Expeller Pressed Organic Coconut Oil
Available in 1 Gallon and 5 Gallon Pails
Despite years of enduring a bad rap, coconut oil is making its way back into its rightful place as a truly healthy oil. You can read more about the benefits of coconut oil and how it got such negative publicity here, but let me give you a quick overview of why it’s so good for you and what it’s like.
What Makes Coconut Oil So Good For You?
One of the main healthy components of coconut oil is lauric acid, in fact, coconut oil is about 50% lauric acid. Lauric acid is a medium chain fatty acid that protects us from lipid coated viruses such as HIV, herpes, influenza, various pathogenic bacteria including heliobacter pylori (the bacteria responsible for stomach ulcers), and other harmful organisms. Lauric acid is abundant in human breast milk and coconut products, and butter contains some too, but it is almost nonexistant in any
other food. Coconut oil fights candida, supports the thyroid, and some say it can boost metabolism, which is why some people are able to loose weight by adding coconut oil to their diet.
The other reason coconut oil is so good for you is this: unsaturated oils will become rancid within hours of cooking, even in the refrigerator. Since coconut oil is a saturated fat, it is stable at higher temperatures than unsaturated oils and will not become rancid when you heat it.
What is this organic expeller pressed coconut oil like?
Tropical Traditions’ organic expeller pressed coconut oil is white when it is a solid (at temperatures below 76 degrees F) and clear when it is liquid, at 76 degrees (F) or above. Expeller pressed coconut oil tastes bland.
It’s easy to add coconut oil to foods you already prepare every day.
We use expeller pressed coconut oil for sauteeing veggies, browning meats, frying eggs, popping popcorn (mmm.. this is a really good use for coconut oil – the popcorn tastes so good with coconut oil), and baking. You can use coconut oil cup for cup in place of any other oil in a recipe, but you may need to melt it first. You can even use coconut oil in its solid state (below 76 degrees F) in place of butter in most cookie recipes.
Why Expeller Pressed Coconut Oil is our family’s oil of choice for cooking.
Plain and simple: it’s cheaper than virgin coconut oil.
I like to keep a pail of expeller pressed coconut oil to use for cooking and baking, and one pail of organic virgin coconut oil for adding to smoothies and for health-building treats like High Fat Coconut Energy Bars and peppermint patties so we can reap the full nutritional benefits of virgin coconut oil while using the cheaper oil for much of our everyday cooking.
Yes, expeller pressed coconut oil is less nutrient dense than virgin coconut oil, which is something to consider. (But even expeller pressed coconut oil is still high in lauric acid and vitamin E.) And yes, it has been heated, but if you’re just going to cook with it anyway, it may be a better choice than the pricier virgin coconut oil.
One other reason we like to cook with expeller pressed coconut rather than virgin is that expeller pressed coconut oil tastes more bland. Sometimes that’s a good thing.
From the Tropical Traditions Website: “Tropical Traditions Expeller-Pressed Coconut Oil is a high quality refined coconut oil. This oil is processed the “old†way by what is called “physical refining.†The modern way of processing coconut oil is by chemical extraction, using solvent extracts, which produces higher yields and is quicker and less expensive. Tropical Traditions Expeller-Pressed Coconut Oil DOES NOT use solvent extracts. It is made the “old†way by expeller-pressed mechanical extraction. This oil is also NOT hydrogenated, and contains NO trans fatty acids. It is a very good quality food-grade coconut oil.
“Tropical Traditions Organic Expeller-Pressed Coconut Oil is made from certified organic coconuts that have NOT been treated with chemicals or fertilizers. It is certified organic according to European and USDA standards. Our Organic Expeller-Pressed Coconut Oil is high in the medium chain fatty acids, such as Lauric acid. Organic Expeller-Pressed Coconut Oil is less expensive than Virgin Coconut Oil, and because it goes through a steam deodorizing process the taste is very bland, unlike Virgin Coconut Oil which retains the odor and taste of fresh coconuts. Some people prefer a bland, tasteless oil. This coconut oil is solid below 76 degrees F. and liquid above that.”