Did you know you can make a decadent whipped cream by using a can of coconut milk? Not only is it simple to make, but it’s easily the best-tasting whipped cream I’ve tried.
I know whipped coconut cream isn’t new to many of you – people have been making coconut whipped cream for years and years. I first read about it a couple years ago on Vegan Joy’s website and have seen it popping up everywhere.
In today’s post, I’ll show you just how easy it is to make. I can promise you, your life will change when you taste this stuff!
1. Grab a can of full-fat can coconut milk (without guar gum listed as an ingredient) – Update: Native Forest now puts guar gum in the ingredients and this causes the cream and water to emulsify which is not what we want. The can must also be full-fat because you will be whipping the solid cream. Do not use light coconut milk because it won’t turn out. In summary – look for a full-fat can of coconut milk that does not have guar gum listed on the ingredient list. Cool?
Many of you have had trouble making whipped coconut cream with certain brands because some cans don’t always separate. A reader let me know that Thai Kitchen has changed their formula so that it doesn’t separate anymore. Apparently they are coming out with small cans of pure coconut cream instead. Be on the look out! I used Native Forest with decent result, although I have had some duds before.
2. Place can in the fridge overnight. This is another crucial step. You need to chill the coconut cream until it’s very firm. I once tried to make whipped coconut cream without chilling the can – big mistake! It was a watery mess. I like to keep at least a couple cans in the back of my fridge just in case I need a quick whipped cream for a recipe. Then you always have it on hand and don’t have to wait overnight to use it. A few extra cans of chilled coconut milk never hurt anyone.
Just before you make your whipped cream, place a mixing bowl in the freezer for 5 minutes or so. This helps keep everything cold and will be especially helpful for those of you in very warm climates. You can also put the beaters in the freezer too, but it’s not necessary.
3. Remove the chilled can from fridge and FLIP it upside down.
Why flip it upside down?
The liquid coconut milk (the part that doesn’t harden) will now be at the top of the can! Note: Not all cans work for this – check yours.
4. Open the can. See the liquid at the top? You won’t be whipping this part.
5. Pour the coconut liquid into another bowl. You should have just under 1 cup of liquid, but this yield will vary a bit by brand and even by can.
Don’t throw it away – I like to use it in smoothies along with mango, kale, banana, and chia for a fun tropical smoothie. You can also use it in baking and cooking.
As you can see below, you are left with only the hardened coconut cream! Come to mama!! This is exactly what we want to use to make our coconut whipped cream.
6. Scoop the coconut cream into your chilled bowl. (I don’t recommend using a shallow bowl like this one – I only used it for photo purposes so you could see it better!)
As you can see, you get a lot of hardened cream to work with!
7. Whip the cream. Grab a hand mixer (alternatively, you can do this in a stand mixer – just chill the bowl first) and whip the cream until fluffy. It’s really too much fun.
Coconut Whipped Cream
Yield
1 cup (250 mL)
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
You can easily create a decadent, fluffy whipped cream by using a can of full-fat coconut milk. Not only is the technique simple, but it’s easily the best-tasting whipped cream I’ve tried. You can use this whipped cream just like regular dairy whipped cream. I like to use it in a bowl of fruit, on top of a fruit crisp, or stirred into Banana Soft Serve. The options are really endless! One important tip: you’ll want to chill the can of coconut milk for at least 24 hours before you begin to ensure the white coconut cream solidifies (be sure to read all my tips below on how to buy the right coconut milk for this recipe).
Ingredients
- 1 (14-ounce/398 mL) can full-fat coconut milk, chilled for 24 hours*
- 1 to 2 tablespoons (15 to 30 mL) sweetener (maple syrup, powdered sugar, cane sugar, etc), to taste
- 1 vanilla bean, scraped or 1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) pure vanilla extract (optional)
Directions
- Chill the can of coconut milk in the fridge for at least 24 hours. I like to keep a few cans in the fridge at all times so I don’t have to wait.
- About 1 hour before making the coconut whip, chill a mixing bowl in the freezer.
- After chilling the can, open the can and scoop the solid white coconut cream into the bowl. Discard the coconut water or save it for another use (such as coconut water ice cubes).
- Using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the cream until fluffy and smooth. Add in sweetener to taste and vanilla.
- Return whipped cream to fridge until ready to use. It will firm when chilled and soften at room temperature. This will keep in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 1 week or you can freeze it in an airtight freezer-safe bag for up to 1 month. After chilling in the fridge, allow it to sit at room temperature until it softens slightly and then you can re-whip it as needed.
