Shea butter could be difficult to smooth over your hair or skin in its raw form.
Still, you don’t have to be an expert, and it only takes around 10-20 minutes to whip shea butter, but once you are done, you will love how easy it is to use it in your daily life.
One year ago, I discovered the benefits of shea butter for the first time. Since then, I reviewed a few shea butter products. Some of which were failures and others were a success.
Well, you will never know unless you try!
Finally, I found a great organic raw shea butter product. Because unrefined shea butter is a bit hard to spread over a large area of my skin, I decided to try this whipped shea butter recipe for easier application.
The process is easy; you need to add carrier oil that will dissolve the good fats in shea butter and prevent it from re-hardening when it cools.
There are Two Ways to Whip your Shea Butter:
- With heat: using a double boiler, by heating shea butter until it melts then adding the carrier oil/oils of your choice.
- Without heat: by mixing ingredients at room temperature which is much safer for maintaining the significant benefits of shea butter.
I chose to use the No-Heat method. I picked argan oil, I could use extra virgin olive oil, but olive oil is known for being greasy compared to other oils like argan oil. Besides, I have been using argan oil for curing acne, as anti-aging oil and would love to combine the benefits of it along with shea butter in one cream.
To Make Your Whipped Shea butter (No-Heat Method), You will Need:
- 4 oz (1/2 cup ) unrefined shea butter. I used organic shea butter from Key West Health & Beauty that I reviewed recently here.
- Two tablespoons base oil; for example argan oil
- 10-20 drops essential oil (optional), for example, lavender oil
- Electric mixer
- Clean empty 8 oz ( 240 ml) container (pump containers is always preferable), a fork, and measuring cups and spoons.
Here is how …..
Mash your shea butter using a fork until it becomes soft.
Add the base oil; here I use argan oil, you can also use coconut oil, and mash it a little bit more. It will look like this…
Then, mix it with the electric mixer for about 10 minutes. It will become fluffy just like whipped cream. During mixing, add the essential oil (optional) and mix a little bit more…
How to make whipped shea butter fluffy? Mix more! The more you mix, the fluffier it will be. It also depends on the room temperature; I find that I need to mix more during cold days, and vice versa.
The final result will look like this …
Then fill your whipped shea butter in a jar, and enjoy soft skin!
- • 4 oz (1/2 cup ) unrefined shea butter.
- • Two tablespoons base oil; for example argan oil
- • 10-20 drops essential oil (optional), for example, lavender oil
- • Electric mixer
- • Clean empty 8 oz ( 240 ml) container
- • A fork
- • Measuring cups
- Mash shea butter using a fork.
- Add the base oil; argan oil, or coconut oil, and mash it a little bit more.
- Mix with the electric mixer for about 10 minutes until it becomes fluffy.
- Add essential oil.
- Fill your whipped shea butter in a jar.
If you would like to try the other method (WITH heat) for making whipped shea butter, you will have to melt your shea butter using a double boiler, then mix and whisk as illustrated earlier.
Try to apply the least amount of heat to avoid using the health benefits of shea butter.
How to Make Whipped Shea Butter Without Heat Infographic (Save for Later!)
Things to Keep in Mind When you Make your Whipped Shea Butter:
- The volume will increase by approximately two times; make sure you use a bowl that is large enough to prevent spreading cream all over the place.
- The larger the amount of shea butter you have, the longer it will take to whip it.
- Storing whipped shea butter in the refrigerator may cause it to become grainy. Store it in a cool, dark place, in a plastic or glass container.
- Other oils you can use to mix with shea butter include coconut oil, argan oil, olive oil, jojoba oil.
- Never heat shea butter above 175 F (80 C), or it will lose most of its healing properties. Heat makes it easier for you to blend in oils. Also, wait for the mixture until it cools before adding essential oils.
- Always use unrefined ingredients for best moisturizing and healing results.
- Since homemade whipped shea butter does not contain any preservatives, do not make larger quantities than you can use in few months.
- To protect your shea butter/whipped shea butter from contamination, always wash your hands before you touch it.
