1. Origin

Coconut choka is one of the most popular dishes in the Guyanese kitchen. It is based off of roasting the coconut, shredding it and then grinding it into a fine texture. It goes very well with dhal and rice. To get a proper recipe for the traditional methods, visit Alicia’s Pepper-pot website

2. Why non-traditional?

This non-traditional method is in part due to the fact that we do not have a sil and lorha or even a coconut grater. To accommodate that, we are going to use what we have in our western world market and appliances.

3. Ingredients

  • 1 bag 365 By Whole Foods Market, Coconut Shredded Organic

  • 2-4 wiri wiri peppers or 1 scotch bonnet or 1 habanero pepper.

  • 1-2 pieces of garlic.

  • salt to taste

  • some water

4. What will I need?

  • 1 skillet large enough to hold the coconut shreds

  • 1 food processor

5. Prepare Coconut

  • Place skillet on low heat on the stove top. Pour coconut into skillet, add salt to taste.

  • Keep stirring the coconut. It will start to brown and have a very fragrant smell. You need to keep the heat low and avoid burning the coconut. Stop when you see most of the coconut shreds are brown in color.

  • Let sit for a few minutes to cool.

  • Pour the coconut shreds into a food processor

    • Add Garlic and peppers and a bit of water to help the food processor

    • add salt if needed in this step.

  • turn on the food processor, add a bit of water until the coconut gets a smooth texture, turn off the food processor and empty the coconut into a bowl.

6. Serve

  • Serve with dhal and rice.

  • Enjoy!!!

Since we don’t have the sil and lorha, this was the next best thing. You still get the roasted coconut flavor with the pepper. You still get the great flavors. The only thing missing is all those years of those spices embedded in that brick. It was the best tasting dish I have had in ages.