Product review: Tropical Traditions Virgin coconut oil, (Gold label standard)

Tropical Traditions, Inc is located in Springville CA and you can access their site here: http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/

Tropical Traditions has been posting notices on Twitter and Facebook asking for writers and bloggers to sample and evaluate their product at no cost. About 10 days after signing up, the jar arrived.

According to their web-site, their coconut oils are Non-GMO and certified organic. No solvents are used in processing. The Gold label is made by hand, in small batches, from fresh coconuts with no refining.

Coconut oil is largely saturated fat, medium chain fatty acids (MCFAs), which are felt to be highly beneficial to health. It is stable for long periods of time at room temperature, so needs no refrigeration.

When you first open the box and pull out the jar (which weighs over 3 pounds!) you notice the pearly white color of the oil in the glass jar. Coconut oil should be pure white when solid and clear when liquid. Coconut oil should become liquid at about 76 degrees (F). Because of the way it cools in the jar it has a pearly quality to it....but no grays or other colors are evident.

Opening the jar and smelling the oil isn't much. This particular brand does not have a strong coconut smell to it like some brands do, but it is a pleasant smell! (The web-site says there is a mild scent of coconut, but I couldn't detect it and neither could my son).

When you use Tropical Traditions coconut oil you will notice how smooth it is. Even when solid it has almost a creamy texture to it. Your spoon scoops out the oil with little effort. When you place it into an already hot pan it melts almost immediately into a clear oil. (Occasionally you will see tiny black flecks, which is normal as this is not refined)

Coconut oil has a higher smoke point, usually around 360 degrees and is very stable, so it an excellent oil to use for pan frying and baking.

There are a few things I make and do to test different oils.

First, I make candy! Yep, chocolate candy with nuts. Melt about 1 T coconut oil and add about 1/2 ounce of pecans or walnuts. When nicely browned, add 2 squares of 85% dark chocolate and a little sweetener (to taste). Mix well to be sure oil and chocolate is well blended with sweetener. Pour mixture onto foil or silicone and allow to cool. Break in chunks and enjoy! As expected, TT coconut oil blends well and doesn't have a coconut taste.

Second, I pan fry something. For testing this oil, I cooked hamburg patties, pork chops, steak and lamb chops. All browned nicely without sticking to the pan.

Last, I use the oil as a moisturizer! Put a little oil in the palm of your hand, then rub hands together to melt the oil. Smooth over face, neck, arms, etc and let sit for 5-10 minutes, then blot off excess oil with a tissue. Some oils will have hard pieces that don't melt well, or feels gritty on your skin, but Tropical Traditions is smooth and creamy feeling and melts quickly at skin temperature.

All in all, I'll gibe Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil a big thumbs up!

Disclosure: I was sent a 32 fl oz jar of this from Tropical Traditions at no charge so I could evaluate the product and post a review.