Coqui Frog Native to Puerto Rico

When I was a kid my Titi Pat, whom my Dad called “the Irish woman,” (her real name was Patria) would drop off a big bottle of Coquito during Christmas. My parents don’t know it but I took swigs of the stuff. It was like coconut vanilla ice cream and made me feel so – funny.

Coquito

Coquito is Puerto Rican, coconut flavored, rum laced eggnog. It is creamy,…

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  1. I can’t believe how popular this drink is getting, and also how warped and further from the actual, traditional drink it has become. First, it stops being coquito when you add eggnog. It just becomes eggnog at that point cause traditional American eggnog has rum in it. Second, there are actual spices which take time to simmer to get the right flavors out, and Time to cool. And these spices are a KEY ingredient, otherwise… it stops being coquito. Third, yes u have to use real egg yolks, and also it cannot just be any white rum you put in it. I’ll give that one away, it’s either Palo Viejo, or Castillo. Should be a Puertorican rum that’s not too strong a bite on flavor and that compliments it well. Bacardi superior and others take away from that balance. And there’s a step process to making it, you don’t just throw it all into a pot or blender.

    I just hope people that “think” they know what Coquito is, real Coquito would ask an old schoolPuertorican and stop Americanizing this traditional “Puertorican” Holiday drink. It was best before when someone would just give you a bottle and not give away it’s secret. Especially the wrong version. Please pass on. Or don’t, if you enjoy killing traditions.

    1. Thanks for your comment. Can you share with us the really difficult version as I do believe our readers would love to know the traditional version. Suzie is pretty old school Puerto Rican, but I also think as a working woman her entire life she probably needed to take some short cuts, which I can appreciate. It’s as much about having fun and making something yummy. But I do appreciate authenticity and would love to know your recipe! I get just as up in arms when people “americanize” as you call it, old Sicilian recipes that I grew up with. But again, times and things and availability of ingredients change. When I go back to Sicily the food and techniques are totally different in some cases than the way my Grandma (Nonna) and Dad (WHO WERE BOTH BORN AND RAISED THERE) make things now that they have been living in NYC for a while. And I wouldn’t call them tradition killers. It doesn’t make someone more or less anything – it’s just a different way to do something. No one is killing your tradition except you if you don’t divulge the recipe!!! 🙂

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