If you are replacing butter with coconut oil in a recipe, you will need to use a specific ratio of coconut oil to butter for the recipe to be sucessful. Butter contain 80% fat and 20% water and milk solids. Coconut oil contains 100% fat.
Because coconut oil contains a higher percentage of fat than butter, you will need to use less coconut oil than butter for a recipe. If you multiply the amount of butter that is required for a recipe by three quarters, you will find the amount of coconut oil that should be used in the recipe. The coconut oil will contain the same amount of fat as the butter call for in the recipe if you use this ratio.
How to Replace Butter with Coconut Oil
This ratio work regardless of the type of measurement for the butter that is required for the recipe. If the recipe call for one teaspoon of butter, you will use three-quarters of a teaspoon of coconut oil. If the recipe calls for one stick of butter (half a cup), you will use six tablespoons of coconut oil.
Two sticks of butter are equal to one cup, so you should use three-quarters of a cup of coconut oil. This is because the ratio of three-quarters always remain the same for any amount of butter. Coconut oil can be solid or liquid depending on the temperature of the kitchen in which you are cooking.
If the recipe require you to cream the butter with sugar, you should melt the coconut oil then allow it to cool to the point that it become thick and solid. If the recipe requires you to cut butter into flour, the cook should chill the coconut oil until it becomes solid. The physical state of the coconut oil should match the physical state of the butter required for the recipe.
Using coconut oil instead of butter change two ingredients of the food: the smoke point and the dairy content of the food. The smoke point of coconut oil is higher than butter so coconut oil will not burn as easy. This makes it very useful in cooking at high temperatures.
There is no lactose or milk protein content in coconut oil so it is a good alternative for those who cant consume dairy products. Using coconut oil for cooking allow you to cook at high temperatures and avoid dairy in your food. Coconut oil contains a different flavor than butter.
Coconut oil is available in two flavors. Refined coconut oil have no scent and no taste. Virgin coconut oil does have a tropical scent and taste.
If you are substituting coconut oil for butter in a recipe, you have a decision to make about which kind of coconut oil to use. If you want to keep the flavor of the recipe the same, you should use refined coconut oil. However, if you want the recipe to have a tropical flavor, use virgin coconut oil.
To store coconut oil, place it in a sealed jar at room temperature. Coconut oil will stay good for a year or more. Coconut oil solidifies at temperatures that is seventy-six degrees or less; it remains liquid at temperatures that are seventy-six degrees or more.
Use the solid coconut oil for recipes that call for cold butter. For recipes that requires liquid fat, melt the coconut oil. Understanding these qualities of coconut oil will ensure that you can use the oil effective in teh kitchen.