HELLO LOVELY VIEWERS! Important Note: If you have questions about this video, you can post it here for the community to answer. But if you want to ask me, please get in touch via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or my website (all links are in the description above). If you leave questions in the comments I may not see them due to the large volume of comments I receive across the hundreds of videos on this channel. Thank you for watching!
Yeah, I have the coconut milk in plastic bag, I just bought one to blend with cucumber. Do we need to boil the coconut milk before pairing it with other ingredients?
My wife (Thai) says that there IS one difference between the regular and “for dessert” style of coconut milk. While the ingredients might be identical, traditionally the “for dessert” milk gets a special treatment called อบควันเทียน. This gives the dessert version a scent and is done by lighting a special candle over it and ‘smoking’ the milk! She says “Chao-Koh” brand makes the same two different versions and whether they’re actually using the traditional technique or not (likely not!) the “for dessert” box tastes like it... She just showed me the Thai ‘Aroy-D’ brand “for dessert” box that says in English “Scented Candle” on the front. I wonder if you’ve ever noticed this on any Thai products on Canadian shelves. We lived back in the States for 6+ years (a few in Seattle, not far from you!) and she remembers seeing this occasionally when shopping for ingredients. But it’s much more common in Thailand.
I knew it! I always thought there was a candle taste whenever I ate thai deserts with the coconut sauce. It really reminded me of candles! My friends thought I was tripping. Well now i know
I am from India and we use as much coconut as the Thai people in Indian cooking but I had a lot of problem to explain about coconuts in the US so now I will just show them your video !!
Even though its 5 years I find this is the most detailed comprehensive coconut milk information available. One thing to note is its not required to include polysorbate60 on food labels and the beloved arroyd still has it in products where its not indicated! So I for me organic is the only way to have a reasonable assurance that there is no hidden additives.I really enjoy Pailin's personality and approach, fun and interesting but also detailed thorough and accurate.
I tend to do one of 2 things depending on the situation: a) for dishes where that fresh coconut flavour is key: I keep frozen grated coconut in my freezer at all times (from my local South Asian grocery). I'll take some grated coconut and some lukewarm water, then stick that in the blender and process. Then I'll let it sit over a strainer until I've got all the fresh coconut milk I want! b) for dishes where it's a base, used more for the oil rather than the delicate flavous (eg. a curry) I'll just use coconut cream at the beginning of the dish instead of milk, so that I don't have to wait for the fat to separate (it's already separated in the can anyway), then when I need to add coconut milk in later, I'll dilute some of the liquid in the can with water until I have the consistency I want and use that instead. For this reason, when I'm buying coconut cream, I just look for the one with the highest fat / protein percentage. After a while you can tell by the weight of the can which ones are the ones you want. For the record, I live in a large city in Australia, and I have a South Asian ethnic background. We use fresh coconut in our cooking pretty frequently, which is why I always have it on hand =)
In elementary school here in Southern California, the cafeterias used to serve milk in sealed plastic bags, requiring the puncture of a straw in order to be consumed. I was reminded of this when you mentioned milk bags (:
Wonderful ! Your videos are probably the best I've seen. They're clear, detailed, comprehensive, without fillers or dumb stuff. Super professional ! Thanks !
I always buy frozen coconut milk imported from the Philippines when I go to the asian grocery store. The ingredients are simply coconut milk and water and when I cook with it, it separates perfectly.
I made a curry dish and found the carton coconut milk and now understand why the carton one tastes so much better and tastes so much fresh!!! Thank you so much.
I remember making coconut milk. As a child, my job was to scrape out the coconut. They 'told' me that it was because I was perfectly sized for the bench. Truth was, it's tedious & at times, not easy; especially if you are only 9-10 yrs old. But they were right about the bench. I was much more comfortable sitting there scraping away than adults were. NOTHING beats fresh made coconut milk! Best thing on earth. In your book, I found out why I'm lactose intolerant. Guess if you don't grow up with milk or milk products, it's a natural condition. Thanks for that information!! Love your book.
Pheesao Davis frankly, though many don't know it, it's a natural condition for most adults. Most adults don't retain the ability to digest milk products. It makes sense, when you think about it, since milk, milk production and milk consumption are designed for the nourishment of the young in a species. Your not growing up with it probably just makes that reality more acute in your body.
Haha, yeah I was that kid too, but I kind of enjoyed it. Now I think the squeezing part is the hardest and most tedious, but oh so worth it compared to the couple other extracting techniques I've tried.
I finally get to watch this, I’ll try to look for that Thai one. Growing up ,we have a coconut plant in our yard and it’s easier to buy the old coconut around, so we grate the coconut meat and make the milk ourselves.
Wish I had found your channel long ago. Your tips, knowledge and instructions have made a massive difference to my Thai cooking. My friends say they would rather be invited to Thai, at my house, rather than going to restaurants.
Coconut water when it comes directly from the coconut is sterile and it was used in emergencies in IV bags during the Korean conflict. I keep a couple of packages of coconut milk powder in my pantry in case of emergency and it has no casein in it. There are many brands on Amazon. Being vegan if I run out of soy milk and I keep shelf-stable soy milk but if I run out and I can't get anywhere because my caregiver isn't here then I would have to use some powdered in order to make my overnight oats for the next day. This is very important to me as I am diabetic so I must eat hearty oats and fruit at 2 to 3 p.m. and then supper and a snack.
Thank you for this video and the others in this series, I’m in Sweden and I’ve got no idea what Asian food products are good or not for various uses. So you’re immensely helpful, explaining everything so well!
