Homemade coconut oil for soapmaking

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Taleman

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Has anyone tried using homemade coconut oil in place of store bought 76 degree coconut oil? I live in Miami and get so many coconuts from our trees every year. Most just go straight to the garbage. I'm hoping I can use them to make soap.
 
I haven't tried it myself, however there is a Soaping 101 video that goes through the entire process.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiA1wtqYQ80[/ame]

Seems like a lot of work to me, but then I'm in Canada. If coconuts grew on my lawn I might very well feel differently!
 
You are so lucky!! We have to pay $5 for one - 1 - coconut here I live. If we can find one in a store, that is. Not really huge demand for them here. It would make homemade coconut oil more valuable than gold if I were to try that...:mrgreen:

If I had a tree full of coconuts in my garden I`d try that for sure. Let us know if you try it!
 
Sounds like a really interesting project. I love making use of things that would otherwise be garbage, unfortunately coconut trees aren't doing well around here. I'd be very interested in any updates on how it went.

Seems like a lot of work to me, but then I'm in Canada. If coconuts grew on my lawn I might very well feel differently!

Well if coconuts grew on your lawn in Canada, I think it would be time for us to keep the car in the garage.
 
I really liked this video allot of work but if you have an abundance of coconuts this could save you a huge amount of money in the long run. I wish we had coconuts in Virginia they cost way to much in the supermarket to buy them.

Todd
 
Cool video. Since I'm in my home country India now, where we break a coconut on most every occasion, I should have plenty of coconut meat to try this project but then again, CO is so readily available too. I think I would atleast try upto the point of getting oil just for fun. It looks like a lot of work in the video but a high power blender and a nut milk bag would make that part a breeze, I make my own coconut milk for my culinary preparations.
 
Until methods were created to purify coconut oil, it was considered to be one of the least stable soaping fats by soap makers of the mid 1800s. According to the soap making manuals of the day, CO became rancid and nasty smelly very quickly due to the impurities remaining in the fat.

The manuals warn about using too much CO in a soap recipe because a high-CO soap would leave a lasting objectionable odor on the bather's skin. Apparently the "piggy" odor of lard soap that some modern soapers dislike was nothing compared to the odor of coconut oil soap back then.

So if you do this, I suggest keeping the homemade CO refrigerated and consider adding an antioxidant such as ROE (rosemary oleoresin).
 
Until methods were created to purify coconut oil, it was considered to be one of the least stable soaping fats by soap makers of the mid 1800s. According to the soap making manuals of the day, CO became rancid and nasty smelly very quickly due to the impurities remaining in the fat.

The manuals warn about using too much CO in a soap recipe because a high-CO soap would leave a lasting objectionable odor on the bather's skin. Apparently the "piggy" odor of lard soap that some modern soapers dislike was nothing compared to the odor of coconut oil soap back then.

So if you do this, I suggest keeping the homemade CO refrigerated and consider adding an antioxidant such as ROE (rosemary oleoresin).

Wow, that's pretty disappointing. Any idea what the shelf life is for the oil refrigerated/not refrigerated? Also, what does the ROE do to help. I really don't know...

One more thing where can I find more information on early soapmaking from the 1800s? And thanks for the warning.
 
I have some unrefined coconut oil that I bought maybe a year or a year and a half ago. It's already past its expiration date (05/2015) but it still smells fine. I don't keep it refrigerated.

Oils become rancid by oxidation. As a rule of thumb: the more unsaturated fats, the more prone to oxidation.

ROE is an antioxidant, so it can prevent oxidation to a degree.
 
Unrefined coconut oil in the modern day is not the same as homemade coconut oil or a coconut oil of 100-150 years ago.

Breakdown of the fat to free fatty acids and later development of rancidity happens several ways. The abiotic oxidation you mention, NAPD, is only one route. Hydrolysis (reaction with water) is another. Bacterial oxidation is yet a third. The more impurities in a fat, such as water, protein, other organic contaminants, trace metals, dirt, etc., the higher the chances of the fat breaking down and faster development of rancidity. This is more likely in a homemade product than in a commercially produced product.

"...what does the ROE do to help..."

It is an antioxidant, Taleman. It prevents oxidation.

I'm not saying making homemade coconut oil shouldn't or can't be done. Just understand the issues before you leap into action, so you know what you need to do to make the best product you can. People who render lard and tallow at home have many of the same issues to consider, and many of them do fine. Like I said before, I would keep the product refrigerated and use an effective antioxidant such as ROE.
 
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Based on what DeeAnna said, I guess I have to use the coconut in coconut bread if I want the safest way to enjoy it. All I need is a Bajan (Barbadian for you non-caribbean influenced folks) to share a recipe for lead pipes, if they have.

*A lead pipe is a hard coconut that I've enjoyed from some bakeries not-too-nearby. The can be hard as bricks sometimes (tea is always good with them) but I love them.
 
Looks like there are a few ways to make coconut oil from scratch. I would think the "boiling" method would make for the most likely to go rancid faster due to the higher heat causing things to break down. There are some cold pressing methods that don't require heat. I'd love to try this with my brothers coconuts from his tree. There are about 20 coconuts just sitting there going bad right now. The ants love them...

I just googled "cold pressed coconut oil how to make" (yes, in that order)

I've also read what DeeAnna has about the awful smell in the early days. I was reading it in a soap manufacturing book from the early 1900s. I'm not done with the book yet though!

ETA: On the 4th of july this year I pulled one off the tree and it was so yummy. I drank the water and at the meat. Yum! It was a lot of work but well worth it.
 
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Looks like there are a few ways to make coconut oil from scratch. I would think the "boiling" method would make for the most likely to go rancid faster due to the higher heat causing things to break down. There are some cold pressing methods that don't require heat. I'd love to try this with my brothers coconuts from his tree. There are about 20 coconuts just sitting there going bad right now. The ants love them...

I just googled "cold pressed coconut oil how to make" (yes, in that order)

I looked up cold process coconut oil....

Some claim there are 3 layers after letting it sit:

http://www.making-healthy-choices.com/ coconut-oil-benefits.html

http://thesquishymonster.com/2015/07/homemade-cold-pressed-virgin-coconut-oil.html

Others that there are only 2:

https://desertenlightenment.wordpre...e-your-own-virgin-cold-pressed-coconut-oil-2/

http://m.wikihow.com/Make-Virgin-Coconut-Oil

http://www.livestrong.com/article/194972-how-do-i-make-homemade-coconut-oil/#page=1

I'm confused... is it that the ones with 2 are allowing the curd and oil to mix and form 1 solid? If so what are the implications of that?
 
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