Tip:
- * Some brands of canned coconut milk will be better than others for making whipped cream, and even some cans within the same brand can vary quite a bit. For whatever reason, the cream and water in some brands or cans do not separate. A few of the most consistent brands for making coconut whipped cream are: Thai Kitchen full-fat coconut milk, Trader Joe’s Coconut Cream (just the cream—no water in the can!), and Native Forest. I always keep at least a few cans of full-fat coconut milk in my fridge at all times just in case I get a “dud”—then I know I have more on hand. If you happen to get a dud don’t be discouraged. Try out one of the brands above, and be sure to chill it for at least 24 hours. Odds are you will find your perfect brand after some trial and error!!
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)There may be a strong urge to shove your face in the bowl.
8. Add in a touch of sweetener and vanilla extract and whip it again.
You can use regular cane sugar, confectioner’s sugar, or even a touch of maple syrup. I find 2-3 teaspoons usually does the trick for my taste buds. I also like to add about 1/4-1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract or a vanilla bean. The vanilla really takes it over the edge – I don’t suggest skipping it!
The first time I made this I could not get over how amaaaaazing it tastes. Eric even said he wouldn’t be able to tell that it wasn’t made from dairy. Two big thumbs up from us!
How to use:
You can use this whipped cream just like regular dairy whipped cream. I like to use it in desserts & frostings, it’s amazing over a simple bowl of fruit or pancakes, and sometimes I add a dollop on my vegan overnight oats for an extra creamy bowl. You can even spoon a bit on top of a pie or fruit crisp or stir some into a bowl of banana soft serve. The options are really endless! Have fun making different kinds of flavours and fooling your friends and family.
If making a whipped frosting, I suggest storing the decorated cake/cupcakes in the fridge until ready to serve.
Storing:
Have leftovers? You can easily store it in the fridge for at least 1.5 weeks (probably longer) in a sealed container. It will firm up a bit more in the fridge. Simply scoop it into a bowl and re-whip it when you need it.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I do! For those of you who’ve been making it for a while now, what’s your favourite way to prepare/enjoy it?
I made this earlier today and added coco powder to it – WOW – who need chocolate mousse?
What happened?? Can someone help. I bought the same brand mentioned here, full fat, and it has been in the fridge for 2 weeks. I just opened it and it was NOT separated! Very strange, I don’t under stand it. I noticed that ther is Guar gum in the ingredient list , which I thought was strange when I bought it. Could that have made a difference? So dissapointed. I try whipping it anyway. Thanks.
Hi, and thanks for this recipe. I made it for the first time today and… it split! Does this usually happen? Why does this happen? Mine didn’t turn out like your picture :( Any tips gratefully welcome!
Thanks
Monique
I was a food science major in college and feel the need to tell you people this, but please look at the nutritional facts before doing this!!! Coconut milk and therefore, coconut cream is very very high in saturated fats. In fact, the FDA and other government-based agencies do not recommend consuming it in large quantities. Coconut oil is almost as bad as the palm oil that movie theaters use on their popcorn. I understand that some people are all about “all-natural” and don’t line additives or processed foods but “all-natural” doesn’t always mean that its good for you. Nature gave us cocaine, marijuana and a whole slew of deadly plants and toxins. While it is reasonable to use this as a whipped cream once in a while, especially for those who are lactose/dairy intolerant, it is not recommended to consume this regularly. Also, coconut is an integral part of Polynesian diets (i.e. Hawaiian or Filipino) and the have ridiculous high rates of heard disease due to the over consumption of food rich in saturated fats. You won’t believe how many recipes for coconut-cream based frostings/whipped creams appear on Pinterest, but I would just like to warn you all before you wreak havok on your heart and your LDL cholesterol levels.
*Also, @Jen, guar gum is an emulsifier and generally aids to prevent the separation of fats and liquids, it might be the reason why you are experiencing difficulty making this recipe, but if you read my post, perhaps that’s not such a bad thing.
A few thoughts:
1) Yep, cococnut milk is a great substitute for animal milk and cream in many recipes because of its high fat contents. You can make a great ice cream, for example, with cream of coconut instead of cream (or eggs).
2) However, claims that it is much healthier than cream are highly exaggerated. That’s because most of its fat is saturated fat, the kind that is reported to clog your arteries. Unlike most vegetable fats, coconut fat solidifies at room temperature (and especially when cold), which is always abad sign. Polyunsaturated fats, like those n olive oil, remains liquid at room temperature. Because of this, coconut is only marginally healthier than cow’s cream. That’s because there is no cholesterol. On the flip side, coconut cream also lacks healthy components such as calcium and Vitamin A. So if you decide to make whipped coconut cream, do so for the taste or phlosophical reasons (i.e. being vegan), but not for health reasons.
BTW, if anyone wants to do a comparison of the two, do so honestly and accurately (I design medical studies for a living). Many people mistakenly look at the nutrition label for both, and then draw conclusions. Not good. As you can see from this excellent blog entry, coconut milk is mostly water but the can’s label reflects the entire can — not just the solid cream. On the other hand, the label for heavy cream is pretty much entirely fat (fat calorie = entire serving calories). So if you want to make comparisons, you need to get info for the cream only.
