coconut oil?

[freethinkermama]

I've just started noticing a lot of ladies talking about this (I'm slow, I know :)).

I don't know much about Nourishing Traditions, nor Mercola, but I see them a lot when I Google "coconut oil".

 

Let's just say I was skeptical about NT and Mercola, could you explain the deal with coconut oil to me? Can I use it just like I'd use shortening and butter? Why should I?

 

All ears! I'm trying to make good food changes for my family a little at a time.

 

If I did go coconut oil, where should I but it?

 

Thanks!

[Papillon Mom]

We love coconut oil. I use it to saute veggies or fish. I like the taste, the smell, and it doesn't have any cholesterol. I don't spread it on bread. I use butter. I don't make cookies or cakes with it. Too much has given a couple family members tummy upset. We buy from Amazon.com

Take Care,

Amanda

[Aunty Social]

I don't know anything about Nourishing Traditions or Mercola, but I do use coconut oil. I like the flavor when I am sauteing veggies or frying eggs, and I like to use it in baking because I think it makes for a more tender product with the melting point being so low (no proof, just how I feel). I add it to green smoothies so there is a little fat to make them more filling, and again, the light flavor is complimentary to the fruit. I also use it as a moisturizer sometimes, although I prefer to either make a lotion or just use grapeseed oil. I use coconut oil when I am out of my creams and need something heavier than grapeseed.

 

Don't know if that helps at all, but it is how I use it.

[Hockey Mom]

I use it when I make popcorn. It's almost as good as peanut oil!

 

I also like to use it for baking desserts.

 

I buy mine at Walmart or Publix.

[Slartibartfast]

I use coconut oil for some things but I generally do not listen to Mercola.

[FaithManor]

I use coconut oil for baking and low temp saute. Though it is a saturated fat, it is a highly healthy saturated fat because it provides long chain fatty acids for the brain and internal organs that are generally missing from the western diet. The fatty acids cannot be obtained from the typical western oils such as vegetable oil, corn oil, canola oil, and olive oil. It also has anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial qualities.

 

It is solid above 75 degrees and liquid below. I use it as a replacement for recipes that call for shortening. Nearly all shortenings, with the exception of Spectrum Organic Palm Oil shortening, are hydrogenated which is very bad for you...essentially a plastic cholesterol that doesn't break down and just clogs arteries, slows digestion, and interferes with nutrient absorption.

 

It has a slightly sweet flavor, especially if organic extra virgin is used. I soften mine ever so slightly in a warm area and then blend it with the blender or whip it with a fork until it is really smooth and creamy, just like Crisco's texture. This makes it blend nicely for pie crusts, cookies, biscuits, etc.

 

Since I'm not certain what part of the country you live in, I can't tell you where to purchase it. I get mine at health food store and pay more for it than I would if I lived close to a Whole Foods Market or Trader Jo's.

 

Faith

[Mynyel]

We love coconut oil too, buy mine on Amazon from Vitamin Shoppe. We use is for some cooking (it has a high temp tolerance) and use it in things like lip balm and such. It is good for the skin as well. And it smells wonderful! Gives food a little coconutty taste that is really good!

[shalom22]

I use coconut oil for baking and low temp saute. Though it is a saturated fat, it is a highly healthy saturated fat because it provides long chain fatty acids for the brain and internal organs that are generally missing from the western diet. The fatty acids cannot be obtained from the typical western oils such as vegetable oil, corn oil, canola oil, and olive oil. It also has anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial qualities.

 

It is solid above 75 degrees and liquid below. I use it as a replacement for recipes that call for shortening. Nearly all shortenings, with the exception of Spectrum Organic Palm Oil shortening, are hydrogenated which is very bad for you...essentially a plastic cholesterol that doesn't break down and just clogs arteries, slows digestion, and interferes with nutrient absorption.

 

It has a slightly sweet flavor, especially if organic extra virgin is used. I soften mine ever so slightly in a warm area and then blend it with the blender or whip it with a fork until it is really smooth and creamy, just like Crisco's texture. This makes it blend nicely for pie crusts, cookies, biscuits, etc.

 

Since I'm not certain what part of the country you live in, I can't tell you where to purchase it. I get mine at health food store and pay more for it than I would if I lived close to a Whole Foods Market or Trader Jo's.

 

Faith

 

Lots of great info. But you have this backwards. It is solid below 75 degrees and liquid at temps above that. :D

[Mergath]

I briefly considered using it, but when I saw that, in my area, it costs around six times as much as butter, I think I'll just stick with what I normally use. :glare:

[Mynyel]

http://www.amazon.com/Nutiva-Organic-Coconut-54-Ounce-Containers/dp/B003QDRJXY/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1296268046&sr=8-3

 

This is the kind I get and its less than $40 for two 54 oz if you use Amazons subscribe & save :) I use the subscribe & save for diapers, love it! I am going to start using it for the coconut oil too! They didn't have it the last time I looked! Yay for me!

