Homemade Coconut Butter
I love coconut butter. You will notice that in many of my recipes, I use coconut butter instead of coconut oil. Why? Because it has a richer flavor and a better texture than coconut oil. But coconut butter is both expensive and hard for some people to find. The solution? Make your own. But be sure to read the comments at the end of the post. It is good, but it isn’t exactly like Artisana coconut butter, my favorite.
I have seen a lot of posts on making your own coconut butter. I was pretty convinced that homemade coconut butter (made from dried coconut) could never be as good as the brand I like to use which is made from raw coconut. But this post, coconut butter, inspired me to try. I will walk you though the steps.
Homemade Coconut Butter – Visual Instructions. Recipe Follows.
Place dried coconut in food processor. I have a 12 cup processor. If yours is smaller, you can adjust and make two batches.
After 2 minutes
After 4 minutes
After 6 minutes. The oils are starting to release.
After 8 minutes it is looking pretty good.
After 10 minutes it is pretty liquid.
Pour it into a clean jar and let cool. Don’t worry, it isn’t hot, just slightly warm. As it cools it will harden.
Conclusion and Tips
I must admit, I was pretty impressed. It hardened (see first picture) after sitting at room temperature for a bit. It looked like coconut butter and it tasted pretty darn good. And I am very picky about the qualities of my ingredients. What I didn’t like was that it is grainy. Even after a turn in the high speed blender, I could never get the beautiful smooth consistency of the Artisana coconut butter I was comparing it to. But in a pinch, especially in recipes that the consistency would be covered up by other textures, it could work. And oh my, it is a fraction of the cost. My 16 ounces of dried coconut made over 2 cups. Probably the equivalent to a 10 ounce jar of the Artisana.
Note: My food processor is a 12 cup KitchenAid. It is a work horse. It didn’t even bat an eye at making this. But all food processors are different. Keep an eye on yours while running it this long.
Coconut Butter
MAKES 1 Cup
Coconut Butter
- 16 oz dried, non-sweetened flaked coconut
- Place coconut in food processor.
- Process until smooth. (See above photos)
Mauimandy@The Grains of Paradise wrote on October 27, 2011
Impressive! And so easy to make! I will try for sure!
Lara wrote on October 26, 2011
WOW, this looks so easy i cant wait to try it. I have often seen recipes calling for coconut butter and have searched high and low to find it………….thanks so much for sharing such a valuable recipe with me.
Leah wrote on October 26, 2011
I can’t find coconut butter where I live and I have so many recipes that use it, I was so excited to find this recipe! How long will a jar of this keep and do you keep it in the cupboard or in the fridge? Thank you!
Polly wrote on October 26, 2011
Hello Susan, when you dehydrate young coconuts do you spread out the meat or dry it in clumps?
Also, have found the Thai coconuts by the case in oriental food shops for under 2 bucks per coconut.
Gonna try this. Thx for your inspiration to keep on learning and discovering! Hope you’re well:)
Susan wrote on October 26, 2011
Hi, Polly! I do not dehydrate the young coconuts. Someone else does that. I would think that it would actually get very expensive to do it that way instead of using organic unsweetened dried coconut. Or even buying coconut butter!
Susan wrote on October 25, 2011
I have used fresh young coconut meat, but you have to dehydate it at 105-114 until dry. I made great coconut butter with it!! I did cost me more money because here in NM the young coconut cost $3.99.
Jen {The Wholehearted Life} wrote on October 25, 2011
Love making my own coconut butter! I always found Artisana a bit grainy so the graininess hasn’t bothered me but I am going to give it a whirl in the Vitamix…never thought of that! Such a great way to save money and still get the benefits!
Jennifer Minar-Jaynes wrote on October 25, 2011
Wow–this is going to be so helpful. We go through so much coconut oil in our home & it’s expensive. Haven’t had coconut butter, but know it’s even more expensive, so I’m going to try this through my Vita-Mix and see if I can’t substitute. 🙂
Thanks for the wonderful tip. After trying it for myself, I’ll link to this post from my own blog!
Best,
Jennifer
Veronica wrote on October 24, 2011
Hello, just wanted to let you know that I too LOVED Artisana at one point until I started making my own coconut butter about a year ago. I DO use the Vitamix and have never had a problem with it being grainy. It takes maybe 2 1/2 minutes and yes, you have to use the plunger. I also use “Let’s Do Organic” brand shredded coconut…don’t know if it matters, but my friend used shredded coconut from the bin at her local health food store and hers didn’t turn out well. When she used the particular brand, it turned out fine…I suppose it could be an issue with freshness maybe? Who knows how long that coconut sat in the bin! 😉 Now I make six 16 oz jars of delicious coconut butter for what ONE jar of Artisana used to cost me…can’t beat that!! =D
Susan wrote on October 25, 2011
It’s interesting….I probably wouldn’t have noticed it if I hadn’t done a side by side test. And even after a trip through the vitamix, it still had a little different consistency…which I would expect. 🙂
Joy! wrote on October 23, 2011
So thankful you shared this. I have to use mines quite sparingly b/c it’s so expensive. You Rawk.