Over the past few years, whipped coconut cream has become one of my favorite tricks I’ve come up with in the kitchen. I love whipping up (literally) a batch for dinner guests, not even bothering to tell them it isn’t heavy whipped cream. I love how amazed people are when I tell them that it’s totally vegan and just 3 simple ingredients. I have shared how to make this glorious stuff within several of my recipe posts before, but I thought what better way to kick off my new Tutorial Tuesdays series than with this favorite how-to!
Plus, since canned coconut milks can vary drastically, I wanted to give you my comparison of 5 different coconut milk brands. You’ll be shocked at how different each one is. Because of the vary degrees of whipability (is that a word?) – the results and the work can be quite challenging if you choose incorrrectly. Due to the different stabilizers in each brand and sometimes even where the coconuts originate from, these can cause the much needed separation of the coconut cream from the water to just not work – no matter what you do.
Outside of the varying brands, I have also read that extra air in the can, may also cause less separation to occur. This isn’t something I have tested too much myself, but if you want to shake cans of coconut milk at the store, I say go for it. You are listening for little to no swishing around of the liquid in the can.
Whipped coconut milk is creamy, rich and thick, much like traditional whipped cream and the coconut flavor is very faintly there. Not nearly what you would expect it to be. The best part about homemade whipped coconut cream is all of it’s many uses and how much you can vary the flavor. You can add raw cacao powder for a chocolate cream, muddle some fruit and fold that in, maybe a squeeze or two of your favorite citrus, or even just a good quality all natural extract, you can even add a bit of your favorite liqueur. It would be hard to choose my favorite way to customize my homemade whipped coconut cream, but the easy part is actually making it. So, let’s get to it.
Refrigerate one can of full-fat coconut milk overnight (see my brand selections at the bottom of this post). Carefully open up the can.
There will be a layer of firm, waxy, thick white layer of coconut cream on top.
Carefully scoop out the firm, waxy, thick white layer of coconut cream and add it to your bowl. (chill the bowl if you’d like)
Save the coconut water for another use, like smoothies.
With your mixer or hand beaters on high speed, whip the coconut cream for 3 to 5 minutes until it becomes fluffy and light, with soft peaks. Mix in your sweetener and vanilla extract, if using.
Voila, homemade whipped coconut cream, in minutes.
How-to Make Whipped Coconut Cream
Ingredients
- 1 can full-fat organic coconut milk, see my brand suggestions below, refrigerated overnight
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup, honey, sugar, powdered sugar, etc (or more)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Optional Add-ins: raw cacao powder, vanilla bean paste, flavored pure extracts
Instructions
- Carefully open the can of refrigerated coconut milk, being careful to keep it level. There will be a firm, waxy, thick white layer of coconut cream on top.*
- Scoop out the coconut cream and into a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. (If it is hot in your kitchen, place your mixing bowl in the freezer for 5 minutes or so.) Stop scooping when you reach the water in the bottom of the can. Save this for smoothies or drink it as is. Just don't add this into the solid cream for whipping.
- Using a mixer or hand beaters on high speed - whip the coconut cream for 3 to 5 minutes until it becomes fluffy and light, with soft peaks. Mix in your sweetener and vanilla, if using.
- Whipped coconut cream is best served immideately, but can be stored in an air tight container for up to a week. It will harden in the fridge, the longer it stays chilled, simply mix until creamy again, when ready to serve.
Notes
Coconut Milk Brand Comparison
A) Thai Kitchen Coconut Milk – available in Organic and Regular
Out of the can: The coconut cream separated perfectly and was very easy to scoop away from the water. It was thick, waxy, smooth and very creamy.
When whipped: Whips up nicely, has a nice, light quality, it’s creamy and smooth and bright white in color. Very easy to pipe and holds it shape pretty nicely.
Notes about the product: I sampled both the organic and the regular. Both produced the same results. In the past I have had issues with this brand separating properly (a year or two ago), but had no issues this time with two different cans. I was quite please with this brand. I am curious if they change their formula and ingredients, from time to time.
Ingredients: (Organic) Coconut, Water, Guar Gum
BPA claims: No mention on the can itself.
B) 365 Everyday Value (Whole Foods) Organic Coconut Milk
Out of the can: Not easy to separate the coconut cream from the coconut water, very thin, not waxy at all.
When whipped: Thickens up a bit when whipped, but not too much. Not easy to pipe and doesn’t hold it’s shape.
