Even though dietary coconut oil can withstand temperatures up to 350 °F without much oxidation and breaking down into toxic byproducts, it’s still best to eat it uncooked since eating coconut oil raw gets to reap its full health benefits.
Here are the few ways to enjoy coconut oil in its most natural raw form.
1. Eating on Its Own
When I first got started with coconut oil more than 10 years ago, like many others, I tried to send it straight out of the jar into my mouth without mixing with any food because the natural coconut scent in it is so irresistibly aromatic that I wanted to try it that way.
Ended up I got the runs. And my stomach got upset for several hours.
That’s because I took it on an empty stomach.
Yes, when there is nothing in your stomach to slow the digestion of coconut oil, it quickly splits up into its individual fatty acids and glycerols that stimulate bowel movement.
If you really prefer to eat it that way but yet you do not want to upset your stomach, then you must make sure your stomach is not empty. That means, you must eat something first before you ingest one or two tablespoonfuls of coconut oil.
In short, never take coconut oil on an empty stomach unless you desperately need coconut oil for constipation relief.
2. Adding to Beverages
Many people are stirring coconut oil into their coffee to pep themselves up in the morning.
However, if coffee isn’t your cup of tea (like me), smoothies, juices, soy milk, rice milk or almond milk are great choices that you can add coconut oil to make your drinks healthier.
If you simply mix into the liquid, you’ll probably see a layer of oil floating on top which may look somewhat yucky. Try to focus on its benefits rather than the overall appearance and you should be fine.
Oh, here’s at least a workaround to help the smoothies look less greasy. Blend coconut oil together with the fruits and vegetables and it’ll give you a supercharged smoothie without an oily aftertaste.
3. Pouring onto Cooked or Uncooked Food
Yes, just pour coconut oil onto any food on your dining table, regardless of whether the food is cooked (like brown rice) or raw (like salad) and mix them well.
Speaking of salad, if it’s chilled, then coconut oil may form snowy chips on it since it begins to solidify below 76 °F. A simple workaround is to mix coconut oil with olive oil to help lower coconut oil’s melting point so it won’t solidify easily.
Some people feel that adding to cooked food defeats the purpose of reaping the most benefits out of coconut oil because some coconut oil would have lost to the surroundings when they rise with the steam from the food.
Well, if you’re concerned about that, then wait till the food becomes less hot before pouring coconut oil over.
How do you "pour" coconut oil? It is generally solid; unless my kitchen is EXTREMELY hot.
That is correct – you would have to heat it in a little pot to make it pourable.
You can also immerse your jar of coconut oil in warm water. Or use a hairdryer to blow onto the oil. These are ways you can do to make coconut oil more liquid especially in winter.