chances are you have tried coconut water. you may have even tried water kefir. maybe you think they are both great drinks but that is because you have never tried coconut water kefir. now we are talking
AMAZING DRINKS.
now let's be honest. the packaged coconut water available many places around the world isn't something to post about. and the water from coconuts bought in supermarkets far from where the coconuts grew may even be worse. but if you live in or are visiting coconut country then count your blessings.
we are most fortunate to have coconut trees on our land. the soil here is pure beach sand and the trees do fine as long as they get enough water. we could get far greater yields if we used fertilizer but we choose not to. the trees thank us for that by giving delicious coconuts with wonderfully sweet refreshing water. though there are special varieties of coconuts grown mainly for their water, our trees are not that type. we could pick them when they are tender and totally full of water but the only problem with that is the trees go on strike if we do. so we keep it nice and friendly and low-key. we give them water and they give us water back, no liquidity issues here, everybody is happy.
now to make the coconut water kefir, i go out and find some fallen coconuts with lots of water. everybody here when they pick up a coconut instinctively shakes it to find out how much water is inside.
so i have selected a couple of coconuts that should yield about half a liter or so water. that is enough to restart our dormant culture.
now to peel away the husks.
never peel a coconut totally naked. that is downright rude, show them a little respect. they are sensitive about revealing their private parts. just ask any coconut.
a couple of sharp taps with the chopper and then a quick blow to the midsection
will split the coconut right down the middle. i use a strainer to keep out any dust or fiber.
the coconuts go in the kitchen for another use, here i just need the water
to make the water kefir you need the starter culture, often called kefir grains. note that this is a different culture than the ones used with milk. i could write a whole chapter about how amazing water kefir is
but i am too busy making it to write about it.
the culture is alive so you need to feed it, since ours has been dormant for quite a while in addition to the coconut water. i am using organic raisins, a special variety of lime growing our our house and some organic cane jaggery.
you could get away with non-organic but it will deplete the culture sooner or later if you do.
pour the water in a glass jar, cut the lime in half, squeeze a little of the juice in the jar and drop it in. add the jaggery and give it a good stir to start dissolving it.
then add the raisins and culture
stir a little more
cover with a cloth tied tightly. this will ferment so air has to be able to pass in and out.
now the next step is the hardest part. you have to wait. depending on the temperature, the sweetness of the water and the potency of the culture it may take 1 1/2 to 3 days. your patience will be rewarded.
avoid FUD, keep the jar in a warm place but out of the sun and everything will be fine. just resign yourself to the fact that many things that take time are worth waiting for.
you can tell the fermentation is sufficient when you see the raisins and lime all bloated and at the top surrounded by bubbles.
with the raisins on top and the kefir grains on the bottom it is easy to separate them.
simply pour the water kefir into glasses using a strainer to collect the raisins but don't empty the jar.
empty the strainer saving the raisins to eat but discarding the lime, then empty the rest of the jar into a glass, collecting the kefir grains in the strainer. they can be used again and again and keep growing.
soon you will be sharing excess culture with your friends.
it is hard to describe the taste of this truly amazing drink but once
coconut water kefir has tickled your tongue i am sure you will double the recipe immediately. if you don't have access to endless amounts of coconut water you can cheat a little and dilute it with plain water, just compensate by adding more raisins, lime and jaggery. when you have made it a few times and are confident everything is working fine, if your coconut water is particularly sweet, drop the jaggery and reduce the raisins and for the ultimate results try using a clay jar.
as your culture grows, there is no need to use the full amount each time. try varying the added ingredients but save some culture in case a batch does not work out.