Notes about the product: Some people swear by this brand for whipping, I have never had good results with it.
Ingredients: Organic Coconut, Purified Water, Organic Guar Gum
BPA claims: No mention on the can itself.
C) Native Forest Organic Coconut Milk
Out of the can: Very thin, nearly impossible to separate the coconut cream from the water, not waxy or thick at all.
When whipped: Didn’t whip up at all. Wouldn’t pipe. (photo above right shows it after being whipped and piped)
Notes about the product: I have bought this brand in the past and it whipped up perfectly, this used to be my favorite brand – hands down. However I tried two different cans during this testing, both with the same results. I am guessing they must have changed something about their product.
Ingredients: Organic Coconut, Water, Organic Guar Gum
BPA claims: No mention on the can itself.
EDIT 06/15/14 – I have since had a cans of Native Forest that worked perfectly, sadly they just aren’t consistent at all. Out of the four cans that I bought last week, two set up perfectly with a thick waxy layer of coconut cream and two did not.
D) Natural Value Organic Coconut Milk
Out of the can: Very thick and waxy, somewhat crumbly. Feta cheese type consistency.
When whipped: Whips up really nicely, thick and light. Not quite as smooth and creamy as Thai Kitchen or the Trader Joes Coconut Cream, but this is likely due to it not containing any gums or additives. Also has a very very subtle grey tint to it, versus a perfect bright white. Great flavor.
Notes about the product: Nothing extra added!
Ingredients: Organic Coconut Extract, Water
BPA claims: “BPA-FREE CAN LINING”
E) Trader Joes Coconut Cream
Out of the can: No separation to deal with, as the can ONLY contains coconut cream, no coconut water. Very thick and waxy, creamy and thick. Great flavor, a tad sweetener than the other brands.
When whipped: Whips up really nicely and easily. Very thick and sturdy, light and holds it shape.
Notes about the product: I found this product to be a hint sweeter than the others and the flavor wasn’t nearly as “natural”.
Ingredients: Coconut Extracted, Sodium Carboxy Methyl Cellulose, Xanthan Gum, Water
BPA claims: No mention on the can itself.
My Final Thoughts:
Just because you find a brand that works, doesn’t mean it always will, same goes on the flip side. They must change their formulas, ingredients or other details that can affect this.
If I am going for the absolute healthiest option, that I can feel the best buying and consuming, because of the lack of additives and the BPA-free can lining – I would choose D) Natural Value Organic Coconut Milk
If I wasn’t concerned with the addition of guar gum or if it’s a BPA lined can or not – I would choose A) Thai Kitchen Organic Coconut Milk
If I wasn’t concerned about choosing organic, extra additives and BPA and was looking for the best looking for photos or presentation and was really only looking for the product that produced the best looking results – I would choose E) Trader Joe’s Coconut Cream
Recipes that Use Whipped Coconut Cream:
Grain-free Roasted Balsamic Strawberry Mini Tarts
Grain-free Mini Pumpkin Pie Tarts
Lavender Berry Parfaits
OTHER SERVING IDEAS: Whipped coconut cream is also great served on top of fresh fruit, hot cocoa and other other hot beverages, chia puddings, pies, tarts, crumbles, pancakes, you can also add a little coconut oil and place it into the fridge to make a whipped frosting for cupcakes or cakes – the possibilities are endless. Use it however you would regular whipped cream, or heck – just go ahead and eat it with a spoon.
127 Responses
Thanks so much for this! It was suuuuper helpful.
Thanks Stefanie I am glad you found it helpful, that makes me happy 😉
I hate to say this, and I realize this is over 2 years ago and you probably won’t read this comment but… for anyone else who stumbles upon this, does it not sound slightly sarcastic – given that you’re from “Sarcastic Cooking”, that you emphasize how suuuuper helpful it was? 😛
Well done! This will be helpful to so many. I like that you aren’t biased … just giving the peeps info and letting them decide. Nice post!!
Thank you so much Lexie, that means a lot. I am so glad you liked it. I definitely hope it helps some folks. xo
Thanks so much for sharing this. It is obvious you put a lot of time and effort into your thorough research and presentation of the information. If this is any indication of the high caliber information you will be presenting on Tutorial Tuesdays I can’t wait until next week!
