The Easiest Way to Infuse Any Spirit With Real Coconut Flavor
If the words “coconut rum” are causing you a little bit of nausea, it’s possible that your experience with coconut-flavored alcoholic beverages was limited to Malibu (or something equally annoying). But the real delicious coconut flavor is a pleasure and can be added to any alcohol – not just rum – by rinsing the drink with a little coconut oil.
How can you wash something with oil?
“Washing the fat” – a method that suddenly gained popularity in the mid to late 2000s , with the result that there were all kinds of meat and a lot of bourbon cocktails with bacon. This is a fairly simple method – you take a flavored fat (like bacon fat or coconut oil), add it to your drink, let it brew, and then freeze the whole thing so that the fat rises up and hardens. Scrape off the hardened fat, and thanks to a small amphiphile (a molecule that loves fat and water) known as “ethanol”, you get a fragrant alcohol.
And what about the feeling in the mouth?
I have never noticed the oily character in any of the many greasy shakes I have enjoyed, but this process does give your drink that kind of “round” or “soft” character. If anything, I’ve found that washing away the fat makes the liquor easier to drink – yes, I’m talking about shots – as it softens the harshness and adds a fun flavor.
So, any coconut oil will do?
No , and I’m so glad you asked this question. It is imperative that you use a damsel, not refined coconut oil, and refined coconut oil has a neutral flavor that’s great for baking cookies , but terrible for flavoring rum (or gin, vodka, or whiskey). About 3/4 cup of coconut oil per 750 ml of alcohol is sufficient. Simply melt it (on the stovetop or in the microwave), pour into a large can of booze and shake. Let it hang for at least three hours or overnight, shaking the jar from time to time, and then place it in the freezer until it freezes . (By “this,” I mean butter, not booze; booze won’t freeze.) If you can easily pull out the lid of the oil, do so, otherwise make a hole in the hard butter and pour the booze through it. the hole, filtering through a sieve, lined with a couple of layers of gauze.
Use your sophisticated yet tropical spirit to add some sunshine to your cocktails (and life), perhaps by sharing it with a few friends. I especially love the coconut gin martini, although I recommend garnishing it with a pinch of lime rather than lemon. (Certainly not olive.)