Coconut is not only one of the most popular new health foods, it’s also the most versatile to cook with. Unlike other tree nuts like almonds and walnuts for example, coconuts contain medium-chain triglycerides. Medium-chain triglycerides are fatty acids that are easier for the body to convert into fuel than short-chain triglycerides or long-chain triglycerides. If you are involved in the gluten-free, low-carb, or paleo diet lifestyle, you probably already know about all the health benefits of adding coconut to your diet. Health benefits aside, using coconut as an ingredient can boost the flavor profile of many of your favorite foods thanks to the fat content of coconut. Fat is nature’s flavor enhancer.

If you are looking for easy and tasty ways to include coconut in your diet, check out these cooking ideas:

How to Cook With Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is a saturated fat that is very heat stable, with a smoke point of approximately 351 degrees F. Heating the oil keeps the healthy medium-chain triglycerides intact. Coconut oil is liquid above 75 degrees F and solid below 75 degrees F. This is important to remember when making semi-solid items like frosting or no-bake cookies with coconut oil because the food will begin to melt when left out in the heat. Always keep semi-solid items made with coconut oil in the refrigerator.

• No-Bake Cookies – These are the easiest and perhaps the tastiest recipes that include coconut oil. There are a variety of recipes that you can try, but most of them include spices, nuts, and dried fruit tossed into a food processor with coconut oil and blended until smooth. Check out these recipes: raw pecan sandies, no-bake PB&J thumbprint cookies, and raw chocolate chip cookies.

 

• Eggs – Frying eggs in coconut oil is one of life’s most amazing pleasures. The eggs will be soft in the middle and crispy around the edges, plus they will taste a bit like movie theater popcorn thanks to the hot coconut oil. If you you eggs frequently and get a little bored, try frying them in coconut oil for a change.

 

• Smoothies – Add a heaping spoonful of coconut oil to your recovery smoothies a few times a day if you are on a mass gain program. Adding coconut oil to a breakfast smoothie will help you stay full longer and it will give you an energy boost that will last throughout the day. Try adding it to a strawberry banana smoothie, a chocolate peanut butter smoothie, or a tropical fruit smoothie. You’ll barely taste it once it is blended in.

How To Cook With Coconut Flour

Coconut flour is packed with fiber. Plus, it adds a slight sweetness to any dish. Coconut flour is the finely ground dried coconut that is leftover after coconut oil is extracted. Be careful when baking with coconut flour, however, because it is very dense and absorbs liquid easily. Add a little extra of a few of the liquid ingredients to keep the final result from drying out. The good news is that treats made with coconut flour are very filling, so you’ll most likely be grabbing for one muffin instead of 2 or 3.

• Cake – Pound cake made with coconut flour is thick and buttery. Try this recipe that is reminiscent of a classic yellow cake. You won’t feel guilty digging into this one: this cake is packed with fiber and protein.

 

• Pancakes – Who doesn’t love fluffy pancakes on the weekends? If you use coconut flour instead of regular flour in your recipes, you can enjoy them and actually feel full afterwards. Before I began following a low-carb diet, I used to eat regular pancakes, and I was always still hungry even after digging into a huge stack. My favorite coconut flour pancake recipe of all time is by Lea from Paleo Spirit. Just make sure to follow her recommendations to keep the pancakes small since they are hard to flip.

How to Cook With Coconut Milk

Coconut milk is thick, creamy, and delicious. You can find coconut milk in a cardboard container in the dairy aisle, or in the canned food section. The canned variety tends to separate into a thin fluid on the bottom of the can and a thick cream on the top of the can. Don’t worry about it – that just means that the coconut milk is closer to a natural state and doesn’t contain thickeners and stabilizers. If you are cooking a recipe that calls for coconut cream, drain the fluid and just use the thick cream in the recipe. Otherwise, pour the coconut milk into a small bowl, grab a whisk, and give it a quick stir until blended. Then you will be all set to use it in the following recipes:

• Smoothies – Once again, adding coconut to smoothies is a great way to get coconut into your diet. Coconut milk has a stronger taste than coconut oil, so make sure to add it to a smoothie flavor that is compatible with coconut. Try adding it to a peach and pineapple smoothie, or a mixed berry smoothie.

 

• Coffee – If you want to add some substance to your coffee, but you are lactose intolerant or vegan, coconut milk is the way to go. Almond milk and soy milk can be a little thin, but the thickness of coconut milk most closely resembles heavy cream.

 

• Fruit and nut cereal – If you eat a paleo diet and you miss that familiar breakfast cereal, try munching on a big bowl of sliced almonds with berries and coconut milk.

 

• Sweet potato casserole – Try this delicious recipe for sweet potato casserole. By whipping up sweet potatoes with coconut milk, you’ll be getting the perfect recovery meal thanks to a potent mix of vitamin A, carbs, and medium-chain triglycerides. Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin, so you need to ingest it with fat to increase it’s absorption.

 

• Coconut curry – Add green curry paste to coconut milk and simmer over medium high, then cook your choice of meat and vegetables in the coconut milk curry. It’s the easiest weekday dinner that you can whip up in less than 15 minutes.

What are your favorite ways to cook with coconut?