• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Nitha Kitchen
  • Home
  • Recipe Index
  • Video Recipes
  • DIY & How-To’s
    • Homemade
    • Gardening
    • Kitchen Basics
  • About the Author
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

You are here: Home / Homemade / How to Shred Coconut and Storing Tips

How to Shred Coconut and Storing Tips

April 4, 2012 By Sangeetha Priya 4 Comments

How to Shred Coconut From Scratch and Storing Tips
How to Shred Coconut

I usually buy whole fresh coconuts from Indian grocery store (We can break there and check the quality before buying it). I prefer breaking at home so i choose better quality coconut. This post in details talks about How to buy Fresh coconut, how to shred coconut and how to store shredded coconut for later use. I bought this coconut scrapper/shredder from Chennai (refer picture below), which sticks to the counter top and have been using it for more than 8 years the same scraper without any hassle.

I buy 2 or 3 whole coconuts at a time, shred and store like shown in pictures and video. Being a farmer family the coconuts we choose from store never goes bad also when I go with friends for purchase I do pick coconuts for them as well. So with my coconut handling experience I have shared several tips hope its useful for beginners. The store buy shredded coconut flakes packs are not sufficient for me since I use more coconut in my cooking. Also each whole coconut is $1 to $1.5, you get both coconut water plus flesh and if you choose the big ones you get extra flakes. 1 coconut is more than enough for a week use.

How to Shred Coconut From Scratch and Storing Tips
How to Shred Coconut

If you don’t have the scraper don’t worry buy the fresh coconut, chop the flesh in to small cube like pieces using knife (be careful while doing and don’t rush it up) and pulse them in Mixer/Mixie/food processor. The one ground in food processor looks little big chunks, its good to extract coconut milk and for gravies which again grind it with other masala. But when you add it for poriyal you feel bit large chunks while eating. They are not so perfect as shredded in video shown below but its a better idea if you don’t have coconut scraper at home.

Also in the Video I have shown to remove the first grated coconut and keep separately since the one close to inner shell will give brown coconut flakes which I always use for making coconut milk and discard the coconut meat after that. But in some coconut you may not see big chunks of brown layers (if the coconut is tender and so fresh). In that case do shred everything , use and store in a same container.

How to choose a Fresh Coconut

  1. Do eyeball and choose the bigger/heavier one by comparing with others when they are priced as $$ for each coconut :-).
  2. If both are of same size do weigh by hand and pick the heavier one. The logic here is that a heavier coconut likely has more coconut water inside hence more likely to be freshest of the two.
  3. Its better to buy coconut with fiber at the back (they leave coconuts with triangle shape fiber to stay fresh). But its not the case in my place if so follow other tips listed below.
  4. If there is no triangle shaped fiber ie kudumi in Tamil (will attach a picture soon) at the back then you can see 3 eyes in that place.
  5. Check the three eyes of the coconut , it has to be healthy and if it has mold ie black or green in color choose a different one.
  6. Pick a good brown color or white shelled coconut and not dark brown or black shelled coconut with molds.
  7. Also if it has light cracks here and there or it smells bad don’t buy it.
  8. Next shake the coconut, if its heavy and you hear water sloshing noise then its a good coconut.
  9. If it has less water or you can’t hear or feel it has water inside don’t buy it.
  10. When you shake the available coconuts in store do choose coconut s that has a lot of coconut water inside.
  11. Lots of coconut water is a good indication that the coconut is fresh.

How to Shred Coconut

  • Hold the coconut in one hand over the scraper, in another hand rotate the handle clockwise, while rotating always make sure the sharp blades are over coconut flush.
  • This will shred a coconut in 5 minutes.
  • If you see the coconut flush is brown, the one which sticks with the shell looks brown or dark brown.
  • Immediately do remove the pure white shredded flesh to an container and then continue shredding the dark layers.
  • The white flush i keep it to add in curries and stir fries whereas the dark brown layer i use it just to extract coconut milk and use it accordingly.
  • Do refer video where i have explained clearly each steps.
  • Pack them separately (white and brown flush) in zip lock or air tight container, then freeze it.
  • This stays fresh several months if handled properly. Once you take out for cooking don’t forget to put the remaining back in freezer.

