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Buko salad
Young coconut fruit salad
Young coconut, mixed fruit and nata de coco folded into chilled sweet cream
Buko salad is the dessert Filipino families bring to every birthday, christening and Christmas Noche Buena: strips of soft young coconut, mixed fruit, chewy nata de coco and sweet cream, chilled until icy cold. Children fish out the cherries first. It is quick to make the day before and is gluten free; it contains milk. Grapes in tinned fruit are already halved, but quarter any whole grapes lengthwise for younger children. Chef's tip: drain the fruit and nata de coco really well in a sieve for 15 minutes, or the salad turns watery overnight.
- Total time
- 20 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
- 14 oz young coconut fleshfresh or frozen, cut into strips
- 1 ¾ lb cocktail fruit in juice2 tins, drained well
- 12 oz nata de coco1 jar, drained
- 6 oz sugar palm fruit (kaong) (optional)drained
- 1 cup double creamchilled
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Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Tip 1 ¾ lb cocktail fruit in juice, 12 oz nata de coco and 6 oz sugar palm fruit (kaong) into a large sieve and leave to drain for 15 minutes, shaking now and then, until no more juice drips out.
15 minStep 2: In a large bowl, whisk 1 cup double cream with 7 oz sweetened condensed milk until smooth and slightly thickened, like custard.
Step 3: Add 14 oz young coconut flesh and the drained fruit and fold gently until everything is coated. Taste: it should be sweet and creamy, not runny. Skipping the draining step is the most common mistake.
Step 4: Cover and chill for at least 4 hours, or overnight, until very cold. Serve in cups straight from the fridge, and keep leftovers chilled for up to 2 days.
240 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 38 g
- Fat
- 19 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does buko salad take?
- About 20 minutes in total.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of double cream?
- Whipping cream, same amount (less rich; whips softer).
- What can I use instead of sweetened condensed milk?
- Oat, soy or almond milk, same amount (use unsweetened for savoury dishes).
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