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I have just discovered there is a passed BBD (best before date) purified coconut in the storage. This is also the first time for me to know what is a purified coconut because of the search/research of the captioned matter.

It appeared to be pale yellowish with white precipitation (photo is 99% matching the actual situation).

It is never opened before. I did try to smell and taste, because it is purified from aroma, no odour is smelled. It tastes neutral, tasteless, no bad taste or odour particularly.

I wonder if it is still safe to consume. Why does it become more yellowish even if it doesn't open? And since it is summer here, it is supposed to be in full liquid form, I wonder what is the precipitate?

Here is the photo for reference.

Coconut oil jar actual appearance Best before date information

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Oddly [at least to me] the shelf life of refined coconut oil is much shorter than that of virgin.

The 5 signs of it going off are:-

  1. Yellow colour

  2. Blotchy or chunky

  3. Black oil spots

  4. Bitter or sour smell

  5. Sour flavour.

Now, to me that looks a tad yellow - but as I live in the UK where coconut oil is generally a solid except for a week in July, it's not something I'm used to seeing. Melt point is about 24℃

I've had jars of virgin coconut oil that are still good three years past their sell-by, opened from new & just left in the pantry, but I don't really have any experience with refined. I buy it for the huge coconutty flavour-boost so refined doesn't suit my use-case.

The sediment doesn't really bother me, though again it's something I almost never see in liquid form in the jar. Personally, I'd call it OK if it doesn't smell or taste - perhaps try gently heating some just to see if any odour is being masked by it being cooler. It's unlikely to have gone mouldy if unopened, so there's only the slightly yellow colour that bothers me at all. Maybe shake it up & put it in the fridge for a day to see what it looks like as a solid. It should look like a jar of fresh snow.

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  • I agree with heating some and seeing what it smells like. Sometimes a fat that has gone just a little bit "off" will smell fine at room temp, but start to smell not good when heated. Better to notice that before you add other ingredients and ruin a whole dish. If it smells fine when heated, perhaps spread some of the heated oil on a piece of bread and see what it tastes like (let it cool before eating it, of course).
    – csk
    Jun 12, 2021 at 17:20
  • specific to these solid vegetable fats, a subtle soapy taste will give you warning
    – Pat Sommer
    Jun 12, 2021 at 22:19

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