I am from Vietnam, and I absolutely miss those milk bags lol. I used to go to the outdoor markets everyday, missing those days so much. The coconut milk is freshly made, and it tastes so so much better.... ❤️❤️❤️ love ya anyway
I absolutely love your idea of putting the coconut milk in a clear container. Yes, too many times I've experienced chunks of mold coming out of the container. Thank you!
Korp Khun Krup :-) Excellent video. I use Aroy-D for my Pena Colada mix and drinking some right now... There is one more that can be gotten at several grocery stores, named "Real Thai". Where Aroy-D has 60% Coconut Milk - Real Thai has 85%... Much heavier... However, like Aroy-D, Real Thai has no garbage ingredients :-) When I see stuff like "Grace" and other, I gag... Anyway, I generally drink a can per day or more... It's an important part of my diet and I never get tired of it... My Pena Colada Mix: 1 Can Coconut milk, 750 ml water, 200 ml Pressed Pineapple Juice, 1 Organic Banana, 1 Cup Organic Strawberries, 1 cup Organic Blueberries - Blend :-)
My step mum (Thai) showed me a method to create our own coconut milk. Using desiccated coconut, soak for a while (longer the better) and put a strong sieve over a pan or bowl and squish the liquid out. It's a bit of graft but it works :)
This is so informative. Enlightened by the information you gave away. As someone who’s willing to learn the abc’s of cooking, I would meticulously search every nook and cranny of the grocery store for that essential ingredient, depending on what dish I’m making, and that includes canned goods or in boxes or whatever, coconut milk no exception, because I want to have the authentic, if not, at least, very close to it, flavor of the dish I have in mind. I could spend a whole day in the supermarket haha! Anyway, thanks for this. Great job right there.
Agreed, I kept being disappointed with my curries made with the canned stuff. Then I tracked down the ones in the cartons on Amazon. Very reasonable price and has decent shelf life so I buy a like 12x250mL pack. Resulting dishes were so much better. The smaller size means i frequently use it in terms of # of cartons.
Hey Pailin, Great video. I never made coconut milk, but growing up as a child in Puerto Rico I used to make coconut candy from fresh coconuts and I really enjoyed the process. When I was in school in Puerto Rico from 1992-1997 they use to serve milk in little plastic bags with our lunch so your not the only one.
As someone who uses coconut milk a lot (thai curries!), I was skeptical about a 10+ minute video on this seemingly simple topic, but I still learned stuff!
I'm a Malaysian & yes we do use a lot of fresh & powdered coconut milk. Here we are used to buying it from milkbags whenever possible and unused anounts are frozen. For some reason, the quality of powdered coconut milk here is actually good & we tend to use it more often than ever. Furthermore the taste & texture doesnt chsnge no matter how many times you freeze & thaw it.
Milk bag! Yes I know what you are talking about! Actually I was just talking about milk bag with another friend from another country about it a few days ago! So cool to hear about it again!
I’m 30 yr old I know exactly what your talking about when you referred to milk bag I didn’t like it back when I was a kid. Growing up I know I’m lactose intolerant that’s why. In Thailand, there is actually กะทิหอมควันเทียม with candle aroma can throw off savory food nakrub. But I think you know
We have tried many different brands of coconut milk and Pailin, you are so right! The ARoy-D is the very best! it can spoil you, it is so good! We even put it on our cereal and have actually drank it, although it is a bit rich for drinking purposes. Thank you for doing this video, it was very informative and confirmed that we are on the right path.
Really enjoyed your videos, Pailin! I find substituting coconut milk with almond/cashew paste (whole blanched almonds/cashews and water blended in a blender or using a hand blender) works wonders in curry. It won’t substitute the coconut flavor, but it will substitute the creamy texture that coconut curry has. I think Indians actually do this in some types of curry.
I get the cartons of Arroyo D in 12-packs of 8.5 oz cartons on Amazon. I find it so convenient because I live alone and the larger cans have too much and I end up with waste. Previously I’d been using the canned Arroyo D. The cartons taste MUCH better IMO.
This was brilliant! Thank you. Also, I grew up in the New York and we didn't have milk in a bag. We had glass containers, boxes, plastic and that's it.
IMHO the higher the fact content, the better the coconut flavor. And if you refrigerate it with a loose cover, excess water will evaporate and you get coconut cream. So good.
When I was a kid in elementary school in southern California, we used milk bags! It took me a few tries to poke a straw into it without having the milk splash everywhere. Thank you for your video, my mom always argues with me about using coconut cream powder in Vietnamese curry vs milk (I prefer milk), so it's good to know which one is really better.
Love this as I bought a fresh coconut for the first time and didn’t know if I had a good one or what to do with the insides of it. I punched a hole in the eye with a heavy metal skewer and then drained it into a coffee filter so the water was nice and clear. Then I took the shell outside and bashed the hell out of it with a hammer inside a tea towel. Separated it out and cut off the brown skin off the inside meat.
US people usually aren't familiar w/ bagged milk (even though it's VERY common in Canada). I've normally stuck to Mae Ploy coconut cream (I actually didn't notice it said "cream" until just a few months ago), but sometimes Chaokoh. I've never seen the square 'tetrapaks' shown in any Asian markets in the US, but will certainly keep my eye out. I think one of the main things is to avoid "coconut cream" that's made for desserts and alcoholic drinks that are usually sweetened.
Many people asking for an anglicized brand name for the green carton milk. I just bought some at my local Asian supermarket and it is in fact Aroy-D ... same as what was written on cans. In this case however, ingredients are "Coconut Extract and water" so it would be what was described here. Exact same photo and colours as shown here also. It was not cheap.
