Puerto Rican Coquito is a sweet and creamy rum cocktail, similar to eggnog, but with lots of tropical coconut flavor. We’ve been making this authentic family recipe for many years and it is always a hit!
Every holiday season, I look forward to making our first batch of Coquito. Over the years, we’ve experimented with all kinds of variations, but to our family, this recipe really is the BEST. It’s rich, thick, perfectly spiced, and oh-so-creamy.
This Coquito recipe was gifted to us by our friend Christina’s Puerto Rican dad. Their family trick to the perfect Coquito is to soak a few cinnamon sticks in the rum to boost the cinnamon flavor. As soon as my husband Jorge, who’s also from Puerto Rico, took his first sip, we knew we’d found the one.
What Is Coquito?
Coquito (translated to “little coconut” in Spanish) is a rich, creamy Puerto Rican holiday drink that’s often called “Puerto Rican eggnog”. However, unlike eggnog, it’s coconut-based, made with rum, and doesn’t always contain eggs. Blended until smooth and chilled before serving, Coquito is usually served in small glasses since it’s very rich.
“This is our favorite Coquito recipe and we have been making batches of it for years and years! It is so thick, rich and creamy with tons of real coconut flavor. Soaking the rum with cinnamon sticks really makes a big difference.” — Juanita, skilled home cook for over 40 years.
Coquito Ingredients
Below you will find helpful notes and substitutions for a few key ingredients. Visit the printable recipe card below for ingredient amounts.
- Rum: You can use whatever type of rum you enjoy, or skip it completely for a non-alcoholic version. Traditionally a light Puerto Rican rum is used, like Bacardi Superior or Don Q Cristal. However, a dark aged rum is also delicious and will boost the flavors of vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. You can even use coconut rum or a mixture of rums.
- Cinnamon: You’ll need both cinnamon sticks and ground cinnamon.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk: You can use traditional sweetened condensed milk, or sweetened condensed coconut milk, but do not swap this for any other type of milk. This is an essential ingredient for achieving the right sweetness and texture.
- Cream of Coconut: Cream of coconut is sold under a few different names. Goya makes one, but we prefer the Coco Lopez brand.
- Coconut Milk: Get canned coconut milk with a thick layer of cream on top. I prefer the Badia brand of coconut milk as it almost always has a thick layer.
- Evaporated Milk: You can also use extra coconut milk instead, but we like the flavor we get when we use evaporated milk.
- Ground Nutmeg: Freshly grated nutmeg will add the most flavor. I use a microplane grater to grate whole nutmeg.
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How To Make Coquito
Thankfully Coquito is incredibly simple to make, all you need is a blender and a little patience! Below is a quick recipe overview with some helpful tips for success. Scroll down to the printable recipe card for the full instructions.
Flavor your rum with cinnamon (do this in advance). While this is an optional step, it gives your Coquito a great spiced flavor! We like to soak our rum with cinnamon sticks for at least 24 hours. For even more flavor, you can soak them for up to a week.
Blend all the ingredients together (minus the rum) in your blender until nice and smooth. Then combine this creamy mixture with the rum, stirring or shaking until well combined.
Chill for at least 4 hours before serving, but overnight is best if you can wait! This will give the Coquito time to thicken and will also help the flavors meld together.
How To Serve
Coquito is always served chilled, but do not add ice as it will water it down. The ingredients can separate over time, so always give your bottle of Coquito a good shake before serving!
For garnish, traditionally a little cinnamon is sprinkled over the top. Want a festive shredded coconut rim like in the photos? Coat the rim of the glass in honey, then press it into shredded coconut.
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
Coquito tastes even better after sitting for a day or two, making it the perfect make-ahead holiday cocktail for a party. The flavors meld together beautifully, making it richer and creamier!
Since this recipe is made without eggs and with canned milk, it can safely be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a couple of months. Just give it a good shake each time before serving as it can separate.
Coquito Recipe (Puerto Rican Eggnog)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups rum
- 2 cinnamon sticks, optional, but recommend for flavor
- 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk, or coconut sweetened condensed milk
- 1 (15 oz) can cream of coconut, Coco Lopez or Goya brand
- 1 (13.5 oz) can coconut milk
- 4 oz evaporated milk
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon,
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
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Instructions
- OPTIONAL: In a large pitcher with a lid (or two large jars with lids – this will make about 56 oz of liquid total) add rum and cinnamon sticks. Let soak for at least 24 hours, or up to a week. This will add an extra depth of spiced flavor to your Coquito!
- In a blender, puree all the other ingredients (sweetened condensed milk, cream of coconut, coconut milk, evaporated milk, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla extract and optional shredded coconut) until smooth.
- Pour mixture into the bottle of rum and shake well to combine. Chill for at least 4 hours to allow the flavors to meld and for the Coquito to thicken. The coconut cream will help it thicken as it chills. If it's not thick enough after chilling, check the notes below to thicken it even more.
- Store in airtight container in refrigerator for up 8 weeks. Shake vigorously each time before serving. Serve chilled, in a glass, with a little cinnamon or nutmeg on top and enjoy! Wepa!
Notes
Video
Nutrition
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Coquito Variations
Over the years, Puerto Ricans have started making many different unique flavors of Coquito. One of the most common variations is skipping the rum to make a non-alcoholic version for everyone to be able to enjoy. If you miss the rum flavor, you can always add a splash of rum extract.
We also love making pumpkin Coquito and have also enjoyed pistachio Coquito (add 1 cup of pistachio puree) and Nutella Coquito (add 1 cup of Nutella). Last Christmas we tried swapping half of the rum for Fireball whisky. It was surprisingly good and smooth and added even more cinnamon flavor.
