Smart Fuel: Coconut Oil
We’ve written about the nutritional benefits of coconut, shared recipes that include coconut milk, and discussed the merits of coconut flour, but we’ve never actually fully covered one of the best coconut products out there: coconut oil.
Coconut oil consists of about 92 percent saturated fat and is therefore nearly solid at room temperature. It can be used in cooking, but is also a common ingredient in home remedies and skin care products.
Although it gets a bad rap in some circles for its high saturated fat content, we know that such fats can offer many health benefits. For example, coconut oil has been found to help normalize blood lipids and protect against damage to the liver by alcohol and other toxins, can play a role in preventing kidney and gall bladder diseases, and is associated with improved blood sugar and insulin control and therefore the prevention and management of diabetes. In addition, coconut oil has antiviral, antibacterial and anti-fungal properties. On a more superficial level, meanwhile, coconut oil is thought to help strengthen mineral absorption, which is important for healthy teeth and bones, and can also help improve the condition and appearance of the scalp, hair and skin when ingested or topically applied.
So how is this veritable miracle food manufactured? In brief, coconuts are collected, broken open and then the flesh is allowed to dry. To extract the oil, the dried flesh is then heated at a low temperature until any moisture is evaporated, leaving you with an oil residue. Now, the thing to note here is that in most coconut oil manufacturing processes chemicals are used to expedite drying as well as to speed the heating process. However, if you select an organic coconut oil, no chemicals will have been used during processing and the original coconut itself will have been grown without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
One other thing to note is that with coconut oils there are many different grades, or values of refinement. According to the Asian and Pacific Coconut Community Standards for virgin coconut oil, coconut oil can only be sold as such when it is “obtained from the fresh and mature kernel of coconut by mechanical or natural means with or without the application of heat, which does not lead to alteration of the oil.”
Refined coconut oil – which is generally what you’ll see in stores – is made from copra, the dried meat of the coconut. However, because the process of drying the coconut is somewhat unsanitary – it includes laying them out in the sun, putting them in a kiln, or smoking them – the oil is inedible, and is therefore required to undergo a refinement process that includes some combination of using high heat to deodorize the oil, filtering the oil through bleaching clays, adding sodium hydroxide to remove impurities and prolong shelf-life, or performing some kind of hydrogenation or partial-hydrogenation process. In industry terms refined coconut oil is RBD – refined, bleached, deodorized.
The choice is clear – steer clear of the refined stuff and stick with organic virgin coconut oil.
A word of warning about coconut oils labeled as extra virgin. Experts note that there is no other – or more virginal – process of extracting oil from coconuts and the concept of the “extra” is nothing more than a marketing ploy.
Coconut oil is less sensitive to heat than other oils (won’t oxidize as easily) so it’s great for stir-frys and sauteeing. You can substitute it in baking (when making Primal energy bars, for example) and in recipes that call for butter, lard or any other high-saturated fats. It is fairly similar in consistency to butter so it can be used as a spread for vegetables. It makes an excellent addition to a smoothie and can also be used in place of a creamer in coffee or tea.
Our verdict? This is one seriously tropical way to get some more healthy fat in your diet.
What do you use coconut oil for? Share your thoughts in the comment board!
Further Reading:
10 Steps to “Primalize” Your Pantry
Choose Your Own Stir-Fry Adventure
Guest Post by Modern Forager: Tropical Oils
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Posted By: Worker Bee
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We use coconut oil mostly for sauteing vegetables, but my wife also makes some natural skin products that contain coconut oil.
This is my go-to oil for cooking anything on the stove over medium heat. I’ve also used it in baking once or twice. A friend of mine even uses it instead of butter on toast.
I use it to cook eggs every morning. It’s good to blend into homemade nut butters and gives shakes a creamy taste without adding sugar. Also, when I’m craving fat and don’t want to eat fats with carbohydrates (i.e. almond butter), I’ll take a scoop straight. Nutiva makes a good organic, extra virgin coconut oil and they sell it by the gallon.
I’ve been taking coconut oil every day for about four months now, and one of the first effects I noticed was mood stabilization… people also started asking me if I was doing something “different”, because my skin was looking really good. I also apply it topically most nights before bed.
For cooking, it’s particularly great for fish.
