What Goes Well With Coconut?

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What goes well with coconut? Learn the best ingredient pairings, meal ideas, and helpful tips on buying, storing, preparing, and availability.

First things first.

What Is A Coconut?

Coconuts cause a lot of confusion as to what they classify as. Their hard exterior shell has to be cracked open like a nut, but because they’re sweet, they’re eaten similarly to fruit. So is it a nut or a fruit?

Despite having the word ‘nut’ in its name. coconut is actually a fruit, not a nut.

Although coconuts are technically tree nuts, they’re classified as fruit because they lack many of the proteins that people with tree nut allergies are sensitive to. It didn’t help the confusion when the FDA added coconut to the list of tree nuts in 2006.

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When To Buy

Coconut is in season year-round with a peak supply from October through December. Peep the seasonal produce guide to see what else is in season right now.

What To Look For

Whole Coconuts

When buying whole coconuts, you can either buy brown coconuts (mature) or white coconuts (young/immature).

Look for coconuts that are heavy for their size, have no cracks or moldy spots, and sound full of liquid when shaken.

Coconut Products

For ease and wider availability, various coconut products are available year-round at supermarkets such as:

Shreds and flakes: Look for organic and unsweetened. Commercial shredded coconut contains sugar and preservatives to make it last longer than it should.
Smiles: dried coconut slices
Milk and cream: Widely available canned. The cream separates from the milk and rises to the top. To blend them back together, shake the can before you open it or leave them separated and scoop the cream off the top.
Water: Drained from the center cavity of the fruit and sold fresh from vendors at the beach or in cans and cartons at the supermarket. When buying storebought, look for products whos only ingredient is coconut water. Many contain added sugar and preservatives.
Oil: A great source of healthy fat and comes in extra virgin, virgin, and refined. Virgin has a light coconutty taste while refined has no taste at all. Look for organic sources.
Flour: An absorbant flour used in gluten-free baked goods like in these homemade peanut butter m&ms.

What Ingredients Go Well With Coconut?

VEGETABLES

cauliflower, chile peppers (red or green), cucumber
ginger, green beans
sweet potatoes

FRUIT

apricots
bananas, blackberries
cherries
dates
figs
grapefruit, guava
kiwi, kumquats
lemon, lime, lychee
mangoes
orange (esp juice)
papaya, passion fruit, pineapple

HERBS

basil
cilantro
lemongrass
mint

SPICES

allspice, black pepper
cardamom, chili powder, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin
nutmeg
salt (kosher)

NUTS & SEEDS

almonds
cashews
macadamia nuts
peanuts, pistachios
sesame seeds

NON-DAIRY/DAIRY

caramel, cashew cream
sour cream

PROTEINS

beef
chicken
eggs
fish
lamb
salmon, shellfish

PANTRY ITEMS

chocolate (dark or white)
green tea
honey
lentils
maple syrup
oats
rose water, rum (esp dark)
sugar: brown and white
vanilla, white wine vinegar

Popular Food Pairings That Go Well With Coconut

apricot + ginger + green tea + lemongrass + rice + vanilla
honey + lime
lemongrass + vanilla
orange + vanilla
beef + ginger

Recipe Ideas

Coconut is a common ingredient in Asian, Brazilian, Caribbean, Indian, Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai, and Vietnamese cuisines.

You’ll find coconut in many desserts such as candy, dairy-free ice cream, and custard as well as in curries, fruit salads, soups, and stews.

Hi! I'm Lindsey.

What Is A Coconut?

When To Buy