Adding up to 4 tablespoons of shredded coconut will add a little more coconut flavor and will also thicken it slightly. You can use sweetened or unsweetened coconut, whichever you have on hand.
Lastly, you can try adding rum raisins. This is how some of our friends make it and it is a fun twist to find a few rum soaked raisins at the bottom of your glass. Soak up to 1 cup of raisins in the rum up to a week before. Strain them out of the rum and set them aside when blending everything together, then add them back in before putting your Coquito in the fridge.
What To Serve With Coquito?
So you’ve made a batch of Puerto Rican eggnog for your holiday party and are now wondering what to serve alongside it? There are so many delicious and festive options!
I highly recommend trying the traditional Puerto Rican holiday feast of pernil and arroz con gandules! You also can’t go wrong with this spiral ham or Thanksgiving turkey. Many Puerto Rican families here in the states will make both!
For sides, we always enjoy a batch of sweet fried plantains, crispy tostones, and ensalada de coditos. For dessert, you can’t go wrong with a cinnamon dusted tembleque, this easy tres leches cake, a batch of creamy arroz con leche, or our favorite queso flan!
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This is the BEST coquíto recipe I’ve ever made, it’s perfect and love the thickness and the cinnamon-rum flavor, and all recipients can’t wait till Xmas for me to gift them. Excellent! Thanks so much.
Sounds wonderful, so I’m sure that I’ll want to try it right away as soon as it’s mixed. Before I’ve chilled it. could I serve some of it over ice, on the rocks?
Hi Glenn! No need for ice, just shake it well and serve it as is in a glass!
I highly recommend starting off with 1/2 cup of rum THEN work your way up to taste – DO NOT add the 1.5 cup right off the bat – it is waaayyy to much (for some of us).
Wonderful. Made it with rum extract and it turned out great.
Would it be ok If I used unsweetened condensed milk instead of sweetened condensed milk? The recipe sounds a little too sweet for me. I know the cream of Coco is very sweet.
Sure you can, but as you said, it will definitely turn out less sweet. It will also have less coconut flavor as the cream of coconut adds a lot of coconut flavor.
This was not good. Followed the recipe exactly and it tasted overwhelmingly of cinnamon. Made a second batch without soaking the cinnamon sticks in the rum and adding zero cinnamon to the recipe to mix with the awful overly cinnamon concoction. It’s still nothing special. Save your calories for something more worthwhile. This recipe is a dud.
Everyone, be aware that the Grinch goes online to spread their grinchiness under the pseudonym “Leslie Smith.” I love the recipe.
Hi Leslie, sorry to hear you didn’t like it, but I don’t think this recipe is dud… more like Coquito is not for you. It’s definitely a sweet cinnamon-coconut flavored concoction!
I’d love to make this and put it in a pitcher dispenser. Is that possible? Will it still hold up if i mix with a large wooden spoon and put in the refrigerator?
Absolutely! You can store it in any airtight container and can shake or stir it again just before serving!
I have evaporated coconut milk, can I use that instead of plain evaporated milk?
Yes! That will work just fine! 🙂
I’m not a huge fan of eggnog but have guests that are. This was sooo much better than eggnog in my opinion and everyone loved it. Without rum it was a bit too sweet for me, but extra evaporated milk helped with that. Thanks for a yummy recipe!!!
Do I add the whole can of cream of coconut?
Yes!
Looking forward to making this recipe! I am wondering if anyone used a plastic pitcher for soaking the cinnamon sticks and raisins. Does it have to be a glass container?
You can use plastic! Any container that seals (or you can cover with foil) is great!
In the first step when you allow it to marinate I placed it in the fridge by habit that won’t alter the drink in anyway when I finish making it right?
No it won’t hurt the rum/raisins to be refrigerated!
What should I do if I added to much star anise to my coquito
Hi! This recipe does not use star anise, so I assume you used another recipe? Once an ingredient is added, especially something strong like star anise, it is impossible to remove. You could add more other ingredients to try to balance it, but you can not take it out.
Can you provide the measurements or at least somewhere to start for the recipe?
Hi Dimitry! The recipe is posted in full at the bottom of the post. You can scroll through the post to the bottom or hit the “Jump To The Recipe” button at the top of the post. (The recipe is located right above the comments.) Hope this helps!
When you let it sit, is it on the counter or in the fridge? I was also wondering what kind of container you used? TIA!
Once the coquito is prepared, always store it in the fridge! You can use any kind of jar with a lid! A pitcher with a lid usually works well. Some people will also reuse orange juice cartons, etc.
Not when it’s prepared. She means when you let the cinnamon sticks and raisins marinate in the rum- is it on the counter or in the fridge?
Hi Michelle, I do it on the counter, but it can be done in the fridge too. It doesn’t matter either way!
4 oz evaporated milk or the entire 14 oz can?
Hi RL, just 4 oz!
Omg here we go with the raisins!? No no no. Not coquito reserve that for rum raisins ice cream but no matter what not in any island drinks like coquito or ponche none of them we don’t do that.
Yes! I was just saying that I ain’t ever heard of anyone putting raisins in coquito and my tía makes her own. Other than that the recipe looks good
I left out the raisin part and it’s still fantastic! Yum!! Thank you so much for sharing!!
Hi! I made this and it’s delicious! The only trouble I’m having is after chilling the coconut fat formed a firm later at the top of the jar. Should this shake up? Or do i need to re blend it?
You should be able to shake it up! If it doesn’t, you can reblend it, but we have always been able to shake it back together before serving!
How mych rum do you add?
1.5 cups, so 12 oz rum.
Do you use sweetened shredded coconut or unsweetened?
You can use either, it’s a small amount and the little extra sugar doesn’t change the taste much either way!