Fresh Coconut and Kumquat Drink

This blend of young Thai coconut infused with sweet and sour golden kumquats is a match made in heaven. It's the PERFECT thirst quenching drink!

A few months ago, my boyfriend and his sister took me to this Vietnamese restaurant in Orange County, CA called Oc and Lau. Oc means snails and other seafoods that have a shell. Lau just means hot pot. They ordered this drink called Dua Tac (which is translated to "fresh coconut and kumquat juice"). Before this, I was never really a big fan of coconut water to be honest. Now I'm just OBSESSED with this drink. The sad thing was that this drink is quite expensive ($20 mother lovin' dollars!). Plus, I was sure that they have diluted the coconut water like no other. I was determined to make this drink whilst saving my wallet. The coconut water is naturally very sweet and the additional of the kumquat makes the drink very citrus-y and slightly tangy. I added a little bit of agave that just rounded up the entire drink.

Yield: 6 cups (1420 mL)

Ingredients:

• 3 young (Thai) coconuts (1183 mL)
• Coconut meat, cleaned, cut into thin strips
• 1 cup (237 mL) of filter water
• 8 ripen kumquats, deseeded
• 4 tbsp (59 mL) of agave

Directions:

1. Carefully extract and transfer the coconut juice into a large bowl or tall measuring cup. Unfamiliar with getting the juice out? Refer to this link.
2. Place a strainer on top of a serving pitcher and pour the coconut juice through it to ensure that the juice is clear.
3. Wash the kumquats and cut them in halves.
4. Squeeze all the kumquat juice into a bowl and remove the seeds.
5. Place the kumquat skins and juice directly into the serving pitcher (the kumquat skin makes the drink more citrus-y!)
6. Add the water and agave (add more if needed).
7. Store in the fridge up to 2 days.
8. Serve with ice and ENJOY!!!!

***Notes
I tried cutting the kumquat into smaller pieces, thinking that it would make the drink more citrus-y and indeed it did. The only down side was that it cause a slight bitter taste the next day, so I recommend cutting a few (2-3) vkumquat into smalled pieces and leave the rest in halves.