Thank you. I learned a lot watching this video. I'm gaining more confidence in trying to make Thai food. I love it so much when I go out to get Thai food I spend a lot of money 💰
If you haven't tried "Native Forest Coconut Milk" you should give it a shot. It's the freshest and cleanest tasting canned coconut milk I've found. It's not as good as the UHT stuff, of course, but very good still.
Educational videos like this will make it much easier to understand the various ingredients you use. I would love to see one on the various noodles used, and their preparation. I find them confusing. Thanks so much.
Very informative video! I came in with zero knowledge about coconut types & now I have all my questions answered! Thank you for saving me from further research!
You are quite lucky nowadays that you can choose coconut milk from cartons or cans. During late 70's and early 80's while residing in the UK all that was available was coconut milk in the form of a dry ingredient, wax-like consistency hard and pressed in a block similar to butter. When you want to use it you need to cut it into chunks or grate it into slivers and dissolve it in hot water. And it was available in only chinese supermarket which were in London only. Since I was not living in London or visitted Lonodon that often, so I made my version of curry with milk and had done with it. There is sort of a joke photo of Chinese tourist drinking carton of coconut milk thinking it was coconut water and said it does taste that great!!!! :) Your video is very clear and precise and very informative for those "Foreigners" to understand the essentials Keep it coming. Looking forward to watch whatever you put up. Especially enjoy all the outtake, all the "OOPS" etc'
Hi Pai, Thank you so much for this guide on coconut milk. A lot of people have complained about the the Aroy-d product from Amazon being curdled/spoiled, and after doing a little research online it seems that there really is no consistency in the quality of the products irrespective of the brand. I am in the US so availability and store brands will differ from UK and Canada of course. I got several different Thai brands (the canned kind) and after making the curry paste from scratch I fried it in the coconut cream (from the top of the can). So far, I think the Chaokoh brand has proved to be the best from the ones I tried - one cant use the Iberia or Goya cans because I don't think they have any cream/fat on the top. Now, I am of Indian origin and so I know a thing or two about curries. :) I want to get the traditional taste of real coconut in my curries, but I don't want to have to grate and squeeze it out of real coconuts and I don't want curdled or expired products. So to help me in my quest for the ultimate coconut milk, I would like your opinion on choices made in this article I came across - www.sprinklesandseasalt.com/recipes/thai-cooking-at-home/the-best-canned-coconut-milk-for-thai-cooking/
I'm very sensitive to the spoiled coconut taste that my friends seem to not notice sometimes, probably cause I grew up with so many fresh coconuts lol. Chaokoh brand does tend to be pretty consistent and is always a decent good choice. My favorite (and most consistently fantastic) tends to be Mae Ploy brand coconut cream.
Very helpful video about selecting coconut milk. You deserve more than "thumbsup" I think many people can't tell if coconut milk (the beverage) in milk section isn't milk. Also, there's no such thing called "almond milk". Now, at least, I know which brand of coconut milk I should look up for. Thank so much =)
No such thing as almond milk? That's complete bullshit! Almond milk is made the same way as coconut milk ie the resulting liquid after pressing blanched, ground and soaked almonds. It was frequently used in cooking during the middle ages. By your reasoning there is no such thing as coconut milk either.
lockbow how do you make almond milk with out machine or blender? It's soaked almonds meaning you add water to it to liquefy and soften. Coconut milk the the fat from meat and juice of the coconut.
Hi Pailin The very thick one at 4:50, that wont seperate when boiled, is not homogenized but probably contains Xanthan gum. Xanthan gum is a powerful thickening agent wich is NOT destroyed by boiling. Its like agar agar just a lot stronger.
Very helpful. Thank you. I vacationed in Thailand about twenty-five years ago. Such a beautiful. country; great people. I remember that even the food from the street vendors was wonderful. Loved their fish soup.
Just in case someone is interested in such information: Aroy-D admitted, that they use Polysorbat60 (E435) in their boxed coconut milk. I'm a bit p-oed by that, because I used to buy these packs, too, and this substance is suspected to be carcinogenic ( what I try to avoid). Now they _have_ to declare their ingredients openly and label them correctly for the European market, but since that's not the case for the American market I thought that I'd talk about it here. There is an organic, additive-free boxed version from Aroy-D in 1l tetra packs, so you could have a look for that. The canned version is 60% coconut, 40%water, nothing else, and as far as I understand it the clumping is because of temperature differences during shipment and storage. When you let fairly warm water run over the (still closed) can, then shake it, everything mixes up quite nicely (and if you need a whole can of coconut milk you can just stir it and it'll eventually come together. Tastewise I agree with you. I think it's the canning process or material of the can, that changes it's taste (like every meal from a can has the same distinct, a bit metallic, a bit sharp overtone.
@@marilusfarmasi2515 There is nothing like 100% coconut in cans / tetra packs. The cans and the organic cartons contain 60% coconut, 40% water, the normal packages contain 70% coconut, water and E435.
Yes I bought just now from Amazon with the link she provided I am in US it shows it has polysorbitol 60 now I feel bad buying it I dint see organic one
Creamy Oat by Oatly (available at least in the UK) makes a very good substitute for coconut milk as well. I'm Thai and I use this as a substitute all the time.
U. S. here. My friend's mom who is from Thailand, in the past before Internet and could order products like this online, has always made her own homade coconut milk. Here's her simple recipe that she tought me. 1 cup unsweetened coconut shreds (from a bag in the baker's section. 2 cups warm water. Put in a belnder and blend it for about 2-3 minutes. Strain or not, up to you. She USUALLY did not but where she wanted a nice smooth consisitancy she would strain it. But for cooking,she never really strained it.
