Sea coconut is a palm fruit like coconuts but it is a lot smaller. I found some fresh ones from the supermarket. One can find fresh sea coconut along Jalan Air Itam near Han Chiang school. An Indian man will park his motorcycle there every afternoon.
The Chinese believes sea coconut is cooling for the body. Not sure it is true or not but it sure is tasty.
Out of curiosity, I bought some honey dates (mat chou) and candied tangerine (dried food stuffs section in supermarkets). Actually, I have no idea what to do with these dates and tangerine except that they seem tasty to me. I asked an auntie at the supermarket what I can do with these stuffs. She told me that people used to brew honey dates and tangerine to make drinks which is supposed to heal coughs. (don’t take my word for it ‘cos I cannot verify its effectiveness)
So, I combined these and make a dessert:
6 sea coconut, peel off the brown skin and slice
3 honey dates
1 piece candied tangerine
1 liter water
Boil under low fire for 45 minutes to an hour. Add some rock sugar if you prefer something sweeter.
The result is a nice, tangy soup with sea coconut that taste sweet. My children love it so I guess it has the right combination.
Another recipe for sea coconut can be found on Babe in the city’s blog.
