Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 3: Draining the Coconut Milk
• Part 2 of 3: Splitting the coconut into halves
• Part 3 of 3: Cleaning the coconut shell
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need

Empty coconut shells make an excellent house for hermit crab and can also be used for bird nests. In addition, it can serve as a festive decoration for any party, or simply be used to simulate the clatter of hooves using two halves of the shell. You can even make a bowl or a cup from the shell!

Steps

Part 1 of 3: Draining the Coconut Milk

1. 1 Find the eyes on the coconut. The coconut has three eyes, making it look like a bowling ball. They are simple spots on one end of the coconut. Two will be located side by side, and one differing slightly to the side. It is this distinctive peephole that represents the weak point that can be pierced to drain the milk.
   • Sometimes you need to peel off the fiber from the coconut to find the eyes. It's easy enough to do it with your hands or a small knife.The area around the eyes must be clean.
2. 2 Pierce the different eyelet with a knife, drill, or screwdriver. If your knife is narrow enough, then you can immediately pierce both the peephole and the pulp with it, reaching the liquid. If not, find a screwdriver or drill bit thin enough to crack open the coconut.
   • You may need to tap the back of a screwdriver or drill bit with a hammer. Just a few light strokes are enough.
   • If you hear a hissing suction sound while picking at the pulp, this is a good sign that the coconut is depressurizing. If you do not hear such a sound, or the air, on the contrary, will come out, then the coconut is probably missing.
3. 3 Drain the milk into a bowl, jar, or cup. Coconut milk is delicious, so don't throw it away. However, make sure it hasn't spoiled before mixing it with milk from another coconut, you don't want to spoil the entire volume of the drink. Here's how to test coconut milk:
   • It should be clear enough, almost like water;
   • There should be no cloudy clouds in it;
   • It shouldn't be slimy.

Part 2 of 3: Splitting the coconut into halves

1. 1 Find a thin line running down the center of the coconut. Every coconut has a natural center line, like the equator. It is on it that the coconut is easiest to break into two equal halves. Find this line before you start banging on the coconut.
   • To get the right coconut, you must place it in your non-dominant hand. The eyes should look down and the coconut halves should be on the sides.
2. 2 Hit the centerline of the coconut with the back of a large knife. Never hit a coconut with the sharpened side of your knife! Not only can you injure yourself, but you can also break the coconut into tiny pieces. Using the blunt side of a heavy knife blade will break the coconut in half.
   • It is great to use a butcher knife as it has a curvature on the back of the blade that matches the curvature of the surface of the coconut, allowing pressure to be evenly distributed. Again, the coconut eyes should be facing away from you.
3. 3 Rotate the coconut a quarter after each hit. Re-stab the coconut along the line. Continue twisting slightly and hitting the coconut along the line. Do this until you hear a ripping sound. As soon as the coconut starts to break apart, use less force on the knife to keep the coconut in two large halves.
   • Some coconuts only take a few hits. Others will need to tap the entire circle several times. There can be no mistake, just some coconuts break more easily than others.
   • Continue tapping and twisting the coconut until the crack extends around its entire circumference and splits the coconut in two.

Part 3 of 3: Cleaning the coconut shell

1. 1 Scrape the flesh out of the shell. Take a spoon and stick it between the flesh of the coconut and the shell bottom of the spoon to the shell. The pulp will come off in chunks. Not all the flesh can be scraped off (some coconuts are especially stubborn), in which case the next step will help.
   • Working with a spoon is not very good? The flesh of some coconuts is more difficult to clean than others. If this is the case, use a small vegetable peeler to crumble the pulp. Make a cut in the pulp and run the knife along the edge of the cut, as if you were peeling an orange.
   • Before throwing away the coconut pulp, consider storing it. They are delicious, especially chilled or in cocktails.
2. 2 Place two nutshell halves on a baking sheet in an oven preheated to 150 ° C for 1 to 2 hours. The time required depends on the size of the coconut and the thickness of the coconut. After that, the pulp will dry out, and you can pull it out in one piece.
   • People of Micronesia on the islands of Palau, Ponape, Chuuk, Caroline Islands, etc.Spread the halves of the coconuts in the sun for several days and wait until the flesh flakes off.
3. 3 Place the coconut halves upside down in a well-ventilated area. Give them a few days (up to a week) for final drying and hardening. Increasing the drying time makes it easier to use the coconut for crafts or bowls / cups.
   • Coconut shells can be a great decoration for a room. Even if there are remnants of pulp in it, they will dry out during the time the coconut is used as decoration.

Tips

• Using a hacksaw is another method of cutting a coconut in half. However, this method is not easy and can be dangerous as the hacksaw slips off the round nut. Cut the coconut in small sections in a circle. Don't try to cut the coconut in one go. Saw shallowly until you reach the pulp, turn the coconut and continue to cut, similar to opening a can with an old can opener.
• Using a 90cm bench or heavy chair, make a coconut splitting tool by attaching a chisel through the two drilled holes. Make one hole near the chisel head and the other at the end of the handle. It is important to make the tool durable. Use 6mm hex bolts, place a split washer under the head of the bolt and thread through the hole in the chisel and in the bench or chair. Replace the split washer and tighten the bolt with the lock nut. If you cannot find a lock nut, two nuts can be used. Tighten the first nut first and then the second to lock the first.
• When splitting a coconut in half, take your time. Start working at a 22-degree angle to the edge of the coconut and scrape it gently. Let the white flesh appear. The idea is to scrape the nut to the pulp with 1-2 movements towards you, turn it and continue scrubbing.
• To make a coconut scraper, buy a sturdy 5 cm wide concrete chisel from a tool store. Use a file or grinder to round the corners. Place the chisel in a vise and use a hacksaw to cut the grooves along the working edge of the chisel at a distance of 3 mm from each other, since you will only be scraping the nut with the sharp teeth of the tool you made. Take a file and sharpen each tooth. You now have a great scraper.

Warnings

• Be careful when working with sharp tools such as knives.

What do you need

• Big knife
• Small knife, screwdriver or drill
• Bowl (for milk)
• Baking tray (to dry)
• A spoon