Just like having to check juice cartons for fish oil (really), now we have to check cans of coconut milk, to ensure that they don’t come from coconuts that are picked by monkey slaves (these animals are often tethered with their teeth pulled out, and forced to go up very high trees to harvest the coconuts sent to the western world). Due to media campaigns, most supermarkets have now banned the sale of the guilty brands, but they do sometimes make their way here, and even some high-end ‘organic food stores’ have been found to stock them. It’s not a local product. So if you do use coconut milk for curries and drinks, go for more ethical brands in zero waste (tins) packaging:
Nature’s Charm is a Thai brand. Usually it’s Thai coconut milk we are asked to avoid. But this brand is fine, the owner comes from an established coconut farming family and she’s a passionate vegan, who offers coconut milk and cream (and condensed milks) in cans, guaranteed no monkey harvesting.
Biona is a good organic brand, and sold in most stores in tins. It also offers varieties like lite coconut milk (lower in calories) and flavoured varieties for curries (turmeric or green curry).
Forest Wholefoods offers good organic coconut milk online, ethically sourced from Sri Lanka. Ideal for curries, soups, stir-fries and desserts. Also offered in bulk for restaurants and hotels.
is coconut milk good for us?
Some health gurus say that coconut milk is high in saturated fat, others say it contains healthy fats. We think best advice is simply use moderation, rather than spend life listening to ‘men in white coats’. Coconut milk is a great replacement for dairy milk in smoothies. Although its strong taste is not so popular for hot drinks, it’s great for ‘creamy curries’ and also makes good ice-cream:
No-Churn Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream (Crowded Kitchen) is a good recipe to start you off on your home-made ice-cream making ventures. This is because the recipe is super-simple and you don’t need an ice-cream machine. It makes use of (unsalted) soaked cashews to blend withcoconut milk and natural vanilla (don’t skimp on this – fake vanilla won’t taste the same, and is sometimes made with castoreum – beaver extract also used in some perfumes). You can swirl in some fresh berries if wished, for a kind of ‘raspberry ripple’ effect.