This fluffy light shea butter is great for applying on the skin, especially for large areas. Apply some after the shower for silky and smooth skin. You can also apply it to your hair if you have coarse dry hair. Read my other post for more ideas on how to make the best use of your shea butter.
Zenwise Labs Hair Growth Vitamins Review
Dima, this post is wonderful! I love it. I have argan oil that’s a hair oil. I’m not sure whether it has other ingredients in it or not. I guess I should check if I want to use that. If I used coconut oil, would that not be so good because it will harden?? I have plenty of coconut oil on hand, lol. I definitely want to try the no-heat method but I’m not sure about the argan oil vs. the coconut oil that I have.
Allison recently posted…My Gloss48.com Haul
Thank you, Allison!
I am glad that you liked it.
I am not sure if your argan oil will work well, but you can use coconut oil. If I had coconut oil, I would have used it, too!
While researching about whipping shea butter, most posts and videos used coconut oil, and it did not re-harden at all. On the contrary, it formed fluffy creamy mixture. You can search YouTube for some videos for farther details.
Dima Al Mahsiri recently posted…Shea Butter 101: What is it and Why You Should Use it?
Dima, I just made the no heat method and I love it. I used coconut oil as it is what I had on hand, and boy is it fluffy! There are still a very few Shea grains in it even though I let it set out on the counter for about 20 minutes before whipping more. I live in Florida so setting up is barely an issue even in winter. Anyway, the very few grains there are melt readilly enough and I am very happy with the end product. Thank you!!!
You are welcome, Nan!
I am glad it worked well for you 🙂
I just made a batch of cellulite buster moisturizer using shea butter (i melted it w/coconut oil), added witch hazel, cinnamon oil, vitamin E oil & lavender oil. It is “runny” and will not set up. Is there any way to make it thick like a moisturizer should be?
Thanks,
Debbie M.
Hi Debbie,
Have you whipped it long enough to form a whipped cream? When I use the (with heat) method, I let the mixture cool before I continue whisking. Otherwise, it might take forever to turn into a creamy texture.
Thank you so much for this recipe! I was looking for a cold prep and stumbled across this gem. I used argan oil the first time in a tester 1oz and mixed it by hand because it was such a small amount. It was great and so I did it right the second time by whipping it and used the 4oz shea butter, but I used almond oil and 5 essential oils (sandalwood, frankincense, geranium, myrrh, and helichrysum). It is divine. I use this on my face and hands at night. Thank you again!
You are welcome, Kim!
I am glad it helped you make your own whipped shea butter 🙂
Oh, I would love to make mine using essential oils like what you did! I will add this to my to-do list, especially that the weather has started to cool, and that is when my skin starts to dry and crack.
Thank you Dina, you explained the recipe step by step with measurements. Given nice information n tips to follow while making the procedure. Thanks a lot
You are welcomed, Manimala!
Thank you for the informative post. What other oils can you use to mask the smell of shea butter? I tried lemon essential oil but the shea butter smell was still strong.
Also, do I have to sterilise the container first or any clean container will do?
You are welcome, Ruba!
Shea butter smell does not last for long, but if you wish to use an essential oil, you can use lavender; it has a strong and pretty smell. But make sure you add just a few drops since most essential may cause irritation when overusing them.
Yes, you have to use cleaned container(preferably sterilised) since the shea butter you are making does not contain any preservatives.
Can i use marula oil instead of argan oil mdam?
Great tutorial and recipe!
Just on a side note, from the picture you’ve posted, the Argan oil you use comes in quite a large bottle and it appears to be perhaps *culinary* argan oil.
For those of you who would like to try this recipe with argan oil – or already use argan oil for skin care – make sure you use *cosmetic* argan oil. While the culinary version might seem tempting because of its quantity/price ratio, it does not have have the moisturizing/anti-aging properties for the skin of the cosmetic version. And the reason is because they are both made using a very different procedures (just google it, but one is heated and the other is cold pressed). Culinary argan oil remains one the healthiest oils with great benefits, particularly for the hearth and brain, but it should be eaten not applied to skin. To make sure you’re using the right one, the cosmetic one should say “100 % cold pressed UNREFINED argan oil” (if it’s not “unrefined” it’s culinary oil). Be careful because a lot of brands and stores, such as Sephora, sell argan oil and while it might say it’s “100 % pure” it’s culinary oil. Hope the info is useful to you! xx
Thank you Biene for the note.
