no time.

Once the coconut is frozen, it's time to open it up. The easiest way to crack a coconut is to find its natural equator, which is the line in the center of the coconut. While a coconut can be broken with only bare hands, it is much easier when using some sort of tool. This can be the aforementioned screwdriver or hammer, as well as a meat mallet. When the coconut is split into two pieces, it is as simple as peeling away the shell and skin.

Instead of freezing the coconut, it can also be baked before opening in order to easily break it in two. After removing the meat of the coconut, the world is your oyster. One option is to shave or grate the fruit and then use the resulting coconut flakes or shredded coconut to incorporate into a delicious dessert, like a batch of chewy coconut chocolate chip cookies.