 

 

ETA: I don't substitute butter with the oil, I use it int he place of shortening in things I want a coconutty flavor for... For instance in brownies it calls for oil, I use coconut oil, for biscuits it calls for shorting... I use shortening I don't want coconutty biscuits! :)

[FaithManor]

Thanks Shalom22, I didn't have my coffee today!!! Shame on me and I'm sprouting a headache because of it. So much for my chemistry skills today.LOL

 

Faith

[Jen in PA]

I started using it because I do lots of vegan baking to bring to our co-op, and it works very well in place of butter. It's also fantastic as a moisturizer.

[BeckyFL]

I buy from Vitacost. Great prices!

[cjzimmer1]

 

Since I'm not certain what part of the country you live in, I can't tell you where to purchase it. I get mine at health food store and pay more for it than I would if I lived close to a Whole Foods Market or Trader Jo's.

 

Faith

 

Aren't you in Michigan?

 

I buy my coconut oil from Country Life Natural Foods (http://www.clnf.org). They have the best price for coconut oil I have found anywhere. They are based out of Michigan so even if you are on the other side of the state, I would expect they should have drop points near you. Or you can call them and ask what groups are near year.

 

I bought 54 oz container for $19.00 there last fall. Amazon was about 25.00 and our local store was 35 for the exact same brand/size.

[Hen]

I just started reading Nourishing traditions...I don't know how realistic it is for us, or how far we will go..but I am wanting to try to take baby steps with cooking healthier.

 

I have a question about coconut oil, do you substitute it in baking straight 1:1? if it says 1/2 cup shortening, do you then use 1/2 cup coconut oil?

 

thanks. :001_smile:

[Aunty Social]

 

I have a question about coconut oil, do you substitute it in baking straight 1:1? if it says 1/2 cup shortening, do you then use 1/2 cup coconut oil?

 

thanks. :001_smile:

 

That's what I do.

[ProudGrandma]

I love using coconut oil in my baking....adds such a nice flavor. I ususally add just a little bit less of the c. oil than the recipe calls for...

 

I get mine from Green Pasture Products...I get it by the gallon.

Coconut Oil - Green Pasture

Oh, we also love it in our oatmeal. Yes I know that sounds strange...but it is WONDERFUL!!...just a Tbsp or so in each bowl. It is also a great skin moisturizer...unless you don't want to smell like a coconut. When my kids come in from outside in the cold and their cheeks are red and dry, I put some on them...

[1GirlTwinBoys]

It's great for a moisturizer. I'm sensitive to a lot of products and will break out easy. I don't break out at all with coconut oil. We keep some in the bathroom and also in the kitchen. I use it lot's of different ways with cooking/baking.:)

[happypamama]

I use it for frying sometimes, though I generally use real butter. I use coconut oil mostly for baking, when a recipe calls for shortening. No Crisco in this house! I also use coconut oil when baking for my dairy-allergic FIL; it imparts a pleasant flavor that he particularly liked in chocolate cake. (Convinced MIL to use it too when she was cooking for Thanksgiving, which included my SIL, who was nursing a baby allergic to both dairy and soy -- she'd have used Crisco, but that's all soy.)

 

(And I use coconut oil for moisturizing, and for diaper rashes too. It is antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal, so it's great for stuff like that.)

 

I get mine from amazon, the Nutiva brand, via the Subscribe and Save program. That's the best price per ounce for that size jar that I've seen. I think some people might get it from a Frontier co-op as well. You might get a better price per ounce if you buy a really big jar, but bulk buying is often out of my budget.

 

Oh, and yes, I use it 1:1. Half cup of shortening = half cup of coconut oil.

 

I've also heard that since it's supposed to be good for speeding up metabolism and therefore weight loss, you can put it in things like hot tea, or just eat a bit before meals. You can also use it if you do oil pulling for your teeth. It's full of lauric acid, IIRC, so it's a good thing for nursing mothers.

Edited January 30, 2011 by happypamama

[kewb]

I love my coconut oil. I primarily use it for making popcorn and for eggs. Sometimes I saute with it.

[freethinkermama]

Thanks all, I'm going to try it!

[KatieH]

I love it :) I would say, just skip the very processed kind you can get at WalMart, and get a higher quality oragnic brand. Virgin or extra virgin is best, but it does have a coconut flavor. I also like Tree of Life brand, it's organic and expellar pressed (iirc) but it is processed enough that it doesn't have the coconut flavor. Dh hates coconut, so that's what I use for him :)

[Hen]

thanks for the replies, I will be trying it! :)