I want to mix some alcohol (say rum) into a coconut oil base. At the minute when I try this the alcohol seperates and sits on the bottom as a liquid. Is there any way I can mix these together so the alcohol remains suspended into the coconut oil.
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$\begingroup$ Do you really want to add rum (= water + ethanol + frangrances) or do you just want to give the coconut oil a rum flavour? In the latter case, ethyl formiate might be the component that you want. $\endgroup$– Klaus-Dieter WarzechaCommented Mar 30, 2016 at 14:27
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$\begingroup$ You need an emulsifier. I recommend mustard. $\endgroup$– KarlCommented Mar 30, 2016 at 21:10
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2 Answers
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When you consider that rum and most other hard liquors contain at least 50% water, it is not surprising that the result is a two-phase system. If you began with absolute or 95% ethanol, or perhaps even grain neutral spirits, which vary but often come as 180 proof (90% ethanol) you might get the homogeneous solution you want. Another approach would be to add an edible emulsifier such as lecithin, which will help the ingredients to form a stable emulsion.
The earlier suggestion to hydrogenate the oil is not likely to work, as hydrogenation does not make oil able to mix with water. Coconut oil already has a high saturated fat content, as can be seen by the fact that it is often a solid at room temperature.
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Coconut oil is solid at room temperature, but melts at temperatures slightly higher. It is physically similar to butter, which is typically 16% water (plus emulsifiers).
Butter may be a readily available additive to investigate. The first question is whether butter and coconut oil are compatible, then whether you could add some rum to this mix, since there is already some water in it, and the third thing to assess is whether you could mix the combination warm (liquid), then quickly cool it (say on a cold plate) to make it solidify.
Another readily available additive is dry milk solids. These could be blended into the rum - mmm - milky rum! - and then mixed well - really well - with some melted coconut oil. It would be like reconstituting an alcoholic superfatted milk.
answered Jan 3, 2021 at 14:59