Opening a Coconut in 7 Simple Steps

July 14, 2011 By Leanne Vogel December 8, 2018

Whole coconuts are insanely cheap right now.

Until recently, I believed that if you didn’t have a machete at home, breaking open a coconut was next to impossible.

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Thankfully, I’ve landed on the easiest way to break open a coconut with the tools you have around your home and in 7 simple steps.

Y’all ready for this?

Step 1: Poke a hole in your coconut

There are 3 holes at the top of the coconut. One will be weaker than all the others. Poke each one with the tip of a sharp knife. When the knife inserts easily, you’ve found the weakest link! Poke a hole with your knife.

Step 2: Drain [and reserve] the coconut water

Flip the coconut over onto a cup or bowl and allow to drain. Reserve the water and whip up a batch of fresh electrolyte filled lemonade {1 cup coconut water, 1 cup filtered water, 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, pinch stevia}

Step 3: Place your coconut in the oven

Preheat your oven to 375F and place your coconut on a baking pan. Bake for 10 minutes, or until you see a crack developing, like this one.

Step 4: Wrap your coconut

Remove your coconut from the oven and allow to cool for a couple of moments. Then, wrap it in a tea towel and throw it into a black garbage bag.

Step 5: SMASH the life out of your coconut

Go outside to a front step or concrete area. Lift the coconut over your head and BASH it into the concrete. Do this a couple of times until you feel the pieces break, or until you feel your stress wash away from you. It’s a therapeutic experience ;)

If there are observers, open the bag to reveal the coconut pieces before you go back into the house. This will avoid awkward conversations with the neighbors later.

Step 6: Separate the shell from your dear coconut

Wedge a knife in between the flesh and the hard shell to separate the shell from the meat.

Step 7: Peel the fiber away from your coconut

You’ll be left with white meat covered in a light brown fiber. Peel away the fiber with a vegetable peeler, as you would a potato.

You’ve now successfully opened your first coconut. Dig in!

Or… wait for tomorrow’s recipe ;)

This entry was tagged: Coconut