The argan oil showing in the picture is from Morocco, I received it as a gift from a friend. As the label shows in Arabic and French, it says “Cosmetic Argan” for skin and hair.It was bought from local argan sellers, so I am confident that it is of high quality.
You are right about using unrefined cold pressed argan for skin and hair, and one should make sure to buy a good quality for better results.
Wow, I picked up a bottle of *culinary* argan oil about a year ago at a grocery store in Germany. Always wondered why it was so cheap, I just thought it was a steal, go me! Never even thought twice about it. Now come to find it doesn’t benefit my hair at all, haha! Well I only use it right before I shower anyway just to make it easier to brush my hair. Otherwise it is too oily (now I know most likely why).
Anyway, thanks for the recipe and technique! However I am wanting to mix mango butter in my body butter as well and its my understanding (I’ve ordered both but haven’t received them yet) that mango butter is alot more firm and dense so I might have to heat it. Really don’t want to. Should I just barely melt it and then add it to the cold shea butter and whip? Any advice is appreciated! <3
Hi Kim,
You can still use the culinary argan oil for your hair to make easier to manage. Of course, it won’t benefit your skin as the cosmetic high-quality argan oil does, but it can still help moisturize your hair.
Regarding mango butter, I suggest that you use as low heat as possible, if you could leave it in a warm place till it softens a little (ex. your kitchen), that would be much better than heating it. Whipping it will also help soften it and mix with the shea butter and other ingredients you wish to add.
If it is too hard and you have to heat it, make sure to use a double boiler, never put it on a direct heat source. And once it starts to melt, switch off heat and wait for few minutes, this will help soften it WITHOUT exposing the butter to extra heat.
Hope this helps!
Would love to know the result of your recipe, let us know then 🙂
Thank you for this post! The consistency of the shea butter worked out very well with the no-heat method. It is so creamy and only takes a few seconds of warming in fingers to get out any graininess. I used half grapeseed/jojoba oil for liquid oils. The only issue I am having is the smell of the shea butter. I can’t seem to quite get the smell out and I have never used it before so maybe this is normal and something you just get used to? I purchased quality (I think) organic, unrefined, raw shea butter that came in a nicely packaged product from Village Shea Premium Grade A…
I used about 30 drops total of lavender, peppermint and a bit of ylang-ylang (I did almost double your recipe so that is why I used more EO’s). Still wondering if this is just the smell of shea butter. Can’t quite describe it- not nasty but not exactly a pleasant smell I was hoping for. If this is the case I am inclined to use cocoa butter but I prefer shea butter to its properties it has and that it is non comedogenic. Plus I have heard that CB can be linked to aiding in cancerous cells? Any thoughts on swapping CB for the SB?
You are welcome, Katie!
The smell of shea butter could be a bit weird for some. That was my case in the past, but once you get used to it, it won’t be a big deal.
You mentioned that you added 3 essential oils, I think that the result is a strange mix of all them plus the shea butter smell, so I suggest you use one essential oil at a time.
Shea butter may smell strange, but the smell disappears fast. As you mentioned, it has more benefits than the cocoa butter, not sure about the CB side effects, but I personally prefer shea butter for its tremendous benefits, especially treating eczema.
The consistency came out whipped for me, but once applied it is quite Oily. Is there a way to thicken this up?
Shea butter is oily whether it is heated or applied to your skin. The good thing is that your skin absorbs most of it. So if you don’t like the oily feeling, apply a small amount, and wait for a few minutes and your skin will absorb it.
Hope this helps!
You can add 1 tsp melted beeswax or 1 tsp Arrowroot powder (or cornstarch, I prefer Arrowroot) to thicken it. Also, add two 1/8 tspn of Vitam E as a preservative.