Tips

  1. While shredding some coconut come off from the hard shell ie the whole flush if they are so tender they come off like that, If it happens do separately store them in a zip lock and use them to make coconut milk as any dish calls for (refer recipe ideas at the end of the post).
  2. Or as said earlier pulse in the mixer or mixie, store excess in freezer and use it for poriyal or curry wherever you need.
  3. If you bought fresh whole coconuts from store do refrigerate till you use.
  4. To use the frozen shredded coconut, keep the lid based container in room temperature for 5 minutes. Later take the necessary coconut and store the remaining back in freezer.
  5. Of stored in Ziploc can take immediately when it’s out from freezer, just add it is to warm stir fry.
  6. For chutney do thaw or use warm water while grinding to get the chutney perfect.
  7. The whole coconut can be refrigerated for a week once you purchase from the store. Once you break separate water and coconut meat. You can freeze the meat with shell in Ziploc as it is or shred and store. For cooking it is easy if you shred and store otherwise you need extra time to thaw and use.
How to Shred Coconut

Also a small handy coconut scraper is available (will post the image soon) in market you can use that too but i feel a bit hard to scrap in it (refer below picture).

Here in the below picture I have showed coconut cupcakes at the back drop where I used fresh homemade coconut milk in it.   For Recipes do hover the links provided below.  

How to Shred Coconut From Scratch and Storing Tips
How to Shred Coconut
  • Eggless Coconut Cupcakes Recipe HERE and few more coconut based recipes
  • Coconut Filled Modaks | Thengai Poorana Kozhukattai HERE
  • Plain Salna | Parotta Chalna HERE
  • Arisi Thengaai Payasam | Coconut Kheer -> HERE
  • Eggless Thengai Bun | Bakery style Coconut Bun –> HERE
  • South Indian Sweet Somas — HERE
  • Classic Idiyappam | Sandhagai –> HERE
  • Thevaiyam/ Thevaiyal/Sweet Rice Puttu — HERE
  • Paal Kozhukattai and Ellu Pooranam –> HERE
  • Karamani Kuzhambu –> HERE
  • Mawa Gujiya –> HERE
  • Basbousa — HERE
  • Bananas in coconut milk (Thai Dessert) — HERE
Lunch Served with
Lima Beans Stir Fry / Mochai Poriyal using freshly shredded Coconut
PalaKottai Kaara Kuzhambu
Vendakkai Mor Kuzhambu
Carrot Peanut Salad
Boiled Rice
Butter and Appalam

Video Tutorial

How to Shred Coconut

Post You May Like:

Eggless American Snowman Cookies
Mango Custard Ice Cream Video Recipe
Peanut Chikki Kadala Mittai Groundnut Brittle

Filed Under: Homemade, Video Recipes Tagged With: all about coconut, and learn to shred them at home using the coconut scrapper, coconut flakes from scratch, coconut scraping techiques, coconut water benefits, diy coconut flakes, easy ways to shred coconut, Homemade, how long the fresh coconut is stored, how to break fresh coconut, how to buy fresh coconut, how to easily break fresh coconut, how to fresh coconut, how to grate coconut, how to grate shred coconut meat, how to keep grated coconut fresh, how to make desicated coconut, how to make freshly grated coconut, how to make shredded coconut from scratch, how to remove fiber from fresh coconut, how to remove hard shell of coconut, how to scrap coconut at home, how to scrap coconut at home with shell, how to scrap fresh coconut with shell, how to shred coconut, how to shred fresh coconut, how to use anjali coconut shredder scraper video demo, how to use coconut scraper with vacuum base, how to use coconut water, how to use whole coconut, Indian cooking, learn to buy good quality coconut, learn to buy good quality coconut and learn to shred them at home using the coconut scrapper, learn to grate fresh coconut, Nitha Kitchen, shred fresh coconut, tabakh coconut peeler ideas, tips to buy fresh coconut, tips to grate, tips to store fresh coconut at home, video tutorial to shred coconut using scaper

Archives

Previous Post: « Kongunadu Uppu Paruppu Recipe
Next Post: Kambu Koozh | Bajra Porridge | கம்பங்கூழ் »

Reader Interactions

Trackbacks

  1. Murungai Keerai Poriyal Drumstick (Moringa) Leaves Stir Fry – Nitha Kitchen says:
    June 25, 2021 at 9:28 am

    […] Powder – 1/4tspMustard seeds – 1tspSambar Powder/Whole Red Chili – 1tsp/2 NumbersShredded Coconut – 1/4 […]