I also use it in my sauteed veggies and as a butter replacement. And it’s wonderful for massages!
While I use virgin coconut oil raw, on my skin, and for baking and light sauteing, I have been using expeller-pressed coconut oil for frying. It’s flavorless so you don’t get that coconut flavor that competes with the flavor of the food.
I have used expeller-pressed coconut oil for fried chicken (with yogurt and sprouted flour), French fries, fried banana chips, and homemade tortilla chips (made from homemade masa from organic corn I soaked myself). It’s also great for popping popcorn. Everything I have made has come out delicious!
I’m going to try making all kinds of other things like doughnuts and tempura — I even want to try using it for fondue.
Expeller-pressed coconut oil is also a lot cheaper so I like to use it for frying. I buy it from Nutiva and Wilderness Family Naturals.
I used coconut oil on my skin for several months, thinking it was superior to chemical laden lotions. At first it worked great, but over time my natural oils must have slowed down, because my skin became like an alligator’s. I quit using it, and after several weeks, my skin recouped it’s natural look. I’ve since read articles on oil causing skin to dry out.
I love brussels sprouts that have been coated with coconut oil, dusted with curry powder, and then roasted. Yum!
I also put coconut oil in my hair about once a week for a deep conditioning treatment.
Anyone know a decent coconut oil available in the UK?
firstlunchthenwar – you can buy it in Holland and Barrett in the UK. £11.99 for 16oz.
We use coconut oil for all our frying. We use creamed coconut or coconut cream in our curries to create a creamy texture. We eat fresh coconut for dessert sometimes. I even put coconut oil on my vegetables instead of butter.
In short? We use it at every opportunity we get!
I love it on nearly frozen berries with a little cinnamon and a couple tablespoons of kefir (or yogurt). It goes on as a liquid and hardens into a thin shell that is a little crunchy and delicious!
I found a homemade chocolate recipe that calls for coconut oil! I started making it a few weeks ago and love it!
Great! About a week ago, I bought coconut oil for the very first time and I’m still experimenting what works with it and what doesn’t. If anyone got some experiences to share here, I’d be happy to hear about that. I think I’m still not using enough of it most of the time though. It wasn’t that cheap, but then again, even if I’m using a little more for frying etc. it shouldn’t change that much, it’s not that I’m eating it like I’d eat yogurt or anything.
@Parley: When you say you take it every day, yo you meantaking it with food or do you mean applying it on your skin? I’ve got quite some dry skin, so is this an good option?
Tblspn of CO + tspn of cocoa + sprinkle of xylitol + a few minutes in the freezer = nice “fudge” treat.
Enjoy !
We have generally avoided coconut oil because of the saturated fat, but my wife loves coconut milk. It may be interesting to look for some coconut flour though. Never tried cooking with that. Thanks for the info!
haven’t used coconut oil but i think i’m going to be ordering some and trying it asap! my pantry, refrigerator, and whole kitchen look so different these days… i LOVE it.. its so.. so.. soo, whats the word? PRIMAL!
I make a shake just about every morning. Not paleo/primal, but it’s become my morning staple. 8oz milk, 1 med. banana (or half a large), 1 scoop (30ish g) of chocolate protein powder, 1 heaping scoop of peanut butter (used almond butter a few times but it didn’t cut it for taste, for me pb goes better with the chocolate & banana), and about 1 big spoonful of coconut oil, ice and blend. Wanted just a little more ‘better’ fat than the PB alone was giving the shake and the coc. oil does the trick and adds a nice little extra flavor to it.
Also used coconut oil for scrambling eggs, can’t really tell much of a difference over butter.
I’ve used it in the Primal Bars several times. I’m glad to hear about the differences in coconut oils, my first jar of it was an expensive organic expeller pressed oil, but the one I’m on now was a significantly cheaper large container of it. I didn’t know the difference when I bought it (other than the first being labeled ‘organic’), now I do, thanks Mark.
The Wilderness Family Naturals has no coconut flavor – which apparently is true for all expeller-pressed (?). Sometimes you want the taste…sometimes you don’t!
It reminds me of those old SNL commercials: its a floor polish! its a dessert topping! I can’t wait to try that frozen berry treat, thanks Rodney. & thanks to Sally, I’m gonna have another way to prepare Brussel spouts (can’t get enough of ‘em).
