Tender Coconut Pudding

A tropical fiesta. Simple yet delicious.

While coconut as such is grown and widely used over the tropical countries, tender coconut is a phenomenon particularly experienced and relished by Keralites.

Young coconuts used for coconut water are called tender coconuts: when the coconut is still green, the inside is thin and tender, and is often eaten as a snack, but the main reason to pick the fruit at this stage is to drink its water. The water of a tender coconut is sweet (mild) with an aerated feel when cut fresh. Depending on its size a tender contains 300 to 1,000 ml of coconut water.

The meat in a young coconut is softer and more gelatinous than a mature coconut, so much so, that it is sometimes known as coconut jelly. When the coconut has ripened and the outer husk has turned brown, a few months later, it will fall from the palm of its own accord. At that time the endosperm has thickened and hardened, while the coconut water has become somewhat bitter.

When the coconut fruit is still green, the husk is very hard, but green coconuts only fall if they have been attacked by molds, etc. By the time the coconut naturally falls, the husk has become brown, the coir has become drier and softer, and the coconut is less likely to cause damage when it drops, although there have been instances of coconuts falling from palms and injuring people, and claims of some fatalities. This was the subject of a paper published in 1984 that won the Ig Nobel Prize in 2001. Falling coconut deaths are often used as a comparison to shark attacks; the claim is often made that a person is more likely to be killed by a falling coconut than by a shark, yet, there is no evidence of people ever being killed in this manner.

The cavity is filled with coconut water, which is sterile until opened. It also mixes easily with blood, so for these reasons it was used during World War II as an emergency transfusion liquid for patients who had lost a lot of blood.

It contains sugar, fiber, proteins, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, and provides an isotonic electrolyte balance, making it a highly nutritious food source. It is used as a refreshing drink throughout the humid tropics, and is also used in isotonic sports drinks.

Source: Wikipedia

Ingredients:

Tender coconut juice, fresh or canned - 1 No
Thick coconut milk extract - 2 cups

Fresh milk - 1 cup

Gelatine -

Nestle Sweetened Condensed Milk - 1No

Sugar - 2 Tbsp

Method:

Take the juice from the tender coconut in a pan and bring to a boil. Add gelatine, mix well and turn the heat off. Let cool to room temperature.

Extract the milk from the coconut. Use only the thick first milk.

In a blender, mix together coconut milk, fresh milk, boiled and cooled gelatine, condensed milk and sugar and beat well until everything is mixed together and a foam starts to build on the top.

Pour into pudding dish or individual serving dishes and chill until set.

Garnish with slices of tender coconut scrapped from the fruit.