Tag Archives: How To Prepare

Belize, Farming, Fermentation, Food

Making Coconut Milk Cheese: Feta Style.

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Munchkin.Eating.BunHello!! We are back in action with more interesting things to show you because we have procured a camera. I finally bit the bullet and bought a new android phone…one of those blocky looking things with a camera (of course) and many things that do not concern me like the Android and the numerous applications. Gnome is messing around with it in his Gnomish way and actually having a lot of fun with the gadget!

Anyway, we have been making cheese out of coconut milk. Coconut milk, along with the cream, can be hand-squeezed out of grated coconut.

Grated Coconut.
Grated Coconut.

This liquid eventually separates into the thick, white cream at the top and the coconut milk at the bottom. We sell off our coconut cream to the local market as Belizeans like to cook their rice and beans in this.  For the Toledo readers, you can buy this from Green Supaul’s in Punta Gorda.

Coconut Cream For Sale.
Coconut Cream For Sale.

We kept the coconut milk until we had acquired a volume of about 2 gallons (8 litres) which was roughly equivalent to about 100 coconuts in total. The coconut milk is high in protein (similar to milk) and so we decided to try to make “cheese” out of it.

Coconut Milk in Pot.
Coconut Milk in Pot.

First of all, we placed the coconut milk in a stainless steel pot and boiled the milk until it produced curds which floated up to the surface. This takes about 30 minutes and you have to keep on stirring to prevent the curds from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

Coconut Curds on Surface of Boiled Coconut Milk.
Coconut Curds on Surface of Boiled Coconut Milk.

We allowed this to cool down for about two hours and then drained the curds into a cotton towel on a sieve (you can use cheese cloth…we just didn’t have any).

Draining Coconut Curd.
Draining Coconut Curd.

This was left to drain overnight and the liquid part, the whey, was collected in a basin under the dripping curds. At this point, it looks and tastes very similar to ricotta cheese and you can eat it at this point if you prefer. We gave the whey to our animals to drink.

Coconut Ricotta.
Coconut Ricotta.

The next morning, we wrapped the drained curd in a towel and placed it between two clean blocks of wood and applied a weight on it (5 gallon carboy containing wine). After 24 hours, we removed the weight.

Pressing Coconut Cheese.
Pressing Coconut Cheese.

To make this into feta-style cheese, we removed the coconut cheese from the cloth and placed it in a clean glass container. Next, we added about 1 cup of salt to dry salt it.

Dry Salting Coconut Feta.
Dry Salting Coconut Feta.
Coconut Feta, Unsalted.
Coconut Feta, Unsalted.
Coconut Feta Salted.
Coconut Feta, Salted.

This was done this morning and we will leave it to salt for three days. After that, we will cut the cheese into cubes and store them in brine.  We will let you know what it tastes like…so far so good.

Amusing, Belize, Farming, Food, Plants

We Have a Big Baby!

Together.Pointing We have our first big baby weighing in at a formidable 28lbs (14 kgs).

Jackfruit Baby.
Jackfruit Baby.

We have had our eyes on this little one for quite a few months and have affectionately called them our jackfruit “babies” because they resemble giant pods that look like they will burst open at any moment and something alive will pop out of them!

This is the first year that our jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) trees have produced so we are very pleased.  Jackfruit can weigh up to about 40 kgs so they give you a lot to eat.  We picked this one when it started emitting its characteristic musky fragrance and when the outer shell was pressed, the flesh behind it felt softer.

A word of warning…if you ever get a hold one of these babies, be prepared to spend at least one hour preparing it.  Use plenty of newspaper and coat your knives in oil to stop the latex from sticking onto the utensils.  Also, wearing rubber gloves (and goggles!) helps so that you are not too immersed in goo and latex.  Don’t let any of this worry you…it is definitely worth it!

To prepare, cut the jackfruit into quarters lengthwise.  Then cut out the mid-line pith, like so:

Opened Jackfruit.
Opened Jackfruit.

The jackfruit is mostly eaten for its delectable arils.  Take these out and pop out the seeds.  All parts of the jackfruit are edible so do not throw anything out except for the shell.  So this is what you get:

The Fruit:

Jackfruit Arils.
Jackfruit Arils.

The fruit can be eaten fresh.  Our variety is a firm type which we prefer.  There are softer varieties which tend to be moist and sweet and have the consistency of snot (still good, though).  You can freeze the fruit and eat in the frozen form.  They can be used to make desserts such as ice-cream or fruit pie. I really like my fruit savoury, so I am going to stuff some of these with minced pork. Yum!  There are plenty of recipes to be found on the Internet; just look up Malaysian, Indian, Ethiopian and Cambodian cuisine to name but a few.

The Seeds:

Jackfruit Seeds.
Jackfruit Seeds.

These can be boiled and eaten as a snack or used as a carbohydrate accompaniment to a meal.  They taste like breadnut (also Artocarpus sp.) or chestnuts (if you are from the temperate region).  The seeds just need to be boiled for about 20 to 30 minutes until tender and the shell comes off easily.

The Rest:

Jackfruit Shavings.
Jackfruit Shavings.

Don’t throw out the rest of the fruit!  A great deal of it is composed of unformed arils which are edible.  They tend to be less mature and may have more latex on them.  I use this part for cooking in stews, stir-frys and curries.  You can also dip them in batter and fry them in oil (like onion rings).  Again, this part of the fruit can be stored in the freezer.

We are going to be eating mostly jackfruit…