Thank you so much Valerie, it was definitely a ton of work, but it was really fun. I might have felt a little bit like Alton Brown getting all investigative 😉 I hope I can keep up this level of excitement in coming weeks. I have soo many good ideas, I just need to get cracking. Please feel free to post any suggestions for tutorials you’d like to see.
Love the canned comparison. Thai Kitchen is definitely the best of the “conventional” ones, I’ve learned that the hard way trying to whip Goya before. No dice.
Thanks so much, Gina!! Oooh I never tried Goya, I guess that’s a good thing. I cannot get over how crazy different each of them are.
This is a fantastic idea – I’ve had some whipped coconut cream disasters in my kitchen! I’m in Australia and can’t access these brands though. I have a hunch that part of the problem I have had is that I have tried with only 100% coconut cream. If you were able to post the % coconut content for each tin, I’d be so grateful. Thanks so much!
Thanks Blythe. I don’t believe that this information is labeled on the cans, but I will double check and get back to you on that.
Love your first tutorial Beth!! You are gonna be eating whipped coconut cream for days.:) I am just down the street if you need help.
Thanks lady!! Oh my, you have nooo idea how much whipped coconut cream we have over here. I’ve been getting real creative over here with it 😉
Thanks for the insight. I never really thought about comparing brands like this, but it is helpful. Thank you!
Thanks Meg, so glad you like it!
Thanks for the all the hard work you put in for such great recipes and tips! I’ve been wanting to order the Natural Value coconut milk for a long time because it’s BPA-free and has no stabilizers, but put it off because the Thai Kitchen is so much easier to get and I was worried it would be a lot different. Thank you!! I whip my coconut cream often (it’s so good in my tea) and I find, at least for the Thai Kitchen brand that it’s nice and easy to open from the bottom of the can and pour the liquid out first. 🙂 Love your little space here! Thanks again!
Yes, thank you for all you do on these recipes! I tried your Hawaiian bread (loved it ~ was the type of recipe I had been searching for) and ended up making it again~ but into a King Cake yesterday for Mardi Gras! It was a hit at the party!!!
I so love whip cream, but don’t like putting the artificial stuff in my body…so am so excited about this. I get raw milk and have used the cream before for whipping but we just haven’t had the best results!
Thank again! Blessings!
THIS IS FANTASTIC!! perfect timing too as I’ve got to make a cake on monday and am sooooo nervous about whipping the coconut cream – I’ve had a few fails. lol. Thank you so much for the amazing tutorial and brand comparison! LOVE IT!!
I do have a question though. I’m making a three tiered paleo chocolate fudgey cake with a bit of weight in it and probably a raspberry couli for a birthday dinner and I’m wondering… when should I assemble it? Is it safe to do it a few hours before eating and leave it on the bench or would I keep it in the fridge… or do I do it right before serving, or would you suggest I put the cream on each layer, let it chill and harden a bit, then assemble so the cream holds the weight better? any light you can shed would be greatly appreciated. 🙂 xo
I absolutely adore coconut milk EVERYTHING and when I tried making coconut whipped cream a year or so ago, I 200% did not refrigerate the coconut milk first, which is exactly why I wasn’t successful. I’m going to be whipping all the coconut milk now that I know how it’s done! Thanks, my dear!!
You know that BPA free means they use BPS instead, right? BPS is every bit as bad as BPA, if not worse. “BPA free” has become a way of tricking us into believing it’s safer. But it’s not, they just switched to another toxic chemical.
http://naturalsociety.com/toxic-bpa-substitute-bps-chemical/
Yes I am slowly reading and learning more about all of the BPA and BPS stuff myself. But I agree it does feel like trickery in many instances. At any rate, since BPS labeling hasn’t become a trend just yet, I was simply reporting on what is being posted on the sides of the cans, if anything at all.
Thanks.
I am trying this on my weeks holiday, I’m really excited, I have a few ideas I’d love to hear about if you can. I was thinking Coconut Ice Cream and more recently I have discovered Coconut Yogurt. I would LOVE recipes for these if you could :). Thank you so much for sharing, I direct everyone I know to this blog….just love it 😉
Hmm, I just had the opposite results. I have never had luck whipping coconut milk and have always tried it with Thai Kitchen. The cream is separated but there is not nearly as much cream as a can of Native Forest. I have just been trying Native forest lately and the cream takes up most of the can and came out of the can all nice and whippy like that my 6 yr old wanted to just eat it instead of put it in the smoothie.