    Reply
  2. Vegan Mango Overnight Oats With Coconut Milk | Nitha Kitchen says:
    June 11, 2021 at 6:14 pm

    […] We being a farmer family use lot of coconuts in today’s cooking. After coming to US , the one I badly miss is tender coconut water and fresh coconuts from our farm. Somehow I satisfied myself with the whole coconuts available in Indian stores. Also I never bought frozen coconut shreds from stores. Whenever I go for groceries I do buy minimum 5 coconuts and use them accordingly. If you are looking for tips to buy and use fresh coconuts, I do have a separate post do check it out HERE. […]

    Reply
  3. Dry Garlic Chutney Powder Recipe | Nitha Kitchen says:
    February 28, 2021 at 9:48 pm

    […] How to choose Fresh Coconut & how to Shred & Store […]

    Reply
  4. Black Eyed Peas Savory Sundal Karamani Sundal with Sundal Podi says:
    October 19, 2020 at 9:51 pm

    […] post is third to that series. It’s an interesting sundal with homemade fresh sundal podi and freshly grated coconut. I remember the old sundal posts in 2012 which I started as a series and posted 9 days continuously […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Categories

Random Posts

Kolhapuri Chicken Curry Recipe

Lemon Ginger Rasam Soup Video Recipe

Lemon Ginger Rasam Video Recipe

Tiramisu Sponge Cake with Mascarpone Cheese Frosting

Eggless Crescent Sugar Cookies Kourabiethes Recipe

Rasgulla Recipe From Scratch

Easter Basket Cupcakes | Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Butter Cream Frosting

Follow us :-)

Nitha's Kitchen

Archives

nithakitchen

Sangeetha Priya
Our holiday meal can't be better than this 😊
❄️ Salmon Tawa shallow Fry
❄️ Mushroom Biryani
❄️ Peas Salna
❄️ Onion Cucumber Raita
❄️ Boiled Egg and
❄️ Oru Avocado Chapati

...
..
.
#nooutdooractivities #fallisgone #winterstories #netflixandchill #holidaymovies #holidayfun #holidaymeals #biriyaniisbae #biriyani #mushroombiryani #fishfry #salmon #salna
#amazonprimemovies #fullkattu #nithakitchen
#nithakitchenrecipes #thanksgivingbreak #thanksgiving #kurma #salmonlover #tentkottadiaries #walkwithchennai #walkwithindia #indianfood #indianrecipe #streetfoodindia #mumbaifoodie #biriyanilove #biryani
I wanted to elaborate our Pongal spread but making I wanted to elaborate our Pongal spread but making it short...I know it's already Mattu Pongal 😊
🎑 Nattu Chakkarai Pongal
🎑 Adhirasam
🎑 Kai Murukku ( made it after ages)
🎑 Manjal aka Ven Pongal ☺️ with 
🎑 Coconut Chutney
🎑 Air Fryer Vadai
🎑 Avara Kottai ( garden yield)
🎑 Carrot Beans Poriyal
🎑 Uppu Paruppu
🎑 Peerkangaai Sambar (frozen garden yield)
🎑 Paruppu Rasam
🎑 Pasi Payir Kuzhambu
🎑 Kerala Matta Rice
🎑 Karumbu and
🎑 Our Pongal Panai
...
..
.
Use search option to find the recipes in blog @nithakitchen

#nithakitchen #rayofhope #southindianlunch #pongal #mattupongal #vasalpongal #proudbeingafarmer #farmerbybirth #tamilfood #tamilyshares #tamilfoodblogger #homemade #adhirasam #indianinusa #walkwithindia #walkwithchennai #chakkaraipongal #pongal #thefeedfeed @walkwithindia_ @foodtalkchennai @itz_chennai @yumbangalore #foodiesofchennai #indianinusa #engaveetusamayal #indianfoodbloggers #southindianfood #neivedhyam #traditionalrecipe @wahhindia @wahhchennai @wahhblr @chennaifoodcommunity @foodtalk_chennai @foodtalkindia @foodnetwork @walkwithchennai #pongalfestival #americanfoodblogger #airfryersnacks
We were lucky to see newborn calves during our Ind We were lucky to see newborn calves during our India trips and my son named the last New born in our farm during our presence as "Lakshmi". Since then In each and every chat he asks thatha patti about Lakshmi. Yeah for us Vasal Pongal and Mattu Pongal are so so important and the farm animals are among our family.. I don't have any Mattu Pongal celebration pictures but my memory does 😊
With loads of fond memories sharing Our Pongal lunch on Mattu Pongal day 😊
This time no rice Pongal, yup used Thinai millet for sweet and Ven Pongal 
🎑 Adhirasam
🎑 Thinai Chakkara Pongal
🎑 Thinai Ven Pongal
🎑 Medhu Vadai
🎑 Lemon Rice
🎑 Yellow Peas Sundal
🎑 Kathirikkai Pirattal
🎑 Long Beas Poriyal (from garden to freezer in summer)
🎑 Lauki Surakkai Sambar (from garden to freezer in summer)
🎑 Pasi Payir Kuzhambu
🎑 Appalam with
🎑 Brown Rice (not in pic)
 
