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Piña colada
Piña colada: rum blended thick and frosty with cream of coconut and pineapple juice, San Juan's national drink
Two bars in 1950s San Juan claim to have created the piña colada, and Puerto Rico made it the island's official drink in 1978. It is the drink of hot afternoons on the beaches of Condado and Isla Verde, of hotel pools and of family parties where the blender runs all day. The rum version is for adults only, and because it tastes like a dessert it is easy to drink too fast, so keep to one or two and drink responsibly. A good piña colada is thick, frosty and smooth, coconut-sweet but kept fresh by the sharp acidity of pineapple, with the rum warming the finish. The common mistake is using coconut milk or unsweetened coconut cream instead of cream of coconut, the thick sweetened coconut syrup sold in tins and squeeze bottles: the drink comes out bland and splits into icy water and fat. If you only have coconut cream, blend in 2 tbsp sugar. It is ready when the drink is thick enough to hold a straw upright for a moment, has no crunchy ice and has turned a pale, creamy yellow. Chef's tip: freeze half of the pineapple juice into ice cubes the day before; you will need less ice and the colada stays thick to the last sip.
- Total time
- 5 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 2
Ingredients
For the piña colada
- ½ cup white or gold rum
- ½ cup cream of coconutthe sweetened kind; stir before measuring
- ¾ cup pineapple juiceunsweetened, chilled
- 2 tsp lime juice
- 10 ½ oz ice cubes
To serve
- 2 pineapple wedge (optional)
For the alcohol-free version
- ½ cup cream of coconut (optional)
- 1 cup pineapple juice (optional)
- 1 tbsp lime juice (optional)
- 10 ½ oz ice cubes (optional)
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Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Put ½ cup white or gold rum, ½ cup cream of coconut, ¾ cup pineapple juice and 2 tsp lime juice in a blender and blend for 10 seconds to mix.
1 minStep 2: Add 10 ½ oz ice cubes and blend on high for 30–40 seconds, until thick, smooth and pale yellow with no crunchy bits of ice.
1 minStep 3: Pour into two tall glasses, add 2 pineapple wedge to each rim and serve at once.
1 minStep 4: Alcohol-free version: blend ½ cup cream of coconut, 1 cup pineapple juice and 1 tbsp lime juice with 10 ½ oz ice cubes until thick and smooth, then pour and serve.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 47 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does piña colada take?
- About 5 minutes in total.
- How many people does it serve?
- 2 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of lime juice?
- Lemon juice, same amount.
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