So fascinating April, as I said – I always found Native Forest to be the best but I had two cans this time that weren’t thick and just wouldn’t solidify. I am hoping it was just two off cans and not that they changed something about that product, I will certainly be reporting back, if that’s the case. 😉 Thanks for the comment.
Bummer about Native Forest! That’s the one we use, because it’s the only organic coconut milk easily available to us. About 90% of the cans I’ve opened have a super thick layer of cream – even just sitting in the pantry at 70 degrees! Occasionally, I do get an “off” can…my guess is that maybe it’s an issue of mislabeling and it’s the Light coconut milk inside. I’ve found that if I shake the can and can’t hear or feel any movement, it’s always the nice thick one!
Yeh that has always been my experience too. I just couldn’t believe I got two cans like that. I will definitely give it a try again and see, since I really prefer that brand. I agree could be an off can or mislabeled. I will certainly be trying the can shaking thing too. Thanks for the comment!
You are amazing, my friend! I love this tutorial, thank you so much for sharing it. I haven’t done a ton of experimenting with coconut cream (only tried once before and decided to add pureed strawberries to it…epic fail), but still tasted delicious! I’m glad Thai Kitchen is your fave because that’s the one I always buy 🙂 And looking forward to more tutorials!! xx
Can you thin this out with anything to make coconut yoghurt do you think? Or whats the best recipe for cocnut yoghurt, anytime i’ve tried i fails miserably. Or would this be a better alternative to coconut yoghurt nutritionwise?
I have not had the chance to try making a whipped cream out of coconut milk, but I would have gone “nuts” if it hadn’t of turned out right and not knowing why. Thank you for the comparisons, they are really helpful to someone like me, who is on a little tighter budget, and I would not have expected such a difference in textures. These kind of posts help me feel a bit more confident in trying something new. Cool!
Wow! I love your attention to detail. I think you answered every question I had on the subject. I have never had much success with whipping up my coconut cream. Until now. Thanx for your hard work and awesome presentation. Huge help
Love this amazing tutorial/comparison! Thank you for creating such a beautiful & detailed guide – can’t wait to try this out! 🙂
[…] so thankfully there are tons of versions out there. My friend Beth over at Tasty Yummies created this incredible tutorial on how to make coconut whipped cream that I love and think you will too. You won’t need all that the can makes but the […]
Thank you so much! I’ve been trying this for awhile and it always comes out soupy! I won’t give up!
This is amazing, not only you showed us how to make it, but also you tested different brands!!!! Who does that?!! I loved it. Can’t wait to make my own. Thanks.
A really useful post! The brand comparison is really helpful as it seems that the success of this recipe can depend on the quality and consistency of the brand of coconut milk you use. I suddenly feel like a have a lot more options for lactose-free desserts!
your insightful and detailed tuesday tutorials leave me speechless and filled with joy. thank you for all of the hard work you put into this “one of my favorite of favorites” blog. cheers ~
Thank you for the brand comparisons. I’ll be trying the whipped coconut cream soon.
Thanks , Beth , for the step-by-step instructions. I’ve been looking for something different from dairy whipped cream. The product comparison is so helpful, too.
You are so welcome Heather! Glad you found it helpful.
Thank you so much for this! I just tried to make this, and had lack lustre results. I will defiantly look for these brands next time I try it!
Sorry to hear it hasn’t been working great for you. Check out those brands and hopefully you have great results. Thanks
Thank you for this! I have had SO much trouble finding coconut milk that will solidify–even brands that other people swear by end up being watery and disappointing! I’m going to try the TJ’s and Thai Kitchen brands and see if one of those works well.
[…] with you all. She’s the bees knees and her bi-weekly series has produced tutorials like How-to Make Whipped Coconut Cream, How-to Make the Perfect French Fries, How-to Make Nut Butters and Nut Milks, How-to Sprout and so […]
Thank you for organized detailed experiment! Saves me so much effort!!!!
