This post features student writing.

Word of the day:

Eng: TASTY
Spa: SABROSO
/ˈteɪsti/
adjective

Hola!

A few days ago, we were hard at work when the owners of the house that we were working at handed us a fresh coconut from their tree. Expecting the sweet coconut we often have at home, we were pleasantly surprised to find that it was actually completely different. As we watched them take apart this fruit in a way we had never seen, we became intrigued by the idea of exploring something further that seemed so ordinary in our daily lives.

Since this was something we wanted to explore more, it seemed like the perfect topic for our independent project. For those of you who don’t know, each student gets the opportunity to pursue an interest on a deeper level during our time in the village. This project allows us to connect our passions to the culture and get to know the community better.

After talking to some community members, we were introduced to Julieta—the coconut master. She is our maestro de obras‘s godmother and she was kind enough to volunteer her time to teach us about the process of making coconut oil and all the different uses for a coconut.

Today, we went to Julieta’s house and got started. First she took us to buy fresh coconuts from a local vendor. Then we headed back to the house and broke open the fruit. The process started by separating the inside from the shell. After that we grated the coconut meat into fine shreds and then squeezed the milk out from there. Following this, we poured the milk into a pan over the fire and watched the milk begin to bubble. As this happened the water began to evaporate and the oil and milk began to separate. Soon the oil was fully separated and a crunchy pulp (known as chicharrón) remained. We ate it with salt and we loved it and even shared it with the rest of the group later on that night.

We learned that coconut oil can be used as a hair or nail treatment, as makeup remover, and here, the locals use it to clean the babies’ skin, as well as to get rid of parasites when mixed with garlic and oregano. They cook with it too and make the very traditional recipe of moro con coco, which is a version of a sweet coconut rice with beans.

While our independent project may have been tasty, it was also a very meaningful experience for both of us. As we learned more about the fruit, we also got to see the community from a new light. Julieta showed us how much time and effort is put into many of the things we take for granted at home and we are so thankful that we got to experience this and share it with all of you 🙂

Hasta luego,

Jenna y Isabel