Have you ever had sheer laziness paralyze you in a task only to find out later how easy it actually was? Felt a little silly, right? I’ve been considering the idea of an artificially sweetened condensed coconut milk for some time, but dismissed it out-of-hand each time as likely not feasible. I don’t really have a good explanation for why I thought that. Perhaps it was because I felt that perhaps sugar was key in the dense consistency of it and I’d need an emusifying agent like xanthan gum to achieve a similar texture.
I really should learn to ignore those thoughts and do five minutes of research on a topic online before I back-burner a recipe development project as difficult or impossible.
There is some good news and some great news about making your own artificially sweetened condensed coconut milk. The good news is what was a little surprising to me — that it actually works really well, and without the need for an emulsifying agent. The GREAT news is that not only does it work, but it’s totally delicious and I may actually like it better than the full sugar non-coconut version I used to enjoy in my pre-keto life.
When I write recipe posts like this where I am creating an ingredient and not a finished dish, it is typically because I am thinking a few steps down the road. My process goes something like, “I wonder if this dish/drink/whatever could be made keto-friendly? If it were possible, I’d need ingredient a/b/c to be keto-friendly.”
Artificially sweetened condensed coconut milk was one of those ingredients that I need to make a number of finished plates I have in mind that you will see over the coming week. I suspect its utility might go far beyond those, though.
It may very well be that it can be used in almost anything that would use the full sugar version. That is a lot of the reason why I want to lead with this, rather than the uses. I know I have a lot of low carb baking experts that read this blog, so I want to pose that question to everyone. Have you ever baked with a low carb condensed milk, coconut or otherwise?
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Sweetened Coconut Condensed Milk
Ingredients
- 27 ounces coconut milk This is two 13.5 oz cans for me.
- 1/2 cup erythritol
- 10 drops stevia glycerite
Instructions
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Bring the coconut milk to a boil over high heat in the smallest diameter pot you have -- it will aid in gauging when it has reduced enough.
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When the coconut milk has come to a boil, reduce to a steady simmer. Keep stirring to aid in evaporation and keep it from scorching to the pot.
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As the coconut milk is reducing, add the sweeteners and stir to dissolve.
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When the mixture has reduced by about half and is the required consistency, remove from the heat and cool. It can be refrigerated for at least 3-4 days.
Recipe Notes
Coconut milk does not behave exactly like cow's milk under heat. It will glug and generally be disagreeable early on as it comes to a boil. In the middle of the reduction, bubbles will pile up faster and smaller than what you are used to. The best solution for all of this is to only use as much heat as you can easily dissipate by constant whisking.
18 Replies to "Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk"
Jackie Hachey August 6, 2017 (5:49 pm)
Do you have to use the stevia glycerite or can you just use more erythritol??
john@lowcarbpapa.com August 6, 2017 (5:51 pm)
You could definitely use more erythritol. I like the stevia because it makes it easier to adjust since it dissolves instantly. Erythritol is sort of notoriously slow
Pam August 6, 2017 (7:49 pm)
DO you know what the carb count would be?
john@lowcarbpapa.com August 6, 2017 (7:54 pm)
It would be totally dependent on how much you use in the recipe it goes in, but there are 20g of carbs in the whole batch.
john@lowcarbpapa.com August 6, 2017 (7:54 pm)
(as long as you exclude the erythritol)
Barb Marshalk August 8, 2017 (12:42 am)
Thank you for posting this!! I needed this last week. Didn’t bake a dish bec I didn’t have..
Could you make coconut butter next? Please?
john@lowcarbpapa.com August 8, 2017 (8:36 am)
You’re welcome! Re: coconut butter for cooking — why not use coconut oil or canned coconut cream?
Leena August 9, 2017 (7:34 pm)
I can’t find erythritol and I’m impatient to order it (lol). Can I use something other than erythritol?
john@lowcarbpapa.com August 9, 2017 (7:39 pm)
Sure. What were you going to use?
Marilyn February 28, 2018 (6:30 pm)
The best erythritol everyone uses is Swerve. It is readily available at the best price on Amazon.com. Comes in both granular and powdered. There is also a brown sugar sweetener I LOVE and it has the same texture as real brown sugar–Sukrin Gold.
Leena August 9, 2017 (8:01 pm)
I was thinking of using pure powdered Stevia or Truvia.
john@lowcarbpapa.com August 9, 2017 (8:04 pm)
That should be fine. I typically stick with plain erythritol because it is so cheap and I actually like its taste the best.
Leena August 9, 2017 (8:09 pm)
I stand corrected! I just found a brand at the supermarket called pyure which is a stevia blend. First ingredient is eryth ritol. Thanks for all your help!
john@lowcarbpapa.com August 9, 2017 (8:10 pm)
No problem — here to help!
Tracey September 23, 2017 (4:30 pm)
Off base question…
Bacon and sausage… What do you use? They all have sugar in the ingredients…
john@lowcarbpapa.com September 23, 2017 (4:39 pm)
It is often a pretty small amount. We do bacon once a week, if that. Just portion control.
Karen November 22, 2017 (8:10 pm)
Have you tried it with xylitol? I can’t use erythritol, it upsets my stomach, and I’m not a super fan of stevia.
john@lowcarbpapa.com November 22, 2017 (8:11 pm)
No, but only because my wife is a vet and we have quite a menagerie of pets. Highly toxic to them. I am sure it would work, though.