How to Open a Young Coconut

Assuming you are right handed, hold the coconut steady with your left hand near the bottom of the coconut. IMPORTANT: Make sure your thumbs and fingers are wrapped around the coconut and not sticking up anywhere! You want to use the bottom corner of the blade of the meat cleaver to make the cut, so hold the cleaver at about a 45 degree angle about 1 - 1 1/2 inches below the tip of the coconut. If this is your first time opening a Thai young coconut this way, you may want to take a few slow practice strikes first, in order to get your aim right. You will need to strike hard enough to crack through the inner shell of the coconut, not just the soft outer fiber. See the above picture for exactly where you want to make the first cut when opening your Thai young coconut.