What are Coconut Aminos Anyway?
Have you ever come accross this term in your recipes and wondered what coconut aminos are? Coconut amimos, also called Coconut marinade is a substitute for soy sauce. For years we used Soy Sauce in alot of our cooking. We thought it was a healthy option for flavouring our food. Now, I’ve replaced Soy Sauce with Coconut Aminos in most of my cooking.
What’s Wrong With Soy?
There is a lot of controversy on Soy sauce out there. On the “for” side they say its good because the soy has been formented but on the “against” side they say Soy is a legume and contains Lectins which messes up your body’s leptins, confusing your hunger and energy signals. They say that the high levels of Phytates in soy are also a problem because they bind to minerals, making them unavailable for your body to absorb.
Another point for the “against/paleo” side is that soy has a high goitrogen content. Goitrogen is supposed to interfer with the thyroid, and possibly lead to Hypothyroidism. Soy also has plant estrogens and are said to raise estrogen levels and decrease testosterone, creating unbalanced hormones. Apparently men don’t want boobs : )))
Enter Coconut Aminos?
I was building a new recipe and it called for coconut aminos. I sent Brad to the Community Farm Store … again, to investigate : ) They told him it is just a sauce made from coconuts. I love it! Food made from … food : ) Coconut aminos are a liquid made from the aged sap of coconut blossoms and salt. It is a low on the glycemic scale, vegan, and a gluten-free alternative to soy sauce, with 17 amino acids. Coconut aminos also have much less sodium than regular soy sauce making it perfect for those with high blood pressure. The tree is tapped to collect the aminos, which is then dried in the sun to evaporate, or can be fermented. The sap from the tapped tree continues to produce sap for many more years.
I’m not sure who is right about soy sauce but it doesn’t really mater to me because I loved coconut marinade the very first time I tried it. I love the flavour and I love the fact that it is a a plant based food with little processing and very few ingredients. So far, it sounds like it is sustainable and healthy with 17 aminos. We use it exclusively in place of soy sauce… untill new research comes out to tell us otherwise : )
Here’s How We Use Coconut Aminos:
- Serve coconut aminos as a dipping sauce for california rolls
- Add to chilli for a deep flavour
- Add to tomato based dishes to cut the acidity of the tomatoes
- Perfect for and asian inspired dishes
- Add to soups and stews instead of adding salt
- Mix coconut aminos, balsamic vinegar, mustard, oive oil and a squeeze of lemon to make a delicious salad dressing
- Add to sweet potato and other roasted veggies with olive oil before baking in the oven.
Where Can You Get Coconut Aminos?
You can find Coconut Aminos at your local health food shop. I get mine from the Community Farm Store, well …. Brad does anyway : )))
Have you used coconut aminos? How do you use it?