This Coconut Lemonade is bright, sweet-tart, and creamy! Made with fresh lime juice, coconut milk, and sweetened condensed milk for the ultimate tropical drink. Ready in 5 minutes, it’s the kind of drink you’d sip in the Caribbean coast of Colombia under swaying palm trees.
Quick Look: Coconut Lemonade
- 🕐 Ready in: 5 minutes.
- 👪 Serves: 6 servings, 1 full pitcher.
- 🥣 Main ingredients: Limes, canned coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk.
- 😋 Taste: Sweet-tart, creamy, refreshing.
- 📖 Dietary info: Gluten-free, child-friendly drink.
- ⭐️ Why you'll love it: It's a quick and easy summer drink that feels like a fancy tropical cocktail, but the whole family can enjoy it. It’s sweet, tart, creamy and refreshing.
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I got into Coconut Lemonade so much that I’d buy a bottle almost daily from my local grocery store until I just decided to start making it at home for better flavor (and because living in the tropics and buying it from the store felt a bit silly hehe).
There are two ways you can make this drink at home. First, using canned coconut milk which is what I do most of the time because it’s quick and easy. Second, using a whole coconut and making your own coconut milk, if you’re into from scratch-everything! I’ll include both ways so you can choose your favorite!
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Why you'll love Coconut Lemonade
- Just like the one they serve in the Caribbean coast of Colombia!
- It’s deliciously creamy, sweet, citrusy and refreshing.
- Feels like a tropical cocktail but everyone can enjoy it!
- Keeps well in the fridge, make a big batch, sip on hot summer days!
- Ready in 5 minutes.
- Fun twist on classic lemonade.
- Only 3 ingredients.
Ingredients
- Limes. I use “limon sutil” which is Key lime: it’s smaller than a regular lime (which is known as a Persian or Tahiti lime), thin-skinned, very acidic and fragrant while regular limes are a bit larger with thicker skin and a milder flavor. If you want the authentic Caribbean flavor, go for Key limes, if you just crave coconut lemonade, you can still make this with regular limes and it’ll taste just as delicious!
- Coconut milk. I use canned coconut milk most of the time because it’s quick and easy but if you want to make this drink from scratch, you can also make it with whole coconut by making your own coconut milk. I’ll include both methods in this post!
- Sweetened condensed milk. This is used to add creaminess and sweetness at the same time + a hint of extra richness and flavor. It’s a very popular way to sweeten drinks in Colombia where they make this lemonade a lot (or Brazil, some of you might know this as a Brazilian drink).
- Water, of course, like all lemonades.
- Shredded coconut (optional). This is for decorating the rim of the drink, if you don’t care for it, you can skip this.
Scroll to recipe card for quantities!
Substitutions and Variations
- Limes. You can use Persian/Tahitian limes which are the regular limes you find at most grocery stores (the larger dark green ones) instead of Key limes/Limon sutil.
- Canned coconut milk. You can use a whole coconut and make your own milk, I’ll include instructions for this in the recipe card below.
- Sweetened condensed milk. You can use regular white granulated sugar instead but it will reduce the creaminess a bit. Brown sugar or panela are a bit too strong for this drink and would change the flavor so I don’t recommend them. Same goes for honey or maple syrup.
How to make Coconut Lemonade
STEP 1: Juice the limes and strain the lime juice through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any seeds and pulp.
STEP 2: Combine the lime juice, coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk and water into a pitcher and mix until combined.
STEP 3: Chill in the refrigerator and serve over ice.
STEP 4: Decorate the glass by adding condensed milk along the rim then dip into the shredded coconut.
Expert Tips
- Lime acidity varies a bit (and personal taste does too) so add once you add the sweetened condensed milk, mix well, then taste and see if you want to add more or not.
- Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pitcher as you mix all the ingredients together because condensed milk tends to sit at the bottom once you pour it in.
- If you want a strong coconut flavor, you can add in a drop of coconut extract but I never do this as I prefer the natural flavor of coconut milk.