3) Those who claim that a vegetarian diet is necessarily healthier are incorrect. The jury is still out, and it’s unclear what components of the vegetarian diet is healthier. Metastudies do indeed show that vegetarians seem to have lower morbidity and mortality, but that’s misleading. Vegetarians in Western countries also tend to be wealthier, have better health care, exercise more, etc. For those same reasons, meat eaters will be healthier in developing countries because they are the wealthier ones with better health care and nutrition. Only the poor will be living exclusively on grains and vegetables,
It’s also unclear whether it’s the vegetables vs meat that is important. It may simply be based caloric restriction. Studies on low calorie diets show that caloric restriction itself results in lower morbidity and mortality. So it may simply be that consuming fewer (unused) calories is the key, regardless of where the calories come from. Of course, you’d generally feel much fuller getting those calories from vegetables since you can eat much more with fewer calories.
All this is confused by two recent findings. It was long believed that high fat diets, especially those with animal fats, were harmful cardiovascuarly. Shockingly, studies of high fat diets such as Atkins (lots of ANIMAL fats) over the last few years have shown *nearly* the OPPOSITE. Not only did the high fat group lose weight [more rapidly?], but they also had BETTER triglyceride and LDL (bad cholesterol) levels than the low fat group! And this was repeatedly shown in several studies over the year. Indeed, it may be healthier than high carb diets, which can describe some vegetarian diets, While these findings are important (because they were repeated, thus consistent), it is still unknown what the long term effects are. For examlple, would the high fat group have higher mobidity 30 years later? And while this seems to suggest that high fats, inluding animal fats, may not affect cardiovascular health adversely, some studies still suggest that it increases some cancers and possibly, Alzheimer. I do not know if these apply to all fats or just anmal fats.
Finally, a fascinating study came out two weeks ago showing why foods such as red meat, cheese and eggs are harmful — and it has nothing to do with the foods themselves. Apparently, natural bacteria in our guts release a substance that causes inflammation throughout our body in the presence of those food. SInce these bacteria are a healthy part of our body and helps in our digestion, they’re not something we want to eliminate. I have not analyzed the study yet so I don’t know whether it looked at other foods, including vegetables.
A final thought: While a proper vegetarian diet may be healthier for some, there’s no denyng that it’s unnatural for humans. I often hear the argument that elephants and gorillas are herbivores yet they show no lack of strength. That ignores the fact that their anatomy and physiology are optimized for a vegetable diet while ours are not. Optimization takes hundreds or thousand of years of evolution, and not just a few weeks of adjustment as some vegetarians claim. Sure, you can live healthily as a vegetarian, but don’t tell us that it’s optimum or better.
That we are not meant to be vegetarians [vegans] is proven by the fact that we are mammals, and designed to be reared on breast milk. As adults, we need pretty much the same nutrients except that we now can chew, thus have the option to seek it elsewhere including vegetables. But that doesn’t change the fact is that our teeth and bodies are designed for omnivorous living so generally speaking, a balanced diet based on meat, vegetable and grains is healthiest for most people. It’s certainly tastier and easier to maintain — and more accessible for most Westerners.
What can I do if I accidentally beated the water and the white coconut part?
I used the same brand and it never hardened – any idea why?
:(
How long and on what speed did you mix this? I’ve tried a few times, making sure everything was chilled and no liquid snuck in, but I still couldn’t get it to whip nicely. It was thick and hard like yours out of the can but beating it just seemed to get it liquidy again and it just wouldn’t get there. Still used it, tastes amazing, just was a bit runny :(
Thank you SO much for this tutorial. I have had *fantastic* success following your directions. I even found the Native Forrest brand at a local store. I have had 8 out of 9 cans separate nicely, though with varying amounts of solid left behind – as you warned about. I usually purchase and open 3 cans at a time just to make sure I will have enough for whatever project I need it for.
This last time, on a whim, I also purchased another brand, “Natural Balance”? or something like that. It was a fraction of the cost of native Forrest and claimed to also be organic and BPA-free. Interestingly enough, the ingredients were quite different. The only ingredient in the Natural Balance can was something like “coconut extract”. The ingredients in the Native Forrest brand (from memory) included products like: coconut milk, guar-gum, etc. But the Native Forrest has worked multiple times and the other one did not work at all.
Sadly, the results were terrible with the Natural Balance brand. It did separate, but the solids were grainy. And the taste was terrible!!!! Natural Balance had a burnt?? or bark-like?? taste to it, while the Native Forrest brand has a light and very slight coconut taste. I tried whipping up the solids from the Natural Balance can anyway just to see if I could whip out the graininess. Nope. Even when leaving the stand mixer on high for at a good 5 or more minutes, the results were still grainy. And still tasted horrible.
