Coconut Daiquiri

The Daiquiri is a cocktail that’s sometimes misunderstood. The classic combination of white rum, lime juice, and sugar is nothing like the sugary, neon-colored slushies you may have been served in dive bars or at a beachside resort.

Put that hangover-in-a-plastic-cup image out of your mind. This Coconut Daiquiri is an elegant and simple variation of the classic, plus I’ve updated this post to include a simple and delicious frozen variation for summer!

What is a Daiquiri?

A Daiquiri is a shaken, sour-style cocktail made very simply with:

• White rum
• Fresh lime juice
• Simple syrup

Learn about the history of the Daiquiri and classic recipe variations over on my Classic Daiquiri recipe page.

This Coconut Daiquiri recipe blends 2 ounces of white rum with 1 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice and 3/4 ounce easy-to-make coconut syrup.

You can also opt for canned cream of coconut and blend it with ice for a frosty version that’s creamy and oh so satisfying on a hot day. All you need is a handful of ingredients and about five minutes to shake or blend up this delicious, chic, tropical cocktail.

You may also like my:

• Strawberry Vanilla Daiquiri
• Jasmine Elderflower Daiquiri
• 2 Ingredient Whipped Lemonade

What rum should I use?

This is completely up to you! I used a Bacardi white rum, but you can also used other brands of white rum, aged rum (although the cocktail will be darker in appearance), rhum agricole, or even cachaca!

Some other white rums to consider are: Brugal Especial Extra Dry, Ron Diplomatico Planas, Plantation 3 Star White Rum, or the very flavorful, single-estate Copalli White Rum.

Tip: If you have a bottle of coconut liqueur (or a coconut rum liqueur such as Malibu), and a bottle of the Caribbean-spiced Velvet Falernum, you can try yet another variation of this Coconut Daiquiri! See recipe notes below.

How to make the coconut syrup

This coconut syrup doesn’t involve cracking any nuts. I’ve found that high quality extracts can make beautiful cocktail syrups, and this one is my very favorite. I used the organic coconut extract by Flavorganics, but if you use a different brand, just add a little at a time to your simple syrup until it tastes coconut-y enough.

I can’t emphasize quality of the extract enough here. If you use an imitation flavor extract, your drinks will taste like it. And this cocktail is way too pretty to taste cheap! Fortunately, the Flavorganics is inexpensive and easy to find on Amazon.

Get the full recipe – Easy Coconut Simple Syrup Recipe

To make the coconut syrup, you’ll simply combine equal parts sugar and water and stir until the sugar dissolves. Then just add 1 tbsp (give or take) of your quality coconut extract, stir to combine, and voila!

Store your easy coconut syrup in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Add an ounce or two of vodka or grain alcohol to the syrup to make it last longer.

What is the edible flower garnish?

I garnished the Coconut Daiquiri above with a dianthus. You certainly don’t need to go out of your way to find the perfect pretty white edible flower to garnish this Daiquiri – a lime wheel or a lime twist is an excellent substitution.

I love edible flowers and spend a lot of time looking for them, trying to grow them, and occasionally buying them online. Tip: natural foods stores like Whole Foods sometimes have small containers of edible flowers in the packaged herb section.

My local Hannaford supermarket also routinely stocks them, believe it or not! You can read a whole lot more about edible flowers for cocktails in my Cocktailian’s Guide to Edible Flowers.

How to make it a frozen Coconut Daiquiri

After seeing that a lot of folks were landing on this recipe when searching for frozen coconut daiquiris, I decided it was time to update this post for summer!

And while you could certainly blend the original recipe below with ice to make a frozen Coconut Daiquiri, I find that using canned cream of coconut (coconut cream with sugar added) makes for a much more satisfying frozen drink.

The added sweetness and creaminess from the cream of coconut give the cocktail body and a smooth mouthfeel, and the coconut flavor is strong but not at all artificial. Frozen cocktails in general benefit from adding a bit more sweetness than you would a standard shaken or stirred drink, due to the extra chill and dilution that the crushed ice adds to the drink.

Learn more about making perfect frozen drinks over in my Perfect Frozen Margaritas recipe. For this easy frozen version of my Coconut Daiquiri, you’ll need:

• 2 oz (1/4 cup) white rum
• 1 oz (2 tablespoons) fresh lime juice
• 1 oz (2 tablespoons) cream of coconut (such as Coco Lopez or Goya)
• 3/4 cup of ice, preferably crushed, for quick and easy blending

Simply blend all of these ingredients until smooth and pour into a large coupe or cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime twist, or an edible flower, if desired.

How to make your own cream of coconut

One caveat with canned cream of coconut is that it almost always contains added preservatives and stabilizers to keep it shelf stable.

If those ingredients are something you’d rather skip, or you’d just like to save some money, you can easily make you own cream of coconut at home! Simply combine one can of coconut milk with 1 3/4 cups white sugar and a pinch of salt.

Have you made this recipe? Share it on Pinterest or Instagram and tag me @moodymixologist!