[…] storing it in the fridge so it separates, scooping out the solids and whipping them up. I read all kinds of research and personally tested 3 types of coconut cream with mixed […]
THANK YOU for this analysis. I thought I was going crazy with the inconsistent results. You have saved all of us so much time. Excellent and thorough information with fabulous pictures. Finding your blog was the silver lining of my creamed cococonut issues! Maribeth
I bought Organic Thai Kitchen to make me some Coconut Whipped Cream, it’s chilling overnight right now. The OTK Coconut Milk was the one most highly recommended everywhere, with Native Forest mentioned some too. My fresh berries are patiently awaiting their Coconut Whipped Cream topping 😀
FYI, I originally was going to get TJ’s Coconut Cream, but the Sodium Carboxy Methyl Cellulose ingredient turns me instinctively off, and others who have looked it into have nothing really good to say about it. I think they add it so that you don’t have to chill it overnight to separate it. I guess if you wanted it for a food photoshoot it’d be fine. I also read the taste was a bit off compared to others turned into Coconut Whipped Cream 😉
Beth…
Are we supposed to let it chill inside the closed can overnight that causes the separation. I poured it into a airtight lidded container and it didn’t work. Thanks.
Hey Janice, I have always left it in the unopened can, never tried it in a container, so that could have something to do with why it didn’t work, but I cannot say for sure.
[…] Hopefully my recipe is easy enough to follow, but there’s also a great tutorial over at Tasty Yummies that I highly recommend checking […]
Oh my goodness, thank you soooooooooo much for the recipe! All of my friends came over to my house and I made smoothies for them. I used this recipe with Sprouts coconut cream, and put it on top. It was a real winner. My uncle is lactose intolerant and he really wishes he could have whipped cream, I may just have to invite him over and give him as much of this as he wants!!!!! Again, thanks SOOOOOOOOOO MUCH!
Thank you so very much for this post!! I rely on whipped coconut cream a lot and used to struggle with getting them whipped, and I imagine lots of people do too. Your post saved us all from wasting cans of c-milk 😀 <3
How do you get the coconut milk, coconut sugar & vanilla to whip? I have tried all different
ways cold, room temp, but nothing works. Help
Mae
[…] a whim at my parents house and was not prepared with my usual supply of coconut milk. (Here is the recipe I would’ve used though to make the whipped cream.) Since I didn’t have a glorious batch of fluffy coconut milk […]
I am SO glad you did a comparison of different brands! I do whipped coconut cream, as well as other canned-coconut-milk based recipes a lot, and always use the Thai kitchen brand, but I’ve had readers tell me that some of those recipes just haven’t worked for them. Now I’m wondering if their using a different brand, and that’s why. Great to know!
So I refrigerated a can of Thai coconut milk overnight but when I opened it the next morning nothing solidified. I don’t recall it being shaken or tipped upside down so what could be the issue??
Just an FYI I tried this recipe with several different kinds of coconut milk, including Thai Kitchen but when I opened the cans they weren’t separated. Finally what I did was open to take the top off the can and then leave in the frig overnight and that did the trick!
Lori, the one thing I really dislike about making whipped coconut cream is that lately the results are quite inconsistent, even with the same brands that I know and trust. Sometimes I buy several cans at the same time, of the same brand and one will solidify and be great for whipping and another won’t. It’s so frustrating. That’s a great tip on taking the top off, I will try that.
my seven year old son has been allergic to dairy all his life. He has not had hot cocoa with whipped cream yet, he has not had an ice cream sunday with whipped cream yet, he has not had strawberry shortcakes yet 🙁
but all this is about to change, because of your post
i can not tell you how happy this makes me as a mother
because now I can give my little boy what has been missing all of his childhood
I am so happy to hear that you are gonna be able to give your son sooo many thing he has never tried! Your comment warmed my heart!! xo
Hi
That was very interesting. SInce cant eat wheat and a few other items give me digestive and other issues. Avoid the gums some add, many people have problems with the gums added to foods. Did find TJ coconut ?milk didnt have any and used that for some cooking.
Wondered if you tried making coconut cream from the coconut itself.
Also cant eat much coconut oil as it caused weight loss, which I dont need. Will see if
the whole coconut ground up does that. Am experimenting with Lets do organic- creamed coconut that is solid, though the fat separates in the plastic bag(is in a box).
This is GREAT. And you are beautiful. Always nice to find a new blog with good ideas. I have friends that are getting killed by lactose whenever they try to ‘cheat’ using those pills, this is much better for them… thanks.
Hi! I’m just about to run to the store. Quick question; do you think this can be frozen (like the unhealthy whipped topping comes)? I’d love to have it ready to use at a moment’s notice.
Theresa, that I don’t know. I have never tried freezing it. I have a feeling it would lose a bit of it’s volume and wouldn’t be as fluffy and whipped, if frozen
Have you tried making it from scratch using the coconut meat?
