Cocktails with Coconut chips
Coconut chips are slices of coconut flesh, dried and often toasted, used for flavor and texture in the drink.
How it's used
They give the liquid coconut flavor and some body rather than sitting on top of the glass. A couple of minutes in a dry pan brings out far more aroma: toasting drives off water and browns the sugars.
Substitutes for Coconut chips
Unsweetened desiccated coconut
Use the exact same weight. Toast it in a dry pan first, stirring often, since small pieces burn fast. Strain the liquid carefully, as fine shreds easily cloud the glass.
Sweetened flaked coconut
This packs five times the sugar. If you use it, cut back on any syrup to maintain balance.
Fresh coconut flesh
Slice it thin and toast it dry. Left raw, it stays moist and completely misses the necessary toasted note.
Storage
Sealed, dry and away from light. They are dry but they are also fatty, and coconut fat goes rancid: a chip that smells of paint or old nuts is finished, whatever the date says.