I think it might depend on the can brands in different countries, I get really nice coconut oil separation with the cans (all types of brands in Europe) But looking at the ingredients they only have coconut and water in them so it’s probably that added gum and stuff that’s binding the fat and water 🤗
I remember when our school switched from cartons to bags. Once you poked the bag with the straw, you couldn't set it down or the milk would start spraying out of the straw, so you have to drink it all at once.
No “milk bags” here, in Chicago. We have a lot of Asian grocery stores in this area, and I shop at a variety, only canned coconut milk available. I have drank canned coconut many times in my life...love the rich “gloopy” taste.
Hm. I always find it easier to break the canned ones as long as they don't have emulsifiers or stabilisiers in them, but only coconut and water (with xanthan gum or others it's just not possible anymore). And I don't shake it - as you said, the fat flows to the top, meaning that the solid white stuff is higher in fat and will consequently separate more easily. Also the more watery liquid at the bottom can be used to thin out the sauce, which is perfeect. The aroy-d from the pack does taste better though. But it's also much more expensive than the supermarket brands in Germany.
You should make a video about all the condiments on the table at Thai restaurants and how to make them. There is so many types of chilies and sauces, flakes etc....
Love your videos. Didn't realise you had FB and Insta. Signed up now. Your abc videos of the thai dishes and well explained steps and insights are golden for a Scandinavian, loooooong time away from Thailand and those areas. Authentic Thai food *can* be found here, but most of it is augmented to fit the Danish taste tradition. Understandable, but also too bad for those who would like to get hit by the real tastes (and heat). So again, thank you :)
I absolutely love your videos you've definitely changed my perspective on cooking it's more about enjoyment instead of pure survival now, so thank you.
Hello, I live in Ontario and buy the AROY-D brand of Coconut Milk (but it comes in bilingual cartons). It's also in a green carton. The ingredients list is: Coconut Extract 60% and Water. Is that the same product you're using? BTW I enjoy your videos and my family enjoys my attempts to replicate your recipes. Maybe a little milder at times, but always delicious.
This is easily one of the most helpful cooking videos I've seen in a long time. This will help improve a lot of my cooking. Thank you so much for making this. ^_^
I do like the fresh coconut milk in carton better than can, I buy at local Asian market about 25 minutes from my house. But I tired a organic canned coconut milk from shoprite and it actually was great! Found in organic section and it separated when I cooked curry with it! Oh and i am from New Jersey so these are some tips for anyone near me 🙂
This is such a great informative video, very helpful especially you pointed out the powdered coconut actually contains milk protein which I think most people do not realized! Thanks for the great video again
This was the case in local store, but I did find dairy-free coconut milk/cream powder on Amazon. I was going to try it, but now after learning it's ok to freeze coconut milk I may not have to.
HELLO LOVELY VIEWERS! Important Note:
If you have questions about this video, you can post it here for the community to answer. But if you want to ask me, please get in touch via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or my website (all links are in the description above). If you leave questions in the comments I may not see them due to the large volume of comments I receive across the hundreds of videos on this channel.
Thank you for watching!
Yeah, I have the coconut milk in plastic bag, I just bought one to blend with cucumber. Do we need to boil the coconut milk before pairing it with other ingredients?
Mq
What about those of us who does not have Facebook or any of the other crap-sites? 😃
My wife (Thai) says that there IS one difference between the regular and “for dessert” style of coconut milk. While the ingredients might be identical, traditionally the “for dessert” milk gets a special treatment called อบควันเทียน. This gives the dessert version a scent and is done by lighting a special candle over it and ‘smoking’ the milk!
She says “Chao-Koh” brand makes the same two different versions and whether they’re actually using the traditional technique or not (likely not!) the “for dessert” box tastes like it...
She just showed me the Thai ‘Aroy-D’ brand “for dessert” box that says in English “Scented Candle” on the front. I wonder if you’ve ever noticed this on any Thai products on Canadian shelves.
We lived back in the States for 6+ years (a few in Seattle, not far from you!) and she remembers seeing this occasionally when shopping for ingredients.
But it’s much more common in Thailand.
That's fascinating! Thanks!
Thank you for this information, clears the air about the confusion!
I love the cozy weather in Seattle!!!
I knew it! I always thought there was a candle taste whenever I ate thai deserts with the coconut sauce. It really reminded me of candles! My friends thought I was tripping. Well now i know
Wow, I've been living a lie! Like Pailin, I always thought these "dessert" labels were identical products in the can.
I am from India and we use as much coconut as the Thai people in Indian cooking but I had a lot of problem to explain about coconuts in the US so now I will just show them your video !!
Even though its 5 years I find this is the most detailed comprehensive coconut milk information available. One thing to note is its not required to include polysorbate60 on food labels and the beloved arroyd still has it in products where its not indicated! So I for me organic is the only way to have a reasonable assurance that there is no hidden additives.I really enjoy Pailin's personality and approach, fun and interesting but also detailed thorough and accurate.
I tend to do one of 2 things depending on the situation:
a) for dishes where that fresh coconut flavour is key: I keep frozen grated coconut in my freezer at all times (from my local South Asian grocery). I'll take some grated coconut and some lukewarm water, then stick that in the blender and process. Then I'll let it sit over a strainer until I've got all the fresh coconut milk I want!
b) for dishes where it's a base, used more for the oil rather than the delicate flavous (eg. a curry) I'll just use coconut cream at the beginning of the dish instead of milk, so that I don't have to wait for the fat to separate (it's already separated in the can anyway), then when I need to add coconut milk in later, I'll dilute some of the liquid in the can with water until I have the consistency I want and use that instead. For this reason, when I'm buying coconut cream, I just look for the one with the highest fat / protein percentage. After a while you can tell by the weight of the can which ones are the ones you want.