Using Native Forrest: I have had great success whipping up this whipped topping as you directed in the tutorial and then slapping it as-is as frosting on a double-layer chocolate cake. It worked perfectly, tasted so good, and looked so pretty. People loved it and were surprised that it was dairy free.
Thanks again.
Correction: The brand that didn’t work is: “Natural Value”
I’ve been doing this for years: I add a few dollops of well-chilled coconut cream into whipped cream, which then I use to top my tiramisu. I have yet to meet people who don’t like my tiramisu. It’s to die for. People keep asking me why my homemade tiramisu is way better than those in cake shops.
My full fat coconut milk was in the fridge for more than 24 hours and didn’t solidify:( Perhaps it was a dud? It did thicken a bit, but not nearly enough, and there wasn’t the liquid on the top of the can when I flipped the can over as usual. I scooped it out and stuck in the freezer. Fingers crossed!
hello, just wondering how long does the whipped coconut cream last for? I need to decorate a cake with an icing that is alernative of buttercream and fondant. The cake will be going out doors for approximately1-2 hours? Will it be safe? It’s currently winter here and I am hoping that this coconut whipped cream answers my prayers. Thank you in advance.
Hi Jimmy, Unfortunately it has to be kept refrigerated until ready to serve, so I don’t think it would stand a chance outdoors for so long, but I’m really not sure. I’ve used it as a frosting for a layer cake and I found the layers slipped off (b/c it’s not sticky like normal icing is) so keep that in mind too. It should be fine for a single layer. Maybe give it a test drive before hand? Good luck!
I have tried thai kitchen premium (45% fat), chilled overnight and it was pure liquid! i also tried haiku brand, only 22% fat and same thing. I can’t seam to get any solid cream out of it. any ideas?
YIPPIE……..FINALLY able to get this to work!!! I almost gave up since it wasnt hardening. I left my Organic Native Forest coconut milk in the back of my fridge for about 8 days. I just took it out to make some fudgcicles for my daughter. When I opened it up I had the watery liquid on top and almost 3/4 of it was solid. I put it in the mixer quickly and whipped it up with some stevia and it came out Wonderfully majestically delish!
DONT GIVE UP!
The key to living healthy lifestyle is knowledge about nutrition. Knowing what carbs, fats, sugars, alcohol do to your body will give you a clear picture of what foods you need to eat. You will be surprised to find that meat and diary are actually terrible for your body ,and can be easily replaced by plant based nutrition. Another thing is to learn the difference between animal based nutrients and plants based once. How your body reacts to them and finally how much is actually absorbed. If you constantly feel hungry and find yourself snacking all day that’s your body’s way of telling you its starving for nutrients. Anyway, good reference to check out are a couple of films that will help you understand the difference..’Forks Over Knives’, ‘ Fat Sick And Nearly Dead’, ‘Vegucated’.
Hey, chilled my cans over night, and I’m using the Native Forest Organic, but there was little to no separation. It did eventually solidify into whipped cream, but it’s not as thick or stiff as i wanted it. Any suggestions? I was thinking maybe it didn’t chill completely.
I have tried this with six different cans of coconut milk and have had no luck. I have used both native forest and thai kitchen and neither will separate. WHAT AM I DOING WRONG? Does this recipe only work about five percent of the time? I have not shaken the cans at all and they were left in my fridge numerous days. I’m very disappointed.
Wow, thank you so much for this tutorial. This looks super easy and I love the step-by-step pics!
I have a quick question. My boyfriend was so ecstatic to make your pumpkin pie smoothie with the whipped cream he went right out and bought the ingredients–however when we tried to whip the coconut cream, it didn’t ever get fluffy, and eventually deteriorated into chunks…We followed the directions to a T.
Do we just need nicer beaters? I’m not sure how great the ones we have are (family gift) and I’m struggling to figure out if we did something incorrectly or just have to have nicer equipment.
Thank you in advance!
Hey Yaz, Unfortunately cans of coconut do not seem to be consistent across brands (or even across cans within the same brand) – take a look at the comments in this post and you’ll see you are not the only one this has happened to. It’s very sad!! Some ppl say they have good luck with Thai Kitchen brand, so maybe try that next time.
Thanks for the fast reply! You are our favourite vegan food blogger and we make your recipes pretty religiously so knowing we’re not the only ones having a little problem is encouraging.
<3
Why? Why? Why did the solid/liquid separation thing not happen? Full-fat coconut milk. Can in fridge for 3 days. Flipped it over. No luck.
Hey Beverly, Sometimes cans are duds and I don’t know why. It’s happened to me recently – read over others comments, you are certainly not the only one this has happened to. I wonder if it has something to do with summer heat because I didn’t have an issue in the winter before.
I’m seeing that now. Sigh. I was so excited too. I’ll try Thai Kitchen. One more shot…