My mom used to bake us cakes and decorate them with whipped cream when I was a child. I used to follow her around the kitchen, so I could lick the bowl and whisk clean. So whipped cream has a special place in my heart, especially now that I live an entire Pacific Ocean away from my Mom. I had a short, love affair with store bought vegan rice and soy whip after I first turned vegan, but moved on from processed vegan food as time went on. When I first encountered coconut whipped cream, needless to say, I was ecstatic. It was literally whipped cream, from the look, taste, and texture, it had everything! I don’t know who was the genius mastermind who came up with it first, but I am forever grateful to whomever you are! I first tried to make it raw vegan, but since canned coconut milks are pasteurized and not raw, I was having a heck of a time with trial and error using fresh coconut milk. So I decided for the time being, I’ll do the non-raw but vegan coconut whipped cream recipe, and later the raw vegan one. Though I will say, the non-raw but vegan coconut whipped cream is much easier to make, and easier on the wallet. Probably a better choice in most cases.
Now this recipe starts from when you pick up a can of coconut milk, because the type of canned coconut milk you use is very important. There are two things to look for. First, get the full fat coconut milk, not the “lite” or “low” fat versions. We need all the fat for this!
Next, check the ingredient list to see if there is any guar gum in there. Guar gum acts as an emulsifier and prevents the coconut milk from separating. In this case, we actually want the coconut milk fat and the water to separate while it is being chilled in the fridge over night. This separation is key as you will gently scoop out the white coconut milk fat, which settles at the top and whisk it up into the beautiful, fluffy whipped cream. If the coconut milk does not separate properly, it basically ends up being too watery. Sometimes, even cans without the guar gum can be a “dud.” Dud, meaning it just didn’t separate right, and you can’t really scoop out the coconut milk fat.
It’s getting hard to find canned coconut milk without the guar gum in it nowadays, but companies are coming out with a version of canned coconut fat called “coconut cream”, like the one from Trader Joe’s. Basically, coconut creams are the white thick cream of coconut milk fat that you collect after you chill and separate the coconut milk. These coconut creams tend to not have guar gum in them. Phew! Well, I guess they’re making it easier for you! I still like to chill these too and separate them. If you don’t have luck and can only find yourself a canned coconut milk with guar gum in it, not to worry. It can be salvaged!
Once you have a can of coconut milk, chill it in the refrigerator minimum overnight. You can keep it in there until needed.
When the canned coconut milk is ready, stick the bowl you’ll be using for whipping into the refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes. This will help to whip the cream. While you’re chilling the bowl, gather all the ingredients and prepare your hand held or stand mixer. Once the bowl is cold, carefully take out the can of coconut milk from the refrigerator. You don’t want to shake it too much here and mess up the separation. When you open the can, if the coconut milk fat has separated successfully, there will be a thick white cream or a paste at the top. The water will be underneath that layer. Carefully scoop out the white cream and put it into the chilled bowl. Try not to get any of the water in the bowl.
Instead of scooping the top out, you could carefully flip the can upside down and open the “bottom” of the can. This way, the water will be at the top, and coconut milk fat at the bottom. You can then gently pour out the water and easily scoop out the white cream. Whichever way you prefer to remove the cream is fine.
If you open up your can and it’s just a lightly separated and lumpy coconut milk, you have a dud. I personally like to get a couple extra cans and chill them together if I absolutely need a really good batch. This way, even if I get a dud, I have some spares ready to go and extras for anytime I want whipped cream on the spot.
If you’re using a can with guar gum in it, even after chilling, it’ll look like, plain ole coconut milk. I’ll explain the way to salvage these after the instructions.
Start whipping the white cream with a hand held mixer, stand mixer, or whatever whisk you are using. Once the cream starts to make soft peaks, add in the sweetener of your choice and vanilla extract. You can also add some tapioca flour, arrowroot starch, or agar powder. This will help whip it up stiffer and keep its shape during storage. Whip until you have nice stiff peaks. Voila! Velvety white vegan whipped cream! You can use it exactly as you would regular whipped cream. You can even pipe it and decorate with it to! If you are not going to use the whipped cream right away, transfer it into an airtight container and put it in the refrigerator. It firms up a little bit when it chills, so whip it up lightly until it softens before use.