For the record, I live in a large city in Australia, and I have a South Asian ethnic background. We use fresh coconut in our cooking pretty frequently, which is why I always have it on hand =)
In elementary school here in Southern California, the cafeterias used to serve milk in sealed plastic bags, requiring the puncture of a straw in order to be consumed. I was reminded of this when you mentioned milk bags (:
Wonderful ! Your videos are probably the best I've seen. They're clear, detailed, comprehensive, without fillers or dumb stuff.
Super professional !
Thanks !
I always buy frozen coconut milk imported from the Philippines when I go to the asian grocery store. The ingredients are simply coconut milk and water and when I cook with it, it separates perfectly.
I made a curry dish and found the carton coconut milk and now understand why the carton one tastes so much better and tastes so much fresh!!! Thank you so much.
I’ve never tried the UHT ones thinking that canned was better! Will definitely try it out
I remember making coconut milk. As a child, my job was to scrape out the coconut. They 'told' me that it was because I was perfectly sized for the bench. Truth was, it's tedious & at times, not easy; especially if you are only 9-10 yrs old. But they were right about the bench. I was much more comfortable sitting there scraping away than adults were. NOTHING beats fresh made coconut milk! Best thing on earth. In your book, I found out why I'm lactose intolerant. Guess if you don't grow up with milk or milk products, it's a natural condition. Thanks for that information!! Love your book.
Pheesao Davis frankly, though many don't know it, it's a natural condition for most adults. Most adults don't retain the ability to digest milk products.
It makes sense, when you think about it, since milk, milk production and milk consumption are designed for the nourishment of the young in a species.
Your not growing up with it probably just makes that reality more acute in your body.
Haha, yeah I was that kid too, but I kind of enjoyed it. Now I think the squeezing part is the hardest and most tedious, but oh so worth it compared to the couple other extracting techniques I've tried.
I finally get to watch this, I’ll try to look for that Thai one. Growing up ,we have a coconut plant in our yard and it’s easier to buy the old coconut around, so we grate the coconut meat and make the milk ourselves.
Wish I had found your channel long ago. Your tips, knowledge and instructions have made a massive difference to my Thai cooking. My friends say they would rather be invited to Thai, at my house, rather than going to restaurants.
Coconut water when it comes directly from the coconut is sterile and it was used in emergencies in IV bags during the Korean conflict. I keep a couple of packages of coconut milk powder in my pantry in case of emergency and it has no casein in it. There are many brands on Amazon. Being vegan if I run out of soy milk and I keep shelf-stable soy milk but if I run out and I can't get anywhere because my caregiver isn't here then I would have to use some powdered in order to make my overnight oats for the next day. This is very important to me as I am diabetic so I must eat hearty oats and fruit at 2 to 3 p.m. and then supper and a snack.
Yeah you should do keto instead of vegan, carbs are pure sugar
I truly appreciate the effort you put in to teaching us Thai cooking. And especially also about how to source good ingredients. Thank you!
Thanks so much! :)
Thank you for this video and the others in this series, I’m in Sweden and I’ve got no idea what Asian food products are good or not for various uses. So you’re immensely helpful, explaining everything so well!
Yes!! I grew up with milk bags in Europe. No one ever knows what I'm talking about! Thanks for the great video!
Thanks for clarified for those that never used or test coconuts milk and your show is very knowledgeable
I am from Vietnam, and I absolutely miss those milk bags lol. I used to go to the outdoor markets everyday, missing those days so much. The coconut milk is freshly made, and it tastes so so much better.... ❤️❤️❤️ love ya anyway
I love the old school way. Exactly how we do it in Papua New Guinea (South Pacific).
I absolutely love your idea of putting the coconut milk in a clear container. Yes, too many times I've experienced chunks of mold coming out of the container. Thank you!
I'm using coconut milk almost everyday and I think it's flavoured
so grateful after watching this video, we are still using the freshest which is the old school way of producing coconut milk, from the whole coconut.
Korp Khun Krup :-) Excellent video. I use Aroy-D for my Pena Colada mix and drinking some right now... There is one more that can be gotten at several grocery stores, named "Real Thai". Where Aroy-D has 60% Coconut Milk - Real Thai has 85%... Much heavier... However, like Aroy-D, Real Thai has no garbage ingredients :-) When I see stuff like "Grace" and other, I gag... Anyway, I generally drink a can per day or more... It's an important part of my diet and I never get tired of it...
My Pena Colada Mix: 1 Can Coconut milk, 750 ml water, 200 ml Pressed Pineapple Juice, 1 Organic Banana, 1 Cup Organic Strawberries, 1 cup Organic Blueberries - Blend :-)
Wonderful thank you,
My step mum (Thai) showed me a method to create our own coconut milk. Using desiccated coconut, soak for a while (longer the better) and put a strong sieve over a pan or bowl and squish the liquid out. It's a bit of graft but it works :)
This is so informative. Enlightened by the information you gave away. As someone who’s willing to learn the abc’s of cooking, I would meticulously search every nook and cranny of the grocery store for that essential ingredient, depending on what dish I’m making, and that includes canned goods or in boxes or whatever, coconut milk no exception, because I want to have the authentic, if not, at least, very close to it, flavor of the dish I have in mind. I could spend a whole day in the supermarket haha! Anyway, thanks for this. Great job right there.
I order the boxes of coconut milk boxes off of Amazon! You can get cases, and it is amazing! Seriously, so much better!
Agreed, I kept being disappointed with my curries made with the canned stuff. Then I tracked down the ones in the cartons on Amazon. Very reasonable price and has decent shelf life so I buy a like 12x250mL pack. Resulting dishes were so much better. The smaller size means i frequently use it in terms of # of cartons.
