Milk Your Coconut Milk
Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at 1:00AM 
Well, I’ve done it. Here we are, week four of the pantry clean out, and not only have I cleared a swath of space in my cupboard, I’ve actually managed to keep a New Year’s resolution for the first time in memory (lord knows last year’s pledge of twice daily flossing didn’t pan out.) So cheers to this blog, without which, I may have never resolved a resolution.
This week I came upon a Spinach, Grape and Coconut Smoothie recipe that piqued my interest. The sweet, tangy and refreshing blend was a delicious discovery and an excellent use for an aging can of coconut milk.
But then there was the familiar problem: what to do with the remainder of the can? Typically I would take great pains to find an appropriately sized Tupperware and occupy valuable fridge space, only to toss the stuff weeks later. Not this time! I used up those leftovers left and right; here a few ways you can, too.
Coconut Milk for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner or Dessert!
Coconut Rice: Replace about ¼ of the rice cooking water with coconut milk and prepare as usual, according to package instructions. For example, if cooking 1 cup of rice, use 11/2 cups water and ½ cup coconut milk.
Thai Marinade for Chicken or Fish: Puree about a cup of coconut milk with a few cloves of garlic, a hunk of fresh ginger, a big handful of fresh cilantro leaves, a generous pinch of sugar, a pinch of salt and the juice of a lime in the blender. Marinate your choice of chicken or fish (a mild white fish like tilapia is nice) for an hour before cooking.
Tropical Bread Pudding: Replace half of the milk or cream in your favorite bread pudding recipe with coconut milk and add a dash of dark rum if you like!
Creamy Coconut Granita: Combine equal parts coconut milk and simple syrup and freeze in a shallow dish (I like to use a square cake pan). Every hour or so, scrape the frozen mixture from the edges, towards the center of the pan, until the mixture is flakey and well frozen.
Quick Coconut Curry
Serves 4
1 green Thai chile (or 2 serrano chiles), halved and seeded
1 large shallot, quartered
1 medium carrot, peeled and quartered
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 cup coconut milk
1 pound medium peeled, deveined shrimp
Salt
Lime wedges for serving
- Pulse the chile, shallot, carrot and ginger in the food processor until finely chopped.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat; add the vegetable mixture and cook stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Add the curry powder and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in the coconut milk, bring to a simmer, then add the shrimp and simmer until cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and serve over rice or glass noodles.
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