From a fellow conscientious-omnivore (love that btw), thanks for your hard work and great review of these products.
I’m bummed neither one of my cans separated but I did it anyways. It took longer to beat but I did get a whipped cream from it It stood up better the next day after is was chilled in the fridge. 🙂
I will tell you, even with my trusts brands, sometimes they just will not participate and separate they are supposed to and I don’t understand why. Next time I get them, they work great. I just don’t get it. Glad to hear that chilling it helped.
Can you tell me if any of those brands are kosher? I’m preparing refreshments for my grandson’s Jewish day school for Chanukah, and all items must be kosher and prepared there.
Sorry Judith, I am not sure of that I don’t follow kosher, so it isn’t something I usually look for in brands. I would suggest looking online or contacting the companies directly, if you want to know for sure. Sorry I cannot be of more help.
Thanks so much for this post! I just tried this with a brand called Andre Prost. I had the can in the fridge for 3 days with no separation at all! Obviously, this was an epic fail, but I will look for one of the brands you have mentioned !
Thank you so much — excellent summary of the how-to and of the different brands.
Beautiful blog. Excellent post. Great information. Thank you for doing all of the leg work and testing. Brand differences can truly make or break a great recipe. Especially when only relying on one or a couple of high quality star ingredients. Can’t wait to try it out. I will definitely be back soon to learn and discover more. Thank you Beth : )!
Thank you so much for this recipe – and the side-by-side comparisons…very helpful! 😀
this is the most delicious dary free whip cream EVER i cant even notice a difference
Thanks for this, really helpful comparison. Made me realise that coconut milk in the U.K. is perhaps not as thick as U.S. brands
I’m in Australia too and I just used the supermarket brands-didn’t thicken. But!! I decided to try what works for egg whites and added a tiny pinch of Himalayan salt. Thickened straightaway!! Just be careful and don’t use too much salt, I did once and it got too salty. Thanks for a fantastic blog!! Jenny xxx
This recipe made me click. Now I’m sick.
I NEED SOME WHIPPED COCONUT CREAM RIGHT NOW! 😀
P.S. Great blog Beth, thx for sharing 😉
Ps. What I meant is that it thickened quite a bit in the fridge, but without the pinch of salt didn’t thicken when I whipped it. Sorry for my confusing comment.
Great idea. I’m glad I found your site. I wanted an alternative to dairy cream and this worked out nicely on my pancakes this morning. I used it with my fresh fruit topping. It definitely tasted different but it was yummy. I wish more restaurants would incorporate this into their menus.
Hi, I don’t know if it was mentioned in previous comments cause they aren’t loading for me.. But under “table spoon of sweetness(maple syrup, honey, sugar)” you mention multiple things, is that everything we use or is it an either or thing, where we choose from the fallowing? I hope this makes since lol
The way I read it, it’s 1 tablespoon of your choice of sweetener.
Love this recipe so much! Thank you so much for sharing! I wanted to let you know that I tried Grace brand Classic Coconut Milk and it whips up wonderful! When I shook it in the store it was very solid. I bought it at Westbrook Market in Westmont, IL. The store is party of the Certified Grocer chains. I think the guy stocking the shelves thought I was a nut case shaking all the cans – LOL!
Try Golden Star coconut milk, available at most Walmart for $1.48 a can and it whips beautifully! Ingred. coconut milk, water ( no guar gum here) not needed it is super thick on its own. Happy whipping:)
Hi! I have a question: My kids and I dont tolerate guar, and prefer organic and BPA free. This leaves only Natural Value brand, which we can only find on Amazon by the case. With shipping it is a bit expensive for us (works out to 4.50 + per can and we go thru alot!) How can I make what you buy in a can, from scratch? If you blend dessicated coconut and hot water to make homemade coconut milk and squeeze/strain, you get a mostly thinner milk with little to no “cream”. How is canned coconut milk made so that enough of this thick layer of cream is there?
Loved this review!! It’s clear and short enough to pay attention, just perfect! Now it’s time to try it all out!
THANK YOU sooooo very much! I am not a cook and this tutorial takes a lot of stress trying to figure out better ways to eat Keto!! Seriously, THANK YOU!!