Now the way to salvage a dud can or the ones with guar gum in them. The problem with these is the higher water content. Since you can’t separate out the water, it makes a very soft and loose whipped cream. By adding tapioca flour, arrowroot starch, or agar powder, some moisture will be absorbed and it will whip better. If you are still having a hard time achieving stiff peaks, stop the mixer and place the bowl back into the refrigerator for a few hours. The refrigeration will make the cream firm up and once it’s chilled, take it out and whip some more. You should be able to get nice stiff peaks but if not, stick it back into the refrigerator to chill and repeat.
Now that you have a bowl of luscious and decadent coconut whipped cream, the sky is the limit! Use it on anything and everything that goes with whipped cream. One of my favorite ways to eat it is a berry and granola parfait.
If you make it in a mason jar, you can have a fab parfait dessert at school or work.
I don’t think I need to lay it on thick. Coconut whipped creams are pretty awesome and will change your life as it did mine. Just do it.
- 1 can of coconut milk or coconut cream (full fat, not lite or low fat)
- 2-3 Tablespoons maple syrup, vegan powdered sugar or sweetener of your choice
- ½ teaspoon non-alcohol vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon tapioca flour, arrowroot starch, or agar powder
- * ↑ when using a dud can of coconut milk or the one with guar gum in it : ¾-1 teaspoon
- Find a can of full fat coconut milk, without guar gum listed in the ingredients.
- Refrigerate the can overnight. You can keep it in there until it's time to whip up the cream.
- When the coconut milk is chilled, stick the bowl you will be using for whipping into the refrigerator and chill for about 15 minutes. While you're chilling the bowl, get all of the ingredients and your hand held or stand mixer ready.
- Once the bowl is cold, carefully take out the can of coconut milk from the refrigerator. You don't want to shake it too much here and mess up the separation. When you open the can, if the coconut milk fat has separated successfully, there will be a thick white cream or a paste at the top. The water will be underneath that layer. Carefully scoop out the white cream and put it into the chilled bowl. Try not to get any of the water in the bowl. Instead of scooping the top out, you could carefully flip the can upside down and open the "bottom" of the can. This way, the water will be at the top, and coconut milk fat at the bottom. You can then gently pour out the water and easily scoop out the white cream. Whichever way you prefer to remove the cream is fine.
- If you end up with a dud can or are using a can with guar gum in it, skip to How to make the dud can of coconut milk or the one with guar gum in it work:
- Whip the white cream with a hand held mixer, stand mixer, or whatever whisk you are using.
- Once the cream starts to make soft peaks, add in the sweetener of your choice and vanilla extract. You can also add some tapioca flour, arrowroot starch, or agar powder to help whip up stiffer peaks and to help it hold its shape during storage.
- Continue whipping some more until you have nice stiff peaks.
- Serve immediately. If you are not going to use the whipped cream right away, transfer it into an airtight container and put it in the refrigerator. It firms up a little bit when it chills, so whip it up lightly until it softens before use.
- Pour the can into a chilled bowl. Add the sweetener of your choice, vanilla extract, and ¾-1 teaspon of tapioca flour, arrowroot starch, or agar powder.
- Whip the cream with a hand held mixer, stand mixer, or whatever whisk you are using.
- If you are having a hard time achieving stiff peaks, stop the mixer and stick the bowl into the refrigerator for a few hours. The refrigeration will make the cream firm up.
- Once it's chilled, take it out and whip some more. You should be able to get nice stiff peaks. If not, stick it back into the refrigerator to chill and repeat.
You can use the coconut whipped cream exactly as you would regular whipped cream. You can even pipe it and decorate with it too!
I really liked Trader Joes coconut cream. Whipped up well. I added cocoa powder and it was delicious. I saw now that they are adding xanthan gum which is considered to be iffy in terms of being a desirable additive. I will try some of the others.
Hi Hebergeur, thank you for trying the recipe! Adding cocoa powder sounds delicious! Yes, unfortunately xanthan gum is starting to creep into coconut milks and creams more and more.