Cooking with Coconut Oil, A Healthy Oil (Info Packed)

So as you may know , a couple of months ago I switched the cooking oil we use to Coconut oil, I was doing  research on different skin loving oils I of course came across Coconut oil & also discovered that it was a superior healthy oil with many uses, you can fry,saute, cook, & even bake! not to mention  you can use for skin & hair. I have fallen in love with cooking with this stuff. It comes in solid form but melts so easy to the touch & heat, yes it smells like coconut & kind of nutty but I have not experienced any of that flavor in my cooking. Coconut oil has a higher smoke point as well and a little goes a long way. i just take out a spoonful or half of spoon & go!

I wanted to  give you some facts on why you should think about trying coconut oil.

The following info,statements,facts is from the article " Coconut Oil benefits: when fat is good for you" 
"The fact is, all saturated fats are not created equal.

The operative word here is "created," because some saturated fats occur naturally, while other fats are artificially manipulated into a saturated state through the man-made process called hydrogenation."

"Hydrogenation manipulates vegetable and seed oils by adding hydrogen atoms while heating the oil, producing a rancid, thickened substance that really only benefits processed food shelf life andcorporate profits -- just about all experts now agree, hydrogenation does nothing good for your health."

"It may be surprising for you to learn that the naturally occurring saturated fat in coconut oil is actually good for you and provides a number of profound health benefits, such as:

• Improving your heart health.(3)
• Boosting your thyroid. (4) 
• Increasing your metabolism. 
• Promoting a lean body and weight loss if needed.
• Supporting your immune system. (5)

"Nearly 50 percent of the fat in coconut oil is of a type rarely found in nature called lauric acid, a "miracle" compound because of its unique health promoting properties. Your body converts lauric acid into monolaurin, which has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoa properties. (6)

Coconut oil is also nature's richest source of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), also called medium-chain triglycerides or MCTs. By contrast, most common vegetable or seed oils are comprised of long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), also known as long-chain triglycerides or LCTs.

LCTs are large molecules, so they are difficult for your body to break down and are predominantly stored as fat.

But MCTs (7) , being smaller, are easily digested and immediately burned by your liver for energy -- like carbohydrates, but without the insulin spike. MCTs actually boost your metabolism and help your body use fat for energy, as opposed to storing it, so it can actually help you become leaner."

"polyunsaturated fats, which include common vegetable oils such as corn, soy, safflower, sunflower and canola, are absolutely the worst oils to cook with.

Why?

Three primary reasons:

1) Cooking your food in omega-6 vegetable oils produces a variety of very toxic chemicals, as well as forming trans-fats. Frying destroys the antioxidants in oil, actually oxidizing the oil, which causes even worse problems for your body than trans-fats.

2) Most vegetable oils are GM (genetically modified), including more than 90 percent of soy, corn and canola oils.

3) Vegetable oils contribute to the overabundance of damaged omega-6 fats in your diet, throwing offyour omega-6 to omega-3 ratio. Nearly everyone in Western society consumes far too many omega-6 fats -- about 100 times more than a century ago -- and insufficient omega 3 fats, which contributes to numerous chronic degenerative diseases."

The Next set of facts, info,statements are from the article "The Uses of Coconut Oil"

"Edible coconut oil: Coconut oil is used across industries and hair and skin care is one of them. It is very important to know that edible coconut oil is different from the oil used for skin and hair and hence it should be bought carefully. Edible coconut oil are available in different types- Refined grade/unrefined grade. One may choose any of these for day to day cooking. 

Easy storage and longer shelf life: Coconut oil which is solid at room temperature can be stored easily for a longer duration. This is due to lack of polyunsaturated fats in coconut oil which helps in slower rate of rancidification. Rancidification results into bad taste and makes the oil unsuitable for usage. This process is faster in case of unsaturated oils. 

Price effective: Finally, the financial aspect! The regular pure edible grade coconut oil (generally it is refined, bleached and deodorized) is not that costly (at least when compared to olive oil). And since it is very dense and stable, cooking with coconut oil requires less oil. Thus it also saves your money."

I will note that I buy my coconut oil from Whole Foods, I have used the Whole Foods brand & the Dr. Bronner brand. The Whole Food brand cost about $7.99 for a regular size jar & the 30oz  jar of Br. Bronner coconut oil cost $17.99 or $19.99 online or Amazon.  I will note that I only buy Organic, Unrefined, unbleached whole kernel coconut oil.  In the following statements below you can see why. You get the most health benefits from getting it as fresh as you can.

The following statements info,facts is from the article " Coconut oil for Skin, Hair, Body :6 things to know about the Super Ingrediant"

"What to look out for when purchasing your first jar: "Look for extra virgin, that has not been hydrogenated, bleached, refined or deodorized.

Organic will ensure 100 percent non-GMO, which is also preferable. Coconut oil is best consumed in moderation, in its virgin or unprocessed form. It is vital that we consume coconut oil in a totally unrefined state. If it has been refined in some way, which could include processes such as bleaching or deodorizing, it becomes much harder on our liver."

So what kind of things do I use Coconut oil with & for? Well I use it for everyday cooking, anything that calls for oil to be used. Eggs,bacon, pancakes, baking cakes, sauteing onions, anything.  Please remember that Coconut oil comes in a SOLID form, so when your using it in baking or pancakes any thing that requires oil I melts it down first then let cool some then add & continue with my recipe.  It doesn't take long at all to melt in a small pan. . I recently made cake substituting vegetable oil for coconut oil. I personally feel better now when I cook with oil because i know its a healthy oil & a strong Heart healthy oil,not once do I taste coconut in any of my foods, ( I also use the oil to grease my pan for my cake & the edges of my cake were beautiful golden brown & easily came out!)

Price wise if you want Organic, unrefined,unbleached then yes the oil will cost you a lil more, I was buying a jar for $7.99 but since I use it often I went ahead & splurged on the 30 oz for $17.99 but the thing is you use LESS oil then other oils, thus this will save you more money. Plus you have to think of the HEALTH benefits that this brings you & your family. Its worth it in my book. 

I hope you found this post helpful & interesting  Please let me know your thoughts down below & if you use this oil let me know what you use it for!