How to save leftover coconut milk … kitchen helper
Have you used coconut milk in a recipe and the leftover amount is still lurking in the back of your fridge? Here’s how to save it.
Coconut milk seems to be one of those ingredients where you often don’t use the whole can in a recipe and, with the best of intentions, you put it in a screw top jar, put it in the fridge and then find it a few weeks later, only to toss it because it has spoiled.
So just how do you save leftover coconut milk?
Decant and refrigerate
Always pour coconut milk out of its original can and into another container. It will keep, in a clean screw top jar or sealed plastic container, for about a week in the fridge.
And if you don’t use it within a week? Freezing is the answer.
Freeze
The best way to freeze coconut milk is pour it into an ice cube tray, and once frozen, release the cubes from the tray and put them in a Ziploc bag. That way you can use only as much as your next recipe calls for. It will keep for about a month in the freezer.
Things to know about frozen coconut milk
- Coconut milk will separate when you freeze it, into coconut cream and coconut water. Just stir it when you thaw it to reconstitute.
- Frozen coconut milk may become a little grainy. If this matters to your recipe (say, if you’re adding it a curry and you don’t want it to look grainy) simply give it a buzz with a stick blender and it will become creamy again.
