Coquito is a Puerto Rican Coconut Eggnog is made with rum, coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk and spices. It’s delicious served very cold, with a dusting of fresh nutmeg on top.
make bottles of this every year and give away as gifts to friends and family. Bring a bottle of coquito to any holiday party and I am positive you will be invited back the next year.
You can make this Puerto Rican Coquito recipe and store it for up to a month in the fridge, but good luck making it last that long!
What is Coquito?
Ig you want to go Puerto Rican style with your eggnog, you whip up some Coquito! It’s actually referred to as “Puerto Rican Eggnog” although it doesn’t contain any eggs. Some people do add eggs, but I’m not a fan of adding them. It’s got a coconut flavor base with a little bit of spice thrown in it, and of course, rum. The name “coquito” actually translates as “little coconut.” What does it taste like? It is on the sweet side. It almost tastes like melted creamy coconut ice cream.
What’s the Difference Between Coquito and Eggnog?
Now I’m not knocking eggnog. In fact, my friend Rebecca has a killer eggnog recipe, much better than buying store-bought eggnog. But eggnog and coquito are not the same. I refer to eggnog as a drinking custard. It’s made of milk, heavy cream, sugar, and raw egg yolks that gently cook until thick and creamy. It is served chilled with some brandy, bourbon, or cognac. Coquito has coconut milk or cream of coconut and is served with white rum. Some recipes will include an egg but, I’ve already shared how I feel about the egg in coquito.
The addition of egg to coquito didn’t come until much later. Abuela once told me that the addition of egg yolk was the influence of the classic American Christmas drink eggnog. How true that is I can’t say but I continue to stand firm in the no egg yolk camp. If your abuela made it with egg yolk go for it.
Can Coquito be Made without Rum?
I believe everyone should experience the joy of coquito. It is totally fine to prepare the coquito without rum if needed. You may not drink alcohol or you may be serving minors. When making a virgin version of coquito I recommend substituting coconut milk for the rum and adding rum extract to taste.
Can You Make This Vegan?
I would recommend using almond milk or soy milk in place of the evaporated milk. As for the sweetened condensed milk, I would add 1 cup of sugar and another milk alternative to make up the volume and sweetness. Start slow with adding the sugar, and taste as you go until you reached the desired sweetness.
Suggestions and Substitutions
Anything after those basic ingredients is up to you. Like so many dishes, coquito doesn’t have an exact recipe. The type and amount of rum, the choice of spices, the type of sweetener, or even whether to use eggs or not can vary from recipe to recipe and person to person.
This means that coquito is a recipe that you shape to your taste.
- Choose a rum you like! White, aged or spiced rum all are good. Mount Gay is smooth and affordable; Gosling’s black rum is a little richer.
- Don’t want nutmeg? Don’t use it. Ginger, cloves, and star anise are good adds.
- Want to serve it on the rocks? Rock on.
- Have guests who don’t drink alcohol? Skip the rum and make it virgin!
Have fun, experiment, and make the recipe yours. It will quickly become part of your holiday tradition, too.
Make Ahead and Storing Tips for Coquito
You can chill this in the fridge up for as little as two hours and up to three days ahead of time. All you have to do is pull this out when it’s time to serve, and garnish with some cinnamon or grated nutmeg. You can also keep coquito indefinitely in the refrigerator since the amount of alcohol keeps it preserved. But it begins to separate and look dodgy after more than three days, which may make you nervous. It’ll still be fine, and all you have to do is shake it up to make it smooth again.
Authentic Puerto RIcan Coquito !!!
Ingrédients
- One 15-ounce can cream of coconut, such as Coco Lopez
- One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- One 12-ounce can evaporated milk
- 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk beverage
- 1/2 cup white rum
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, plus more for serving
- Cinnamon sticks, for serving
Instructions
- Put the cream of coconut, condensed milk, evaporated milk, coconut milk beverage, rum, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg in a blender and blend until smooth, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a pitcher, cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, about 1 hour.
- Give the coquito a good stir (the mixture may separate slightly as it sits). Pour into individual mugs or glasses, top with more nutmeg and serve with a cinnamon stick.
- Refrigerate for a minimum of one hour before serving. Serve in chilled glasses.
Notes
Tips for Coquito :
- This recipe calls for cream of coconut like Coco Lopez. This is different from coconut milk and coconut cream.
- Coquito (without egg) will last in an airtight container refrigerated for 4-6 months.
- If some of the coconut fat solidifies let it sit on the counter for 10 minutes and give it a good shake before serving.
- It is traditionally made with Puerto Rican Rum like Don Q but you can use whatever white rum you prefer.
- These swing-top bottles are great for gifting coquito.
- To make a non-alcoholic version substitute coconut milk for the rum and add rum extract to taste.
- If some of the coconut fat solidifies let it sit on the counter for 10 minutes and give it a good shake before serving.