...
..
.
Use search option to find the recipes in blog @nithakitchen

#nithakitchen #rayofhope #southindianlunch #pongal #mattupongal #vasalpongal #proudbeingafarmer #farmerbybirth #tamilfood #tamilyshares #tamilfoodblogger #homemade #adhirasam #indianinusa #walkwithindia #walkwithchennai #milletpongal #thinaipongal #thefeedfeed @walkwithindia_ @foodtalkchennai @itz_chennai @yumbangalore #foodiesofchennai #indianinusa #engaveetusamayal #indianfoodbloggers #southindianfood #neivedhyam #traditionalrecipe @wahhindia @wahhchennai @wahhblr @chennaifoodcommunity @foodtalk_chennai @foodtalkindia @foodnetwork @walkwithchennai #pongalfestival
Hope you guys are doing good! Here is our Vinayaga Hope you guys are doing good! Here is our Vinayagar Chaturthi Celebration picture. For the festival we made 11 items (yes kids helped a lot). Those were half sweet and half savory kozhukattai varieties and used palm jaggery (Karupatti) as sweetener and also most of them were millet based...For the menu and other details do check the link provided in Insta bio...
..
.
#backafterthebreak @nithakitchen #nithakitchen #nithakitchenrecipes #kozhukattai #milletkozhukattai #kozhukattairecipe #southindianfood #modaks #modhagam #puranakozhukattai #pooranakozhukattai #vinayagarchathurthi #ganeshchaturthi #videorecipe #festivalseason #navaratri #navarathri #dussera
Follow on Instagram

Trending Now

  • Cassata Ice Cream Cake Video Recipe
  • Pachai Mochai Poriyal Avara Kottai Poriyal
  • vennai murukku butter muruku using instant rice flour
    Instant Rice Flour Butter Murukku Vennai Murukku Benne Chakli
  • Authentic Nattu Sakkarai Adhirasam Recipe
  • Aloo sabzi, aloo bhujiya, mogri sabzi , mongre sabzi, mooli sabzi, moongre sabzi, no onion and garlic recipe, phali sabzi, sengri sabzi, sengri, radish pod stir fry, winter special,Aloo, bhujiya, mogri, mongre, mooli, moongre, no onion and garlic recipe, phali, sabzi, sengri, stir fry, sengri aloo sabzi, moogre aloo sabzi, moongre aloo sabzi, radish pods recipe, radish pod recipe , radish pod recipe ideas, radish pods, what to do with radish pods, what to do with radish pod, mooli sabzi, aloo recipe, sengri recipe, moongre recipe, moogre recipe, mogri recipe, Nitha kitchen recipes
    Radish Seed Pods Potato Stir Fry | Mogri Aloo Sabzi

Vegetarian Curry/ Lentil Recipes

Peerkangai Masiyal Peerkangai Kadaiyal using Clay Pot

pachai mochai Avarai Pituku paruppu Kuzhambu

Pachai Mochai Piduku Uppu Paruppu Kuzhambu Recipe

See More;

Latest Pins!

Millet Recipes

Pearl Millet Dosa | Kambu Dosai | Bajri Dosa Version I

Every day we are running with Sandwich, Cereals, Pan Cakes, Waffles, Egg Scrambles and Desserts so n so...  How do we forget our ...

Read More

For More Posts -->

Appetizer and Snacks

kara boondi mixture video recipe

Kara Boondi Mixture | South Indian Traditional Mixture Video Recipe

Spinach Fatayer | Baked Savory Veg Pie Recipe | Middle East Bakes

See More;

Footer

my foodgawker gallery

Copyright© 2022 Nitha Kitchen All Rights Reserved