I found a really good deal on Shea butter. Because I have to buy bulk, I wanted to separate it into smaller chunks to be used as needed. Ultimately I was thinking about melting the Shea butter into silicone molds in 1 ounce increments and store the butter in the freezer until needed. Does anyone know if you can do this?
Melt and resolidify Shea?
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KristaMarie
Well-Known Member
I don't see why this would be a problem, as long as the smaller portions are repackaged well enough to prevent moisture getting in. Butters typically have a good shelf life, so you may not need the freezer at all
You can just break it up and store it in baggies. No need to place it in the freezer either. You can melt it as well and put it in little silicone molds too. Its up to you! Shea butter will stay solid at RT. If youre worried about it going rancid b/c youre keeping it for a reeeaaally long time, you can put it in the freezer. But I would only do that if I think I will have the oil for more than 1 year.
dixiedragon
Well-Known Member
I did this. I was tempering the shea, which is when you melt it and hold it at a certain temp so it won't be grainy in lip balm. I have several silicone pie pans, so I put the shea in those (put the silicone pie pans in a glass pie pan or something, b/c they are super floppy), then once melted, put the pie pans in the fridge. Pop out the disk of shea, chop into chunks, then put in a big ziplock.
I too have done what dixiedragon did. However I only temper what I think I'll need for my lip balms and lotion bars. The rest I just separate into smaller buckets with a good seal.
kchaystack
Supporting Member
I use small silicone ice trays for my cocoa and shea butter. I don't make lip balm or other stuff that needs tempering, so I just melt and pour. Makes it so much easier to make small batches.
Nevada
Well-Known Member
When I make lotion sticks I just throw them into the freezer. No crystallization!
Swift Crafty Monkey 'splains it well <link>......And why does shea butter go grainy in some creations? Shea butter fractionates when heated, meaning the various fatty acids separate. Given these fatty acids have different cooling points, some will harden more quickly than others, resulting in some fatty acids being solid while others remain liquid! This means we want anything containing shea butter to cool very quickly to ensure the various fatty acids solidify at the same time. So an ice bath, popping it into the fridge or freezer, or not melting it at all is generally a good thing for shea butter.
Swift Crafty Monkey 'splains it well <link>......And why does shea butter go grainy in some creations? Shea butter fractionates when heated, meaning the various fatty acids separate. Given these fatty acids have different cooling points, some will harden more quickly than others, resulting in some fatty acids being solid while others remain liquid! This means we want anything containing shea butter to cool very quickly to ensure the various fatty acids solidify at the same time. So an ice bath, popping it into the fridge or freezer, or not melting it at all is generally a good thing for shea butter.
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