How do you make coconut milk from a coconut?
First, make sure you get a high quality coconut: heavy (lots of meat), with an intact dark brown outer shell, and one that makes a good sloshing sound when shaken which means it has lots of coconut water and hasn’t dried out. Don’t buy coconuts with wet spots, mold or a cracked shell.
If it has a lot of hairs on the shell, make a cut through them (at the top) and then rip them off the shell.
Poke the dots at the top with a skewer or metal straw/screwdriver and pour the coconut water into a blender.
Cut the flesh off the shell add to the blender with 2 cups (500 ml) water total including the coconut water (the amount of coconut water varies by coconut and its freshness so add as much extra water as you need to reach 2 cups). Blend on high.
Strain the coconut mixture through a cheesecloth, nut milk bag or a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl or your pitcher. This is your coconut milk!
What to serve with Coconut Lemonade
Coconut Lemonade pairs best with fresh, summery, coastal flavors. I love serving it with:
- Baja Fried Fish Tacos: Crispy fried fish, zesty cilantro lime slaw and chipotle crema, these are a major summer favorite!
- Coconut Chicken: This is my viral chicken and if you want all-coconut everything, you’ll definitely love this!
- 4 Ingredient Guacamole and chips: For a fun appetizer or light snack!
- Avocado Egg Salad: For a delicious summer brunch!
I don’t recommend it because bottled lime juice can taste duller/more acidic and because lime juice is one of the key ingredients, you really want all the flavor and qualities of freshly-squeezed lime juice.
You could but I don’t recommend it because it won’t give you the creamy texture and richer flavor of canned coconut milk (or coconut milk made from a whole coconut).
You can but it’s much thicker/richer so you may want to use a bit less, about 1 cup or 240 ml coconut cream.
Yes but you’ll have a different drink as lemons have a different flavor! This drink is made with limes because it’s a type of lemonade made in Colombia where you’d use limes but feel free to play around!
This can happen with some types of coconut milk when the drink sits in the refrigerator, it’s nothing to worry about, you can just give it a good mix and it’ll be good! There’s even a brand of store-bought Coconut Lemonade that I used to buy before I started making my own that does this all the time, I’d just shake it and enjoy the drink!
Good question! Well, I call it “lemonade” because it’s a translation from the original name of this drink which is “Limonada de Coco” in Spanish and it means “Coconut Lemonade”, it’s not called limeade because key limes are called “lemons” (“limones”) in Colombia (where this drink is from) and many other Latin American countries.
Storing instructions
Storing Instructions: Store Coconut Lemonade in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. Make sure to mix well before serving as sometimes ingredients separate when sitting in the refrigerator.
More drink recipes you’ll love
If you love tropical drinks like I do, here are a few more tropical drink recipes to try next:
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Coconut Lemonade
Ingredients
- 20 Key limes (or 10-12 regular limes which are called Tahitian/Persian, you want to get about 1 and 1/2 cups or 375 ml lime juice in total)
- 3 cups (750 ml) water
- 1 13.5-oz can (400 ml) coconut milk (or 1 whole fresh coconut, see the Recipe Notes below for how to make your own coconut milk)
- 1 cup (300 ml) sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
- Juice the limes. Using the palm of your hands, roll the limes firmly on the counter to help release more juice. Slice in half and squeeze them with your hands, a citrus press or use a juicer. Strain the lime juice through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any seeds and pulp.
- Combine the ingredients into a pitcher. Pour the lime juice, water, coconut milk and sweetened condensed milk into a pitcher and mix until combined. Make sure to scrape the bottom as you mix because condensed milk tends to sit at the bottom.
- Chill in the refrigerator and serve over ice. Mix well before serving as sometimes ingredients can separate when sitting in the refrigerator.
- For decorating the glass (optional): Apply a thin layer of the remaining condensed milk along the rim of each glass, make sure you don't add too much or it'll drip down the glass. Add 3 tablespoon of shredded coconut to a small dish and dip the rim of the glass into the coconut until it sticks.
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