Pierce the softest eye of the coconut with a skewer and drain the water into a glass. Crack the shell with a hammer, pry out the meat, and peel off the thin brown skin with a vegetable peeler. Grate the meat on the large holes of a box grater until you have 300 g, then grate the ginger.

Add the coconut, sugar, water, ginger, vanilla and salt to a 3-quart / 2.8 L heavy-bottomed saucepan. Set it over medium heat and stir for about 3 minutes, until the sugar dissolves and the liquid starts to simmer.

Lower the heat to medium-low and cook for 15 to 17 minutes, stirring every minute or two and constantly for the last 5 minutes. Stop when most of the syrup is absorbed and a spoonful pressed on a plate holds its shape with only a thin sheen left. Take the pan off the heat right away, because overcooked mixture sets hard and grainy.

Move half of the warm mixture to a small heatproof bowl. Add 3 to 4 drops of red food coloring and stir quickly until the color is an even pink. Leave the other half white in the pan.

Line a 33 x 46 cm / 13 x 18 inch baking sheet with parchment. Drop heaping tablespoons of the mixture onto it, about 25 g each, pressing each lightly into a mound with the back of a wet spoon. Alternate pink and white to get 14 to 16 pieces, working while the mixture is still warm.

Leave the pieces uncovered at room temperature for 30 minutes, until they feel firm and no longer sticky. Lift them off the parchment and serve.