Sometimes, no matter which brand you choose to buy, your shea butter turns out a little grainy. It’s not ideal, plenty of people really don’t like it, and it can be discouraging to first time buyers. What you need to know is that first, sometimes grainy shea butter happens, and second, that it’s an easy fix. All you need is a little bit of time, patience, and the right trick to make it happen. Next time you come across a batch of shea butter that isn’t as smooth as you want it, try one of these solutions:
Melt it slowly: often times the cause of a grainy batch of shea butter is due to the supplier melting it down too quickly, or the shea butter re-melting in its container during transport. The best way to fix this is to re-melt down your shea butter over low heat, and allow it to solidify slowly at room temperature. The hardest part is scooping your shea butter out of the tin, and if you don’t want to do that, you don’t have to! Simply take your container of shea butter and place it in a sink or container of hot water, or even in a warm windowsill, and let it soften slowly there. This will potentially take longer, but it’s as easy as setting it there and forgetting about it until you need it next.
Whip it: another way to deal with grainy shea butter is to whip it into a light, fluffy and smooth body butter. You can whip the shea butter alone, or add in another oil like coconut or cocoa butter for added moisture and a fun way to mix it up. Simply take your shea butter and other oil of choice (if you have one) and soften them over low heat in a double boiler. Some people use the microwave for this, but we don’t recommend that since the high heat damages the therapeutic compounds in the shea butter. If your shea butter is already soft and very pliable, then you can skip the warming step. Simply place all your oils in a mixing bowl and whip with a hand held mixer until the mixture is light, fluffy and smooth. Then transfer to your container of choice for easy, daily use. You can also add some essential oils if you would like.
Next time your shea butter comes out a bit grainy, try one of these easy tricks- they work!