Jody Shumaker exactly! I prefer the smaller sizes because it means less wasted coconut milk.
arunningbet Wow I didn't know this. Thanks for sharing!
What brand please? Thank you
What is the brand? I would like o order a case too,
Hey Pailin, Great video. I never made coconut milk, but growing up as a child in Puerto Rico I used to make coconut candy from fresh coconuts and I really enjoyed the process. When I was in school in Puerto Rico from 1992-1997 they use to serve milk in little plastic bags with our lunch so your not the only one.
As someone who uses coconut milk a lot (thai curries!), I was skeptical about a 10+ minute video on this seemingly simple topic, but I still learned stuff!
I'm a Malaysian & yes we do use a lot of fresh & powdered coconut milk. Here we are used to buying it from milkbags whenever possible and unused anounts are frozen. For some reason, the quality of powdered coconut milk here is actually good & we tend to use it more often than ever. Furthermore the taste & texture doesnt chsnge no matter how many times you freeze & thaw it.
Great job! You can freeze the grated coconut and extract the milk by adding warm water when ready to use.
Yes :)
Great tip!
Milk bag! Yes I know what you are talking about! Actually I was just talking about milk bag with another friend from another country about it a few days ago! So cool to hear about it again!
I’m 30 yr old I know exactly what your talking about when you referred to milk bag I didn’t like it back when I was a kid. Growing up I know I’m lactose intolerant that’s why. In Thailand, there is actually กะทิหอมควันเทียม with candle aroma can throw off savory food nakrub. But I think you know
We have tried many different brands of coconut milk and Pailin, you are so right! The ARoy-D is the very best! it can spoil you, it is so good! We even put it on our cereal and have actually drank it, although it is a bit rich for drinking purposes. Thank you for doing this video, it was very informative and confirmed that we are on the right path.
Oooh I think mixing a little bit of coconut milk into milk for cereal sounds delightful!
I love your videos - way more informative than I expected. I am trying to maintain a vegan diet and curry is one of my staples.
I'm so lucky to have the most recommended fresh coconut brand all over supermarkets in Israel :3
I have always used chaokoh from the can but switched to the aroi d carton after watching this. Yeah, its better. Thanks!
Really enjoyed your videos, Pailin! I find substituting coconut milk with almond/cashew paste (whole blanched almonds/cashews and water blended in a blender or using a hand blender) works wonders in curry. It won’t substitute the coconut flavor, but it will substitute the creamy texture that coconut curry has. I think Indians actually do this in some types of curry.
I get the cartons of Arroyo D in 12-packs of 8.5 oz cartons on Amazon. I find it so convenient because I live alone and the larger cans have too much and I end up with waste. Previously I’d been using the canned Arroyo D. The cartons taste MUCH better IMO.
Thank you, that is exactly the info I needed. (I live alone too!)
เก่งและเยี่ยมยอด อธิบายฟังแล้วเข้าใจง่าย เป็นการช่วยสนับสนุนอาหารไทยให้เป็นที่รู้จัก น่ารักมากค่ะ😉😘👍👏👉
I'm a Canadian living in Thailand learning Thai cooking from Thai living in Canada
You can easily find coconut milk in Brazilian food stores (often in a glass bottle). It's commonly used in Brazilian food.
This was brilliant! Thank you. Also, I grew up in the New York and we didn't have milk in a bag. We had glass containers, boxes, plastic and that's it.
IMHO the higher the fact content, the better the coconut flavor. And if you refrigerate it with a loose cover, excess water will evaporate and you get coconut cream. So good.
When I was a kid in elementary school in southern California, we used milk bags! It took me a few tries to poke a straw into it without having the milk splash everywhere. Thank you for your video, my mom always argues with me about using coconut cream powder in Vietnamese curry vs milk (I prefer milk), so it's good to know which one is really better.
Here in Ontario (Canada), milk is mainly sold in bags, haha
Love this as I bought a fresh coconut for the first time and didn’t know if I had a good one or what to do with the insides of it. I punched a hole in the eye with a heavy metal skewer and then drained it into a coffee filter so the water was nice and clear. Then I took the shell outside and bashed the hell out of it with a hammer inside a tea towel. Separated it out and cut off the brown skin off the inside meat.
US people usually aren't familiar w/ bagged milk (even though it's VERY common in Canada). I've normally stuck to Mae Ploy coconut cream (I actually didn't notice it said "cream" until just a few months ago), but sometimes Chaokoh. I've never seen the square 'tetrapaks' shown in any Asian markets in the US, but will certainly keep my eye out. I think one of the main things is to avoid "coconut cream" that's made for desserts and alcoholic drinks that are usually sweetened.
Good point!
Many people asking for an anglicized brand name for the green carton milk. I just bought some at my local Asian supermarket and it is in fact Aroy-D ... same as what was written on cans. In this case however, ingredients are "Coconut Extract and water" so it would be what was described here. Exact same photo and colours as shown here also. It was not cheap.
I bought from Amazon with the link she provided the same brand everything but it also has polysorbitol 60 does your have too
Thank you. I learned a lot watching this video. I'm gaining more confidence in trying to make Thai food. I love it so much when I go out to get Thai food I spend a lot of money 💰
If you haven't tried "Native Forest Coconut Milk" you should give it a shot. It's the freshest and cleanest tasting canned coconut milk I've found. It's not as good as the UHT stuff, of course, but very good still.
I found the real deal (real coconut milk) in my Chinese grocery store!!! I got the Aroy-D brand the kind in green carton! So excited!
I am surprised you did not explain how to make fresh coconut milk. But I still learned a lot and I thank you for that.