Thanks for this great recipe! I’m planning to use this to frost my granddaughters first birthday cake, without the added sweeteners. Mama is trying to keep her “added sweetener free” as long as possible, in order to help develop her taste for healthier things. So my question is how well do you think this may hold up at room temp, once the cake is frosted? Her party will be a picnic and the cake will not be refrigerated 100% of the time. Thanks in advance! 🙂
Hey Lisa, thanks for the comment. I don’t know that I would recommend it for frosting a cake, if you can’t keep it chilled. It can tend to fall/melt. Being at a picnic if it’s in the sun or heat it might not hold up. Have you checked out the recipe for my grain-free chocolate cake with chocolate ganache frosting? http://tasty-yummies.com/2015/01/26/grain-free-chocolate-cake-with-dark-chocolate-ganache-frosting/
This frosting will hold up quite well at room temperature and it’s quite tasty, you could possibly opt for bakers chocolate and then add your own level/type of sweetener. Just a thought.
Two things: All of Trader Joe’s canned goods are now in BPA-free cans, and I’ve been purchasing cases of Native Forest Organic coconut milk from Amazon for years, every single can that I have used is half-filled with solid cream.
I’m pretty excited about trying this method as I won’t be able to have any regular whipped cream during our long fresh berry season this year.
I think I got too much of the coconut milk into the cream and when i whip it together, it won’t fluffen up. Is there any way I can fix it?
Hi,
Thanks for sharing your experiences making whipped coconut cream. I have tried before but it never worked so I’ll try some of the brands you mention and follow your instructions carefully.
Here in Canada, cans of Native Forest organic coconut milk do mention that they are BPA free 🙂 so it’s probably the same where you are, even if not mentioned.
Hi! I really like your blog! I just want to know if I can use whipped coconut cream like a cream cheese (instead of Philadelphia) for a baked cheesecake…. ?? Thank you so much, Matilde (from Italy)
Thank you for info
Very helpful hav been a fan of coconut products long befor in was in style
So funny that to mention that brands sometimes work – I just used Thai and it did not get thick. The recipe I was using did call for lemon juice, so I have to wonder if that had an effect. Usually this whips beautifully.
What a delight to find your website and helpful instructions on how to make whipped coconut cream. I tried Trader Joe’s and it separated and whipped beautifully but we did not like the chemical after taste it left so am going to try the two other top brands. Thank you for your comparisons of different brands.
beyond helpful! we are family working our way towards completely GF, minimizing our dairy and headed towards a mainly plant based lifestyle. this seems to be an older post circulating on Pinterest but I will look for your recipes!
Thank you! You’ve made my transition to a healthier lifestyle just that much easier. I just tried this and it worked fabulously.
Have you tried the new extra thick canned coconut milk from Trader Joes? It pours like a thick water even after being in the refrigerated over night. I have used the old formula for years and it whipped up like your picture, but not any longer. The taste of coconut is lessened also. We have tried whipping in gelatin but it is only a little thicker.
Help I miss my thick whipped coconut cream.
Gloria
I have never tried the coconut milk from TJs, no. I don’t love their canned coconut products, myself, too many additives. I still find thai kitchen to provide pretty consistent results.
Just a note. I used a few varieties of coconut milk/cream like you. I repeated the process a few times to see if the results would replicate and they didn’t. The results of separation were inconsistent every time using the same time in the fridge (or off the shelf). What I found was it was better to start with the coconut cream and not the milk to avoid an inconsistent result. Another way was to put the product in a clear straight sided canning jar. I could then watch to see the separate and if it reached the right consistency. Being a perfectionist, I’m still experimenting to see what would provide a consistent result so stay tunned. 🙂
Thanks for your comment Susan. As I mention in the post, this isn’t an exact science, these brands are constantly changing their formulas and I have even found them to vary from can to can at times, even when buying at the same time. Since I created this post, more brands are selling just coconut cream, rather than milk, so yes, that makes it easier. However, I am mindful of which I will purchase, as many include additional additives and other ingredients. Like the Trader Joes brand. I love the idea of transferring to a clear glass jar to watch the results, that’s brilliant. Thanks for sharing!
thanks for this useful information. I’ve been whipping coconut cream for a while with mixed results too. because most of the creams I’ve used have stabilizers they hardly have any liquid separated from them when left in the fridge. I just tried putting a can of chilled coconut cream into a sieve lined with a paper towel held over a bowl. I left it over night in the fridge and I managed to get a thicker consistency than I would have without doing this step. so if you find your cream to runny then you might try this step to get it a bit thicker.
wow, great idea!! Thanks for sharing!
