jar of coconut oil

If you are feeling particularly adventurous, you can make your own Virgin Coconut Oil at home. The process is quite simple and there are a few ways of doing it so you can experiment and decide which one you prefer.

All you need are a few fresh, mature coconuts and a bit of time. The oil you produce at home will be the real deal, with no additives, preservatives or chemical residue. It will be cheaper than the oil you can buy at the shops, provided you have access to coconuts at a good price.

Start with only two or three coconuts until you get the hang of the process.

Here is one method:

Method I – Natural Fermentation /cold pressing

Remove the husks from the coconuts and cut the shells in half with a sharp knife. Drain the coconut water into a bowl and set aside.

Scoop out the meat and chop it into small pieces and place it in a cloth or net bag.

Now squeeze the bag to extract the coconut milk. When you have extracted as much as you can, dip the bag in the bowl of coconut water and squeeze again and you will be able to get more milk out.

Mix the remaining coconut water with the milk and put it in a clean glass jar. Leave it at room temperature (32 C / 89 F) for about 20 hours.  Obviously, if you don’t live in the tropics, room temperature is going to be a lot colder so you could put the jar in an insulated box to keep it warm.

The water will separate from the oil, which will float above the water and on top of the oil you will find an opaque layer of protein – the curds. Remove this layer and filter the oil, which should be clear.

You can find two more methods here: “The Complete Book of Coconut Oil”  – in this highly informative and entertaining  book you will read the fascinating story of Coconut Oil, it’s benefits, uses, scientific analysis and recipes for food, beauty and healing.