The video is here hot-thai-kitchen.com/coconut-milk-doc/ Cheers! Adam
Educational videos like this will make it much easier to understand the various ingredients you use. I would love to see one on the various noodles used, and their preparation. I find them confusing. Thanks so much.
Very informative video! I came in with zero knowledge about coconut types & now I have all my questions answered! Thank you for saving me from further research!
You are quite lucky nowadays that you can choose coconut milk from cartons or cans. During late 70's and early 80's while residing in the UK all that was available was coconut milk in the form of a dry ingredient, wax-like consistency hard and pressed in a block similar to butter. When you want to use it you need to cut it into chunks or grate it into slivers and dissolve it in hot water. And it was available in only chinese supermarket which were in London only. Since I was not living in London or visitted Lonodon that often, so I made my version of curry with milk and had done with it.
There is sort of a joke photo of Chinese tourist drinking carton of coconut milk thinking it was coconut water and said it does taste that great!!!! :)
Your video is very clear and precise and very informative for those "Foreigners" to understand the essentials Keep it coming. Looking forward to watch whatever you put up. Especially enjoy all the outtake, all the "OOPS" etc'
FYI for readers - always read the nutritional content label. 10 times out of 10, choose the one with the highest fat content
wnose yes! per unit in a serving size - paying attention to the fact that serving sizes vary among brands.
indeed
I used to look just the percentage of coconut milk in the ingredients.very useful video
Hi Pai, Thank you so much for this guide on coconut milk. A lot of people have complained about the the Aroy-d product from Amazon being curdled/spoiled, and after doing a little research online it seems that there really is no consistency in the quality of the products irrespective of the brand. I am in the US so availability and store brands will differ from UK and Canada of course. I got several different Thai brands (the canned kind) and after making the curry paste from scratch I fried it in the coconut cream (from the top of the can). So far, I think the Chaokoh brand has proved to be the best from the ones I tried - one cant use the Iberia or Goya cans because I don't think they have any cream/fat on the top. Now, I am of Indian origin and so I know a thing or two about curries. :) I want to get the traditional taste of real coconut in my curries, but I don't want to have to grate and squeeze it out of real coconuts and I don't want curdled or expired products. So to help me in my quest for the ultimate coconut milk, I would like your opinion on choices made in this article I came across - www.sprinklesandseasalt.com/recipes/thai-cooking-at-home/the-best-canned-coconut-milk-for-thai-cooking/
I'm very sensitive to the spoiled coconut taste that my friends seem to not notice sometimes, probably cause I grew up with so many fresh coconuts lol.
Chaokoh brand does tend to be pretty consistent and is always a decent good choice. My favorite (and most consistently fantastic) tends to be Mae Ploy brand coconut cream.
Very helpful video about selecting coconut milk. You deserve more than "thumbsup"
I think many people can't tell if coconut milk (the beverage) in milk section isn't milk. Also, there's no such thing called "almond milk".
Now, at least, I know which brand of coconut milk I should look up for. Thank so much =)
Moon Cake true and she is great explaining
No such thing as almond milk? That's complete bullshit!
Almond milk is made the same way as coconut milk ie the resulting liquid after pressing blanched, ground and soaked almonds. It was frequently used in cooking during the middle ages.
By your reasoning there is no such thing as coconut milk either.
lockbow how do you make almond milk with out machine or blender? It's soaked almonds meaning you add water to it to liquefy and soften. Coconut milk the the fat from meat and juice of the coconut.
Sion Mcdonald moon cake festival is oct 4 next week. Maybe she can make 7 types of moon cake
Hi Pailin
The very thick one at 4:50, that wont seperate when boiled, is not homogenized but probably contains Xanthan gum. Xanthan gum is a powerful thickening agent wich is NOT destroyed by boiling. Its like agar agar just a lot stronger.
Yes many brands contains xanthan gum, but this particular one that I opened and showed doesn't...at least it's not listed on the label.
Very helpful. Thank you. I vacationed in Thailand about twenty-five years ago. Such a beautiful. country; great people. I remember that even the food from the street vendors was wonderful. Loved their fish soup.
Love these ingredients tutorials - am bingeing them all and learning so much!!
Just in case someone is interested in such information: Aroy-D admitted, that they use Polysorbat60 (E435) in their boxed coconut milk. I'm a bit p-oed by that, because I used to buy these packs, too, and this substance is suspected to be carcinogenic ( what I try to avoid). Now they _have_ to declare their ingredients openly and label them correctly for the European market, but since that's not the case for the American market I thought that I'd talk about it here.
There is an organic, additive-free boxed version from Aroy-D in 1l tetra packs, so you could have a look for that.
The canned version is 60% coconut, 40%water, nothing else, and as far as I understand it the clumping is because of temperature differences during shipment and storage. When you let fairly warm water run over the (still closed) can, then shake it, everything mixes up quite nicely (and if you need a whole can of coconut milk you can just stir it and it'll eventually come together.
Tastewise I agree with you. I think it's the canning process or material of the can, that changes it's taste (like every meal from a can has the same distinct, a bit metallic, a bit sharp overtone.
although it 100% milk, without anything else?
@@marilusfarmasi2515 There is nothing like 100% coconut in cans / tetra packs. The cans and the organic cartons contain 60% coconut, 40% water, the normal packages contain 70% coconut, water and E435.
@@elle-iza I understand that. My question was about the green milk box she said was the to go milk.
Yes I bought just now from Amazon with the link she provided I am in US it shows it has polysorbitol 60 now I feel bad buying it I dint see organic one
Creamy Oat by Oatly (available at least in the UK) makes a very good substitute for coconut milk as well. I'm Thai and I use this as a substitute all the time.
U. S. here. My friend's mom who is from Thailand, in the past before Internet and could order products like this online, has always made her own homade coconut milk. Here's her simple recipe that she tought me.
