John Oyagawa was born in Fiji and moved to New Zealand at the age of 21 to further his education. John and his sister Cherie Oyagawa-Smith own Cafe O — two cafes in Nadi, Fiji, and one in Auckland. He shows how to prepare fresh and flavoursome grated coconut flesh here.
1. Choose a heavy coconut and give it a shake — it should be full of coconut water.
2. Tap around the equator of the coconut with a heavy object.
3. Place coconut over a bowl, tap harder until the husk cracks and releases the coconut water. (Strain and drink coconut water with a squeeze of lime juice.)
4 Split the coconut in two.
5. For best results and ease use a hand grater (available from Asian grocers, or purchase online) to grate the coconut flesh. Alternatively, cut out flesh using a large knife. Cut in small sections, then remove the brown husk. Grate in a food processor. Grated coconut flesh freezes well.
