Coconut Oil
We’ve mentioned coconut oil plenty of times before. Tons of our readers eat it. It’s good by the spoonful, with eggs, on your scalp, or as a moisturizer. It can even double as a benign form of suntan lotion. Coconut oil is primarily saturated (over 90%), with the bulk of it coming from lauric acid, a medium chain saturated fatty acid; it’s incredibly heat-stable. Use it for stir-frying and sautéing, or drop a spoonful in your coffee. Makes a good base for an energy bar.
A tablespoon gets you 14 grams of fat, 12 of them saturated.
Coconut Butter
Coconut butter is to coconut oil as butter is to ghee; it’s made from whole coconut flesh, with all the delicious fat and the solids included. The oil and flesh meld together to form a creamy texture that spreads well. I wouldn’t use it for any high heat cooking, though, as the bits of flesh will just burn. Spoonfuls of this stuff are delicious, but addictive. Because the flesh is included, it retains a decent amount of sweetness. A big dollop of coconut butter can really finish off a curry nicely, though.
Two tablespoons get you 18 grams fat, 16 saturated.
Coconut Milk
Coconut milk is made by mixing shredded, fresh coconut meat with water, then squeezing it through a sieve or cheesecloth. The thick, creamy liquid that comes out is coconut milk and can be used for Thai curries and Brazilian seafood stew. Personally, I love drinking a big chilled glass of it by itself. Because people tend to misinterpret the natural separation of coconut milk in the can as spoilage, most canned coconut milk often includes thickening agents like guar gum, especially the stuff sold in Western countries. I wouldn’t worry too much about guar gum. You could always make your own, of course, if you wanted to avoid any thickeners, preservatives, or BPA from the can lining.
A quarter cup gets you 12 grams of fat, 10 of them saturated.
Coconut Flour
We’ve gone over coconut flour before, so I’ll keep it brief. Use this stuff if you have a hankering for baked items. Ideally, we’d all stick to whole, real foods in their natural state, but there’s nothing wrong with the occasional Primal baked good. If it helps you maintain your eating plan without any major lapses, I’d say using coconut flour is a good compromise.
Two tablespoons get you 1.5 grams fat, 1 gram saturated, along with 10 grams of carbs, 9 of them fiber, and 2 grams protein.
Coconut Cream
Think of coconut cream as coconut milk without all the water. It’s the same stuff – pulverized coconut flesh mixed with water – but coconut cream is thicker and pastier. If you want to make a thicker coconut curry without all the added liquid, use coconut cream in place of milk. Many recipes even specifically call for coconut cream. In case you don’t have access to actual coconut cream, you can skim the thick top layer out of an unshaken, undisturbed can of coconut milk; that’s the cream. Store bought coconut cream is often sweetened, so be vigilant and scan those labels.
Creamed Coconut
Creamed coconut usually comes in a solid block. It may look like shortening or hydrogenated lard, but it’s not, and it may sound like coconut cream, but it isn’t. It’s pure coconut flesh, pulverized and formed into solid blocks that can be broken up into chunks and added to sauces or curries toward the end of cooking. Some claim it makes the best curries, better even than milk or cream-based ones. I haven’t tried, so I can’t verify that statement, but I am keeping my eyes peeled for creamed coconut.
An ounce will get you 20 grams of fat, mostly saturated, along with 6 grams of carbs, mostly fiber.
Desiccated Coconut
Desiccated coconut is unsweetened, very finely ground coconut with most of the moisture removed. This is not to be confused with coconut flour, which has the fat removed; desiccated coconut retains all the SFA goodness. Desiccated coconut is used all over for desserts, but PBers might enjoy sprinkling it over a bowl of berries and cream, onto curries, or directly into their mouths. It’s just the coconut flesh only dry, so there’s still a nice bit of subtle sweetness to desiccated coconut.
An ounce will get you 18 grams of fat, 16 grams saturated, 7 grams carbs, with 5 being fiber, and 2 grams of protein.
Shredded Coconut
Shredded coconut is mostly dry, but it usually retains more moisture than full-on desiccated coconut. But really, the main difference between shredded coconut and desiccated coconut (and flaked coconut, too) is the shape of the coconut. Shredded coconut comes shredded; it’s in thin strands or strips. Flaked coconut, meanwhile, comes is flatter, wider pieces. Still dry, though, and still coconut. Use shredded or flaked coconut the same way you’d use desiccated, ground coconut.
COCONUT WHOLESALE & PROCESSING
01
HARVESTING
Harvested coconuts are sent to the packing house.The green coconuts are graded and controlled of quality accordance with appropriate official procedures. All of raw material can be trace back for source of origin and quality records by batch number.
02
PEELING and CUTTING
Peeling off the green portion and trimming the coconuts to the diamond shape with a knife. Peeling off the green portion can remove soil and reduce microorganism that contaminated from farm.The final product has a flat bottom, round body with a pyramid top with a knife. Peeling off the white portion can remove soil and reduce microorganism residue
03
QUALITY CONTROL
To prevent browning and mold growth on the husk surface, coconuts are dipped in solution. After that they are transported from the QC room to the wrapping area. Drying area or QC room and packing room are the closing room. There have yellow PVC strip curtain in entrance and has insect control system (insect trap) to prevent reinfestation of pests. Equipment and containers that contact with coconut are cleaned follow by cleaning program. Personnel need to be required to put on clean protective clothing including footwear and wash their hands before entering to QC room and packing room to prevent reinfestation and infection from hand operators.
04
PACKAGING
Wrapping with shrink film (food grade) and sticking with brand sticker. For quality control, all the coconuts are inspected to ensure no reinfestation and reinfection from our trained staff.
05
FINISHED PRODUCTS
Finished products are packed in carton box and stored in chilling room. Normally, final products are transferred to container daily. Finished products are inspected and transferred to reefer container which controls the temperature and inspected the container loading before export to customers.Verification of the chemicals and microorganisms contamination in the coconut water and coconut meat such as agriculture chemicals, heavy metals, Coliform bacteria and Salmonella spp. by checking with the external standard laboratory at least once a year.