Something I tried the other night: ahi tuni “dredged” in fresh ground black pepper and sesame seeds. Pan-sear in coconut oil on hot skillet.
I love coconut oil but do find that it flavors the food I cook slightly. It’s great if you are going for a tropical flavor or curry. And it’s great in desserts- esp of the raw variety.
I love coconut oil! I use it in all of my baking, as well as on toast and in stir-fry. I also combine it with sea salt, essential oils, and a little olive oil for a body scrub. Plus it’s delicious in greek yogurt if you happen to buy non-fat.
Emily from Healthy Eating, Naturally
My local co-op sells Coconut Butter that is to die for. Made by Artisana. I eat it by the spoon, or rather by the fork full, since in Seattle room temperature makes it too hard to scoop with a spoon most of the year.
It is a blend of the meat and the oil of the coconut. Check out their website:
http://www.superorganicfoods.com/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=95&gclid=COHazbbwm5oCFRYiagodLwLJ-A
I use coconut oil in my coffee, love it. Also as a general cooking oil. I can’t resist eating it out of the jar too. The Nutiva brand is what I use.
Not only to I cook with coconut oil and eat it but it makes a great massage oil (melts in your hand) and is great at preventing sunburn.
So eat it, play with it and wear it too! What other food is that diverse?
Belinda
madMUHHH-
I generally buy two tubs at a time, and keep one in the kitchen for cooking and eating (just a spoonful, straight, every morning when I get up. I’ve seen some sites recommending 2-3 spoonfuls a day).
The second tub I keep under the bathroom sink, and use some on my face/neck most nights before bed, and in my hair before bed once or twice a week.
I sometimes mix coconut oil half and half with butter. That way I get the good MCTs, but also the rich, buttery taste. Not that coconut oil has a bad flavor, but it’s just nice to change things up once in awhile without totally sacrificing one or the other.
In my country sri lanka, coconut oil, coconut milk, coconut meat and coconut water is used everyday for everymeal, coconut oil is the only oil used for cooking in rural parts of the country, and the oil is always homemade from fresh cocnuts, the people in these parts are incredibly healthy and fit, while people in cities use ‘western’ vegetable oil and they have high rates of obesity and diabetes, there are other factors of cause but coconut oil has amazing properties
Greg at Live Fit: Don’t avoid saturated fat! It’s good for you and is what humans have eaten for thousands of years.
I use it to cook, yum!
I use it like lotion after a shower. Melted it and added a couple drops of essential oil.
I put it on scrapes, cuts and such. I have noticed a much faster heal time when I use the coconut oil. It is also antimicrobial so it protects against infection.
Coconut oil was a godsend to my overly bruised skin (from too much running, which I’ve since quit thanks to this website), and it’s a great base for salad dressings. One of the things I’ve heard about it is that a teaspoon of VCO five minutes before every meal will help the food get digested easily, although the claim hasn’t been proven. Can anyone attest craziness? Because, I mean… gulping oil, that’s just nasty.
I’m with Methuselah, dump a load of that creamed coconut into my curries. The mix of hot chillies and cool coconut has only one disadvantage, it generates a strong demand for 85% chocolate.
Shall have to try the oil on its own, it’s now on my list for next week’s shop.
what is the difference between coconut oil and creamed coconut? i have seen both. the creamed stuff seems to come in a hard block and the only ingredients listed is coconut. so what’s the difference?
Creamed coconut is like coconut milk in paste form (without all the water); it contains whole coconut meat. Coconut oil is just the oil from coconuts, separated from the fiber, water, etc. Virgin coconut oil is made from fresh coconut, rather than dried coconut. Traditional Filipino VCO is made by allowing the liquid expressed from the fresh coconuts to ferment, which separates the fat from everything else. The other method used to make VCO is a centrifuge. Personally, I like the centrifuged VCO from Wilderness Family Naturals.
Ha ha, I use coconut oil in my hair. I tried to cook some tempeh in it once and it burned, so I haven’t tried again.
I keep one tub in the kitchen and use it for cooking when butter or olive oil wouldn’t be the best choice — any frying, soups, bread, whatever.
I keep another next to the bed. It is the most wonderful body lotion!
