I never thought I would cook with coconut oil. For many years, I have been hearing and reading only negative things about it. I still every now and again come across such opinions in newspapers and online. But when I hear questions such as: How do you get oil from corn?Does soy really have oil in it? and What is really canola oil?I stopped to think really hard… until I found out about this site on the internet. (If you have not read this you should, it is worth some thought). I also began to think about coconut oil and its many uses.
The Many Uses of Coconut Oil
My grandmother and my wife’s grandmother used coconut oil religiously. Back in the day this was the only oil people used. Besides its use as a cooking oil, coconut oil was treasured by the elderly during my grandmothersâ time because of its health properties. They used it to massage their sore muscles, as hair oil, and as oil for the skin to keep it soft and smooth.
Is Coconut Oil a Better Oil?
After years of being fooled by the mass media and their propaganda to promote the other so called oils, I finally decided to make the switch. It was really for the better because this oil has proved to be certainly amazing. When I first used it in my cooking, the food smelled really good and the pot was very easy to clean. The oil washed off the pot easier than any other type of oil; even the stove was easy to clean after cooking. What I also noticed from the few years of using it was that the oil wasn’t easily absorbed in the food. I noticed this when I popped pop corn or fried fish; the pop corn would come out light and fluffy as if it was air popped instead.
I have been cooking with this oil for some time now. As a matter of fact, I only buy two types of cooking oil: coconut oil and olive oil. I like coconut oil because I don’t gain weight when I use it and I have an all round sense of well being now. Many people in countries such as, The Philippines and Bali etc. still use it in their cooking. Here’s a site showing how it’s done in Bali.
How to Make Coconut Oil
Inspired by this I decided to make some oil myself just like my grandmother used to make it. You’ll notice how similar it is, to how it’s done in Bali. Enjoy!
Coconut Oil
To make coconut oil for your first try you will need at least 5 medium or large dry coconuts to yield approximately 1 cup of oil. Remove the kernel and chop into small pieces. Place a handful of chopped kernel at a time into a blender with about 2 cups of water and blend until it is fine. More water may be added at times. However, you may have to repeat the sequence about three times.
Strain the mixture through a sieve, squeezing it with your hand to express more coconut milk and allow the liquid to rest for at least 24 hours. The cream and the water will separate. Skim the cream from the top and place it into a deep heavy pot.
Place the pot over a medium flame and allow it to simmer. Slowly the oil appears at the top. The curdled cream (also called “coconut caca” by some) should be scraped to the side. The oil gets clearer. You may begin to skim some of it from the pot and place it in a glass bowl to cool. Allow the cream to ‘fry’ right down until no more oil could be expressed. (Please note that you should keep the fire very low so as not to destroy the phytonutrients in the oil).
We have come to the end of another wonderful post from Trinidad. In my next post I will show you how to make one of my favourite recipes, Coconut Bake so don’t throw away the coconut after squeezing out the milk. We’ll be using this to make the bake. Until then, Bye! 😉
We’ll be using this to make the coconut bake so don’t throw it away. Also, the coconut oil will be quite useful in making the coconut bake as well.
Coconut Oil
Ingredients
- 5 medium or large dry coconuts
- water
Instructions
- Remove the kernel and chop into small pieces. Blend a handful of pieces of dry coconut with about 2 cups of water until fine.
- More water may be added at times. However, you may have to repeat the sequence about three times.
- Strain the mixture through a sieve – squeezing it with your hand to express more coconut milk. Allow the liquid to rest for at least 24 hours. The cream and the water will separate.
- Skim the cream from the top and place it into a deep heavy pot. Place the pot over a medium flame and allow it to simmer.
- Slowly the oil appears at the top. The curdled cream (also called “coconut caca” by some) should be scraped to the side
- Skim the clear oil from the pot and place it in a glass bowl to cool. Allow the cream to ‘fry’ right down until no more oil could be expressed.
What an interesting post – thank you for sharing!
My pleasure.
hey where in trinidad do you get coconut oil to buy? I am a young medical doc and would like to have my family use coconut oil right tru for cooking.
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Unfortunately dr noyz, I myself have been experiencing some difficulty in obtaining coconut oil. I actually called the national coconut growers association here in Trinidad and was told that there was a shortage of copra. What I had to revert to was to make it myself, as in the post, in the mean time, or use sparingly olive oil, the next best. It is usually sold in supermarkets when I can get my hands on it. Thank you for your comment, greatly appreciated.
I know there is quite a lots of coconut oil in Trinidad , what about if there is a new brand which is Tasteless and not with the Coconut aroma. ie you can cook any Veg or meat , the Food do not taste or smell coconut !
Recently, I bought one of which you speak because there were none of the usual brands on the shelf. For the record, I love the smell.
I have a hard time finding affordable and healthy (processed properly) coconut oil here in the US. I order mine online and have it shipped from one of the 2 companies I have found that do it right, called Tropical Traditions or Wilderness family.
Oh, hey! I just saw the add for Tropical Traditions on your blog. Cool.
It is my preferred oil for the same reasons you’ve given. The only problem is that it is no longer readily available at the supermarkets. I buy it whenever I see it on the shelves. Thanks for the recipe!
Very interesting blog! do you know of anywhere in Trinidad that sells wholesale organic coconut oil???
Nope sorry 🙂
Hi Lisa,
I make coconut oil (among other coconut products) and will be happy to give you a free sample of the oil. It carries a fresh light “coconutty” scent and is not heat treated which explains its transparent colour (100% cold processed). The coconut is one of my favourite foods; I have done some research into its health benefits and recommend 100% cold processed coconut oil for everyone (even my pets love it). I am currently marketing it to everyone I know and meet and hope to place this product on our grocer’s shelves to reintroduce and promote the use of healthy and functional foods among our Trini. people. So feel free to give me a call (1868-354-7478) if you wish to try it. I absolutely recommend it for cooking, hair-skin-scalp moisturizing. Coconut oil is very absorbent and non-greasy; because of its minute chemical composition it is one of the very few oils readily absorbed by the skin.
Jamilah,
Thank you for your comment. I have an idea, would you like to tell us more about your product in the October’s Issue of Compere magazine. We would love to interview you, introduce your product to our readers with pictures of it as well. What do you think?
Hi Felix,
Unfortunately I may have missed the opportunity you posted , since I am so late in replying. However I am quite interested in your idea and would love to chat more on this. Please feel free to contact me at .
Look out for an email soon.