Can you use the Thai brand 50% fewer calories, light coconut milk? Or will it not whip up as good too?
No, it must be full fat, the fat is what causes it to solidify and consequently whip up. Lite will not work at all. Sorry about that.
I absolutely love this recipe and have now used it in a few of my own. Thanks for introducing me and all of the hours you put into this blog and post.
Hi. I trued using the Thai coconut milk and it separated way before 3 minutes using the blender on high. I did skip the chilling process – could that be why?
Yes that is absolutely why, it’s important to the separation of the fat and water. That said, I have noticed that this process can vary wildly, even with the brands I know and love. It just isn’t an exact science, unfortunately
Have you tried making it from your own coconut milk? I was wondering if using two cups of shredded coconut to two cups of water would extract enough fat to make it work. Thoughts?
Wow!! This is fantastic!! My husband and brother hate eating “clean” and I put it on their pancakes this morning for a huge success and a cascade of “Is there any more whipped cream?” Pretty amazingly wonderful. Also, I used a brand I found at Wal-Mart called Imperial Dragon, and it worked wonders. Thanks for the tutorial, I will definitely be making this in place of whipped cream from now on!!
I had problems with a coconut cream that was very waxy but all crumbled and mixed with the water. I squeezed out by hand through a cheese cloth and got perfectly smooth cream without the water.
Hi Beth, as a scientist i found your comparative experiment not only highly useful but also refreshing, reflecting your thorough and scientific personality! i didn’t come across anything like that on the web yet, and found it very supportive of my experimental attempts to make a healthy, dairy free strawberry cream cake for my boy’s b-day. (eventually i got stuck with having thin coconut milk- adding coconut oil and cooling didn’t help my attempt to turn it into whipped cream, eventually I managed to produce a stable cream out of it by adding a bit of cornflour, boiling it and cooling it again :))
The difference between cans of coconut milk is NOT because of the ingredients being used – I believe it’s because of the length of time the can has been sitting. I’ve been using coconut milk every day for MANY years – mostly Thai Kitchens. When the coconut milk is very FRESH – it is completely homogeneous, with NO separation at all. It is liquid and free-flowing. As the can sits on the shelf, though, it will begin to thicken and separate.
So, I would try to find a store where their stock is kind of OLD! lol
Or buy a whole bunch on sale and then just let it sit in your pantry for a long time – don’t shake!
But now Thai Kitchens is making coconut CREAM in a can!!! It is quite thick. I haven’t tried it for whipping yet, but I hope someone here can try. It sure would be a lot easier than trying to find a separated can!
Interesting theory, could explain why they vary so much. Old cans huh? Thanks for sharing and yeh, I am super excited about the coconut cream in a can, a couple of brands are now offering that. Good stuff.
Oh by the way, I heard about separating the water from the cream that was kind of a duh moment for me. Turn the can upside down and open from the bottom, that way all you have to do is pour the water off and the cream stays put.
I like this theory, I used the coconut milk that got the watery results and I honestly got the thickest cream I’ve ever gotten. It isn’t a good idea to make whipped cream from coconut cream in my opinion as it is so thick that it has a good deal of actual coconut oil in it and no matter how much you beat it the oil will not fully incorporate into the cream and you’ll end up with crunchy clumps.
Can you add cream cheese to the coconut fat
Not sure, I have never tried. I make this usually as a means to avoid dairy, so it wouldn’t make much sense in that way.
The reason why it is inconsistent could be the age of the product. Just like peanut butter for exemple. When it is older, the oil separate. Maybe we can have better results with older coconut milk!
This sounds wonderful. Can’t wait to try. Can you please tell me what size can of milk you used as I can get two different ones. Thanks so much
Im thinking of using this recipe for my sons birthday cake however i would like to use natural sugars from fruits to sweeten it and add some flavor. Do you think adding pureed peaches and/applesauce would change the consistency? I would like to use it for piping.
If you buy straight coconut cream how much would you use for one icing recipe?
This was so informative and helpful. I can’t wait to try this. Thank you.
Thanks for this post. I just thought I’d let you know that I bought 365 Organic Coconut Milk yesterday. The can, now, says the lining is BPA FREE.
Hi,
Can i use gelatin ir agar star for tuos whipping cream, if i want to make layered cake
I am curious if I buy tinned coconut cream do I still need to refrigerate it and pour off the liquid? brand that I have is Native Forest coconut cream