Just got a 5 gal tub (I think) from Mountain Rose. its awesome and I have been using it for a long time now, coc oil that is!!
coconut tree….is very amazing plant, we can take much benefits….for keeping our healthy
I use 1 part coconut oil, 1 part butter to all the foods I cook on the stove.
If someone in our family has a cut, bruise, burn or skin irritation of any kind – I put coconut oil on it. If it’s really bad I put some calendula oil and tea tree oil in a cup with coconut oil and whip it together. That mixture heals pretty much anything in a short amount of time.
Before we go out for extended periods of time I have everyone slather on some coconut oil and then we put on natural sunblock when we get where we’re going.
And I always use it as a moisturizer.
Memo to anyone trying to buy it and failing to find it, it isn;t in a bottle with the other oils as it’s pretty solid at room temperature and comes in a jar or tub (DUH!)
I was going to do the chicken thing listed above but mother decided it would have too many nuts, so I compromised and stir fried the chicken with streaky bacon coloured peppers garlic and ginger root in some coconut oil, first impressions are it has quite a high cooking temperature and didn’t taste of coconut.
I prefer the fresh coconuts here in Thailand.. drink the milk and eat the flesh. Yummi.
I just purchased some coconut oil and noticed the it had expired last month, should I throw it away?
You can say if it has spoilt from the smell. Natural coconut oil leaves a very unpleasant rancid smell if it has gone bad. If it smells just fine, you may continue to use it. Regular user of CO oil.
Another yummy chicken recipe. I love chickens. It’s delicious and easy to prepare. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
How do you use this instead of creamer for tea or coffee? I tried and the oil just rose to the top, making just about every sip pure oil…and I don’t love the taste straight. Am I missing something here?
Hi,
I recently saw organic coconut oil in a jar that was totally liquid and clear at room temperature – I shunned it because it was £10 for 500g!
I ended up buying a non organic jar from an Indian store for £1.59 for 500g. But this was solid and white at room temperature.
can anyone explain the why one was clear/liquid and the other was opaque/solid?
Alex: virgin coconut oil changes from a solid to a clear liquid right around a warm room temperature (it’s about 77 or 78 degrees F if my memory serves). So it’s possible that it was just warmer in one store than the other.
Another good source for both virgin and expeller/pressed coconut oil is Tropical Traditions; they also carry coconut cream concentrate and many other products they make from coconut oil. The owner’s wife is from the Phillipines and they use only coconuts grown by the local small farmers. Mary Enig, Phd, lipid expert suggests 3-4 tablespoons daily which contains the same amount of lauric acid as mother’s breast milk – it’s what keeps new babies from getting sick. And saturated fat is what your brain, heart and other organs use for energy. You need it!
On Virgin vs Extra Virgin- I have noticed a significant taste difference. The extra virgin CC oil tasting much more “coconutty” than the virgin (both being organic).
Mark, I am really surprised that you reported the supposed medical benefits of coconut oil. Most of your stuff is well researched and documented, but the coconut oil supposed benefits have never been proven scientifically.
There is a lot of crap on the internet and in magazines, and the rave reviews of coconut oil are crap. Just like the supposed benefits of acai berries.
Pure junk science.
I have always believed coconut oil to be healthy but just today I came across this statement:
http://www.texasgrassfedbeef.com/id84.htm#q__i_was_surprised_to_find_out
Do you have any comments on this, Mark? You’re knowledge on this topic would be much appreciated.
The gold label Tropical Traditions CO tastes so good that I eat a spoonful by itself sometimes. There isn’t anything else like it that I’ve discovered. The extraction process they use is unique.
Diane, there are lots of scientific studies *proving* the benefits of coconut oil. Like all scientific studies it’s up to you to decide if you think they are valid or not.
bruce b.
I use VCO for some cooking and I put it on toast with peanut butter and it’s D’lish. I also use it as an anit frizz serum for my hair and a straightening balm for my hair when I want to go straight. I use it sparingly since it is an oil and you can over do it. If you do overdo it, get some corn starch and go through your hair. I am also using it as a body moisturizer, I feel alot less dry all over BUT my hands are seeming to dry out quickly…maybe cause I am washing them all of the time. Great massage oil and I put it on my feet and throw socks on and go to bed and wake up with soft feet.