Coconut flour

[picklesandmeat]

Every time I've cooked with coconut flour I notice a gritty, heavy texture even if I incorporate it very well. Did I buy the wrong kind (bobs red mill coconut flour), or is it supposed to be this way? I've tried using it as a thickener & a dredging batter. Any tips?

[Tom Denham]

Coconut is a little gritty. If you want something finer, you might try tapioca flour/starch. I don't notice taste differences, but the tapioca starch I use is very fine.

[picklesandmeat]

Thanks tom! I'll pick this up at the store. What applications does arrowroot lend itself to?

[Roz Griffiths]

Arrowroot is used like cornflour - mix it with a little bit of cold water, then gradually add to a stew to thicken the gravy. I find it gives a slightly weird texture, kinda gluey Luckily i only have one stew recipe that calls for it!

[praxisproject]

I find recipes that are actually _for_ coconut flour are much better than the converted ones.

 

What do you use it for?

[trezkholl0806]

I was wondering the same thing... Don't know what to buy, if any. Arrowroot, coconut, almond flour... what are the differences? What can they be used for on W30?

[amberino21]

I was wondering the same thing... Don't know what to buy, if any. Arrowroot, coconut, almond flour... what are the differences? What can they be used for on W30?

I know arrowroot can be used to thicken sauces, coconut flour can be used as a binder in patties, or to coat meat/fish before crumbing, almond meal can be used for crumbing.....other than that, probably not a lot!!

[Roz Griffiths]

Coconut flour is more absorbent (can't say that word without thinking of nappies, sorry!) than the others, but that probably only makes a difference if you're baking, which you wouldn't be, being on a whole30 and that

[picklesandmeat]

Thanks for all your responses. I've attempted to use it to thicken a sauce, and batter a piece of chicken for pan frying - which did absorb all the oil in the pan but tasted okay. I need to experiment more and stock a great paleo-esque pantry.

[amberino21]

Thanks for all your responses. I've attempted to use it to thicken a sauce, and batter a piece of chicken for pan frying - which did absorb all the oil in the pan but tasted okay. I need to experiment more and stock a great paleo-esque pantry.

I would use dessicated coconut to crumb chicken for pan frying - I dust with coconut flour, dip in egg, coat in a mix of coconut and herbs/spices. I can imagine just using flour would be gluggy?

[jent103]

As one example of breading with coconut flour and arrowroot - I've been eating these for breakfast lately. (Note: I am not currently on a Whole30; I think these would be fine on a Whole30 if the juice is from compliant pickles, but if a mod comes along and says otherwise I'll happily apologize and remove the post!) For some people they might be too SWYPO for a Whole30, if you're used to eating the fast food version, but if you're not trying to break a Chick-Fil-A addiction they might just be really good chicken nuggets. They're not gluggy at all, but it might be the combination of coconut flour + arrowroot powder instead of straight coconut flour.

 

StupidEasyPaleo chicken nuggets

[Vian]

Coconut flour is VERY dense. Most recipes that call for it use tablespoons worth vs. cups in recipes using normal flour. It also has a slightly bitter taste. I've made a chocolate lava cake (not whole30, obviously) with it that was very good, but otherwise I don't use it because I don't like the texture or taste.

[Zoodles]

Coconut flour seems to work ok for coating before frying

 

I would use dessicated coconut to crumb chicken for pan frying - I dust with coconut flour, dip in egg, coat in a mix of coconut and herbs/spices. I can imagine just using flour would be gluggy?

 

It doesn't really go gluggy in my experience, as long as you're prepared to use a lot (a LOT) of oil to fry it in because it drinks oil like crazy. Combining it with another flour like almond meal (which doesn't absorb much of anything as it's already so oily) helps. How do you stop your dessicated coconut from burning? Mine always does before the meat is cooked, even at lowish temps!

[amberino21]

Coconut flour seems to work ok for coating before frying

It doesn't really go gluggy in my experience, as long as you're prepared to use a lot (a LOT) of oil to fry it in because it drinks oil like crazy. Combining it with another flour like almond meal (which doesn't absorb much of anything as it's already so oily) helps. How do you stop your dessicated coconut from burning? Mine always does before the meat is cooked, even at lowish temps!

I cut my meat thin, or bash it flat if it's fatter, you could cook it in the pan then finish off in the oven, or just bake it. I often just bake - starting with pre crumbed frozen meat helps as it takes longer to cook and the coconut goes brown