1 cup unsweetened coconut shreds (from a bag in the baker's section.
2 cups warm water.
Put in a belnder and blend it for about 2-3 minutes. Strain or not, up to you. She USUALLY did not but where she wanted a nice smooth consisitancy she would strain it. But for cooking,she never really strained it.
Thank you pOH sharing your video poh magandang poh yan marami poh mga benefits na makaakatilong sa kalusugan ng tao
Omg, you are so full of joy and happyness, and knowledge, I am so impressed !! All the best from Magnus in Norway
I used to think that coconut milk was the same as coconut water! Poor me. Thank you for the explanation.
You're not alone :)
I'm Thai and live in Thailand.
I like the A ROI D brand in UHT box.
We also find that coconut milk is best as we use it all the time
Coconut milk goes very well with Pandan leaf
Im happy I can find Arroy D cartons in grocery stores in Sweden, and it is very tasty and great quality.
I am from Kerala, India, which is the capital of coconuts and we do experiment with coconuts a lot.
No milk bags in the American South. Great video! Thank you so much!
I think it might depend on the can brands in different countries, I get really nice coconut oil separation with the cans (all types of brands in Europe) But looking at the ingredients they only have coconut and water in them so it’s probably that added gum and stuff that’s binding the fat and water 🤗
I've never heard of milk bags.
Thanks for this great explanation of coconut milk!
Great video with very useful tips on the variations of coconut milk produced and storage.
HTK is so good , easy to listen and Pailin as such good communicator 🙏👍🍷😃
I prefer to use Coconut Cream than Coconut Milk for most Thai recipes as I find the thicker consistency and richer flavor more appealing.
I remember when our school switched from cartons to bags. Once you poked the bag with the straw, you couldn't set it down or the milk would start spraying out of the straw, so you have to drink it all at once.
Excellent that you also read the ingredients! while less the better. Thank you
I've also seen frozen coconut milk! While I haven't seen the ultra-pasturized ones, I prefer the frozen kind over the canned versions.
No “milk bags” here, in Chicago. We have a lot of Asian grocery stores in this area, and I shop at a variety, only canned coconut milk available. I have drank canned coconut many times in my life...love the rich “gloopy” taste.
Thank you so much !! Got to this video after wasting money on coconut beverage every time I order coconut milk 😃
This is so informative!!! Do a "Curry Paste: Everything You Need To Know" because I'm a sucker for anything curry. Great Quality as always Ms. Pailin!
I work at Amazon and the Aroy-D cartons are flying of our inventory lol. They should give you a nice bonus check for promoting them. Love your videos!
Seriously! Haha.
Hm. I always find it easier to break the canned ones as long as they don't have emulsifiers or stabilisiers in them, but only coconut and water (with xanthan gum or others it's just not possible anymore).
And I don't shake it - as you said, the fat flows to the top, meaning that the solid white stuff is higher in fat and will consequently separate more easily. Also the more watery liquid at the bottom can be used to thin out the sauce, which is perfeect.
The aroy-d from the pack does taste better though. But it's also much more expensive than the supermarket brands in Germany.
Such a useful and timely topic. I happened to be making a trip to the 99 Ranch Market in Dallas and managed to snag a few cartons of UHT coconut milk.
You should make a video about all the condiments on the table at Thai restaurants and how to make them. There is so many types of chilies and sauces, flakes etc....
In the Philippines (in Tagalog / Filipino) we call Coconut milk "Gata" close to "Gati" as Thai calls it. 🇵🇭🇹🇭
Love your videos. Didn't realise you had FB and Insta. Signed up now. Your abc videos of the thai dishes and well explained steps and insights are golden for a Scandinavian, loooooong time away from Thailand and those areas. Authentic Thai food *can* be found here, but most of it is augmented to fit the Danish taste tradition. Understandable, but also too bad for those who would like to get hit by the real tastes (and heat). So again, thank you :)
Coconut milk!!..the popular Pacific islands cooking staple for yummy recipes noh 👍✌😊☺
I absolutely love your videos you've definitely changed my perspective on cooking it's more about enjoyment instead of pure survival now, so thank you.
Hello, I live in Ontario and buy the AROY-D brand of Coconut Milk (but it comes in bilingual cartons). It's also in a green carton. The ingredients list is: Coconut Extract 60% and Water. Is that the same product you're using?
BTW I enjoy your videos and my family enjoys my attempts to replicate your recipes. Maybe a little milder at times, but always delicious.
I think it's the same one. That English ingredient sticker they put on the carton though...I don't know if it's accurate..
That was such a detailed and helpful information about coconut milk. I need to hunt down for those cartons of coconut milk, but its so hard and rare!
This is easily one of the most helpful cooking videos I've seen in a long time. This will help improve a lot of my cooking. Thank you so much for making this. ^_^
I do like the fresh coconut milk in carton better than can, I buy at local Asian market about 25 minutes from my house. But I tired a organic canned coconut milk from shoprite and it actually was great! Found in organic section and it separated when I cooked curry with it! Oh and i am from New Jersey so these are some tips for anyone near me 🙂
Thank you!
Just stumbled on your site; what an engaging teacher you are!
Honestly I was going to search about coconut milk today and then I saw notification in my email about this video.Thank you!
This is such a great informative video, very helpful especially you pointed out the powdered coconut actually contains milk protein which I think most people do not realized! Thanks for the great video again
This was the case in local store, but I did find dairy-free coconut milk/cream powder on Amazon. I was going to try it, but now after learning it's ok to freeze coconut milk I may not have to.
Milk bags are very common in Israel, it's my favorite way to drink it!
Haha