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Bring the tropical vacation to the comfort of your own home with the perfect piña colada recipe. This drink has beautifully balanced tropical flavors from coconut and pineapple, spiked with a generous pour of rum.
The piña colada is a popular tropical drink, and for good reason. It is creamy, thick, and loaded with pineapple and coconut flavor. It comes together with a few ingredients and could not be simpler to make. Simply put everything into a blender and blend until smooth!
This recipe makes two cocktails, so feel free to double the recipe to serve your friends. And if you are not in the mood for alcohol, virgin pina coladas are a delicious tropical treat. Keep reading to see how to make piña colada mocktails with this recipe! And for more summer cocktails, try my watermelon margaritas, hurricane drink recipe, or a zombie cocktail.
What You Need To Make This Recipe
Pineapple juice — canned pineapple juice works well. You need ½ cup (or one 4-ounce can) for this recipe.
Cream of coconut — don’t substitute cream of coconut with coconut cream. They aren’t the same thing. You should be able to find it in the cocktail mixers section at the grocery store. If not, liquor stores should have it.
Rum — you need white rum (or silver rum) and aged gold rum.
Pineapple — frozen pineapple chunks are the best option for a frosty drink. If you want to use fresh pineapple, make sure it is ripe and sweet. Cut it into chunks and freeze it before blending.
Ice — ice helps to keep your cocktail cold and also adds to its creamy consistency.
Garnish — fresh sliced pineapple and maraschino cherries are a lovely finishing touch for even more tropical vibes.
How To Make Piña Colada
1. To the container of a blender, add the pineapple juice and cream of coconut.
2. Pour in the white rum and aged rum.
3. Drop in the frozen pineapple chunks.
4. Measure and add the ice.
5. Blend the mixture for about 30 seconds or until very smooth.
6. Pour the frozen cocktail into chilled cocktail glasses and garnish with a pineapple slice and a maraschino cherry.
What Rum Is Best For a Pina Colada?
In my opinion, a combination of light rum and aged rum yields the best piña colada. Aged gold rum adds depth of flavor without being overpowering. To add more coconut flavor, you can also swap the white rum for coconut rum.
In terms of alcohol quality, the best rum is one you enjoy the flavor of. It does not need to be top-shelf alcohol, as the fruity and coconut flavors are most prominent in the drink. However, it should still taste good, so I recommend a rum in the middle price range: not the most expensive nor the cheapest.
The Difference Between Coconut Cream And Cream Of Coconut
While their names sound very similar, coconut cream and cream of coconut are not the same thing! Coconut cream is a thick dairy-free cream made from coconut flesh and water–the thick portion at the top of a can of separated unsweetened coconut milk. Cream of coconut (like Coco Lopez) is very sweet and almost syrupy, similar to sweetened condensed milk.
Make A Pina Colada Mocktail
Making a non-alcoholic piña colada is very simple! Leave out both rums and either add an equal amount of pineapple juice or coconut water in their place. Other than that, follow the recipe as written for a delicious virgin pina colada recipe!
Pro Tips For Making This Recipe
- Add a tropical fruit twist. Replace 1 cup of frozen pineapple with frozen mango. Or, swap out the pineapple juice with guava, passionfruit, or mango nectar for even more tropical flavor.
- Use frozen pineapple. It helps keep the drink cold but also helps with the creamy milkshake-like texture.
- Use cream of coconut. NOT coconut cream. The names are confusing, but they are not interchangeable. Coconut cream will not work in this recipe.
- Chill the glasses. This helps keep this tropical cocktail cold and frosty.
- Too sweet? Add a splash of fresh lime juice to balance out the flavor.
Frequently Asked Questions
You definitely can if you drain and freeze the chunks first, but it’s not my first choice. Canned pineapple can be overly sweet. Frozen pineapple (or ripe fresh pineapple that has been frozen) works best because the frozen fresh fruit has more acidity to balance out the sweetness and creaminess from the cream of coconut and has the best pineapple flavor.
Yes, this recipe is vegan and dairy-free, with the creamy element coming from coconut.
Yes, you can double the recipe. As written, the recipe makes two cocktails, so double it for 4 servings. You can certainly make even bigger batches, but I recommend only doing one double batch in the blender at a time to ensure the mixture blends up smoothly.
If you’ve tried this piña colada recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Piña Colada Recipe
Equipment
- Blender
- Cocktail glasses
Ingredients
- ½ cup pineapple juice
- ¼ cup cream of coconut
- 3 ounces white rum
- 2 ounces aged rum
- 2 cups frozen pineapple chunks
- 1 cup ice
- Pineapple slices and maraschino cherries for garnish
Instructions
- In the container of a blender, combine the pineapple juice, cream of coconut, and rums. Add the frozen pineapple and ice. Blend until smooth, about 30 seconds.
- Pour into chilled cocktail glasses and garnish with pineapple and a cherry.
Notes
- Add a tropical fruit twist. Replace 1 cup of frozen pineapple with frozen mango. Or, swap out the pineapple juice with guava, passionfruit, or mango nectar for even more tropical flavor.
- Use frozen pineapple. It helps keep the drink cold but also helps with the creamy milkshake-like texture.
- Use cream of coconut. NOT coconut cream. The names are confusing, but they are not interchangeable. Coconut cream will not work in this recipe.
- Chill the glasses. This helps keep this tropical cocktail cold and frosty.
- Too sweet? Add a splash of fresh lime juice to balance out the flavor.
Nutrition
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