Everything you need to know about coconut water

Can you ever beat the moment of being sat on a tropical beach, hands stretched to hold an umbrella adorned coconut, as you sip its glorious elixir? Coconut water is simply wonderful – it is delicately sweet and surprisingly refreshing. It’s also incredibly good for you. Unfortunately, while life on a tropical beach is wonderful, getting a daily fix of fresh coconut water is somewhat more difficult here on UK shores!

While coconut water straight from a young green coconut is as raw and fresh as it gets, you can’t always count on it being available in cooler climates. Raw coconut water is rare and as coconut water in tetra packs is often taken from mature brown coconuts and filtered and UHT sterilised prior to packing. Coconut water powder is another easy solution to add a coconut water hit to smoothies, desserts or drinks.

So what is coconut water powder?

Coconut water is the liquid that is found within the coconut. Coconuts are remarkable as every part of them is useful, from the husky exterior to the flesh and coconut oil within. Coconut water is best found in the youngest green coconuts. That’s why if you’ve ever tried to recreate your beach sipping experience from a coconut shy coconut, it completely misses the mark!

And coconut water is, in fact, predominantly water itself – 96% in fact. However, those remaining 4-5% pack a mighty punch in terms of nutrition. It’s a super-mix of trace minerals and vitamins, amino acids, as well as proteins and naturally occurring sugars.

Coconut water powder is made by taking fresh coconut water and spray drying it at high temperatures. This leaves a white fine-grade powder. It can then be easily made into coconut water once more, simply by the addition of water. Coconut water powder still retains much of the nutritional profile of the coconut water.

Our coconut water powder is organic and comes from Vietnam, like our coconut milk powder. We add a smidgen of organic tapioca maltodextrin to prevent it all getting stuck together in the packet! Our coconut water powder is an electrolyte-rich powder that’s convenient to keep to hand when the tropical beach remains thousands of miles away!

Is coconut water healthy?

Not only is coconut water good for you, it’s increasingly being seen as wonder-stuff, an energising drink and food supplement. We need more research to be done, but it’s generally accepted that the health benefits of coconut water powder are the same as those from coconut water straight from the seed itself.

There are many benefits to coconut water, which may include:

·        Hydration

As drinks go, you’ll find it hard to find one which is as hydrating as coconut water. It is particularly beneficial when you need to replace electrolytes lost through exercise. Within coconut water you find magnesium, potassium, calcium and sodium. Studies say that coconut water for hydration and replacing lost electrolytes is better than standard water.

Given that coconut water is a delicious way of replenishing your hydration levels, and it isn’t packed with nasties like many sports drinks, you can’t argue with that!

·        Nutrients

Coconut water holds trace potassium, calcium, iron and even vitamin D. This heady mix of nutrients are often more easily found in animal products and come with a side serving of fat and cholesterol. Coconut water is vegan and low in fat.

·        Antioxidants

Coconut water is a brilliant source of antioxidants. These travel around mopping up the free radicals that you’re exposed to through your diet and everyday living. Some believe this can help with all manner of things from reducing the signs of ageing to lowering your risk of certain cancers.

Interestingly, coconut water has been shown to be great for your skin (both directly and when drunk) because of its antioxidants and antimicrobial properties. We’ve been told it is fabulous for fighting acne.

·        Heart health

Coconuts are a heart-friendly product. Some studies have shown that coconut water may reduce your risk of heart disease, as it can lower cholesterol to the degree it could have a similar effect to statin medication and it has also been shown to lower blood pressure.

If you’re wondering why this is, the potassium levels in coconut water are impressive and potassium is great for lowering blood pressure.

·        Kidney health

We all know that you need to drink plenty of fluids to prevent kidney stones. However, there is a small amount of evidence emerging that shows that coconut water is better than plain old water for this. It seems to be very good at flushing out the crystals that stick together to form the stones. These studies are preliminary and need greater research though to verify the claims.

·        Low calories

Fruit juices are troublesome in the calorie department. No matter how delicious and fresh they are, they are laden with sugar, albeit natural. Coconut water has about half the number of calories, millilitre for millilitre, as orange juice. So you can get all the natural goodness, without the calories.

·        Diabetes help

Various early stage studies have demonstrated that coconut water can lower blood sugar levels. Studies haven’t hopped over to humans yet, but the research looks promising for helping diabetics control their blood sugar.

This is due to the fact that coconut water holds trade magnesium which can aid normal insulin production.

How to use coconut water powder

Having read the list of benefits of coconut water powder, we’re sure you’re ready to get started with using it. You can simply rehydrate the powder with water and enjoy the drink if you want. Pop the coconut powder and water in a bottle, and shake so that it completely mixes and becomes totally dissolved. This will take you back to the tropical beach experience rather than leave you thinking you’re drinking chalky water!

However, the most popular way of enjoying coconut powder is to pop it into your favourite shakes and smoothies, whether post workout, or simply because. It adds a delicately tropical taste to whatever you’re creating.

We’re also big fans of using coconut water to make chia pudding, hot cocoas and soups!

Remarkably, many people are also using coconut water to feed their plants. The cytokinins in coconut water help the growing plants to get all the nutrients they need from the soil.

Get your coconut water powder

Our organic coconut water powder ensures you get an all-natural option, without any unnecessary additives. Many brands add sugar or even flavouring agents. Packaged in an airtight re-sealable bag, you can easily reach for it whenever you want.