Thank you very much, Kelly!
I haven’t tried adding beeswax to whipped butter, will try your recipe next time.
I have plenty of sunflower oil vsn l mix it with raw shea butter cream
I had been using raw shea butter on my eczema on my hands but was finding it difficult to apply. I didn’t realize you could whip it without melting it first, which I didn’t want to do. So thank you very much for this informative post. Whipping it creates a such a great spreadable texture! I added castor oil, calendula oil, aloe vera gel and a bit of vitamin E oil. Then I added an ‘Eczema Helper’ EO synergy blend of Palmarosa, Cedarwood Atlas, Lavender, Coriander, Geranium Egypt, Patchouli, Rose absolute and Sandalwood. It soothes my eczema like nothing else I’ve ever used, plus it smells amazing!
Wow, this looks like a wonderful recipe to try, Nancy!
I am glad my post inspired you to create such a wonderful combination for healing your eczema.
Thanks for sharing your recipe here!
Hello
Please I want to know which essential oils have sweet fragrance.
It depends on what you really mean by “sweet”, still, citrus oils, especially sweet orange, and green mandarin or tangerine are sweet.
Thanks for this recipe. I was wondering can I use a hand whisk to whip?
You are welcome, Edak!
Yes, sure you can.
I buy Luzzon shea butter.
It’s whipped african shea with moringa oil and honey.
My skin hasn’t felt this good in ages.
Thanks for your DAY tips!
You are welcome, Zandra!
Can this whipped Shea Butter cream, with vit E, coconut oil,and essential oils be used for children
Yes, sure, Margret.
In most cases, it does not irritate children sensitive skin. I have already used it for my kids at the age of 4 yrs, and also for my 1 yr old niece without any problems.
If you are not sure, use a small portion of the skin and wait for 24 hours to make sure it is 100% safe.
if the shea is unrefined wouldn’t you have to melt it and strain the extra nut pieces out?usually unrefined will be a little grainy if not melted and debris is not sifted out?
Hi Kenitra,
Unrefined shea butter does not mean that it contains debris, it could still be pure, especially if you purchase a good quality of unrefined shea butter.
Although I noticed that with heat you could get a more creamy whipped shea butter, I do still prefer the “without heat” method for whipping my shea butter.
Thank you for the recipe! I made your version without heat, and it worked perfectly!
You are welcome, Dawn!
I am glad it worked 🙂
Hi. I want to try this recipe but not use coconut oil as I find it very drying on my skin. Would rosehip oil be ok to use with the Shea butter? I want to add rose E oil. I have P 12 preservative…would it be ok to add just a little. ?
Yes, sure. You may add rosehip oil.
Not sure what is P 12 preservative?
Hi,
Please how do i get this your whipped Shea butter product, I so much believe it will work for me too but I don’t have the tools to make mine, so I don’t mind if you can make for me?.
I await your quick respond.
Regards.
Temitope
Thank you for your interest!
I don’t sell shea butter, but I do recommend this whipped shea butter, I have been using it for a while, and I really like the texture.
I hate the smell of lavender oil. What other essential oils do you recommend that are strong enough to mask the smell of shea butter?
I think peppermint would do the job for you, there is also citrus essential oil.
I used jasmine oil and it smells great!
Thanks for Sharing such a Great Post .
Hi there, thanks a lot for that information, I prefer the method without head. I already have the shea butter, what I need now is the oils. After my try I’ll let you know of the results.
Thank you.
Sancho Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng, S.A
You are welcome, Sancho!
Good luck in making your shea butter 🙂
Hi, this did not work for me at all, at first it whipped, but days later it became very gritty and hard to spread. Did i do something wrong?
Hi Julia,
If you follow the recipe as it is, it should work. Did you whip it long time enough for it to become fluffy? You should whip until your whip is approximately two times its size in volume.
To fix the grainy shea butter you need to melt it on low heat using a double boiler, then put in the freezer to solidify. After an hour take it out of the freezer and place on the counter till it reaches room temperature.
I did the no heat recipe exactly as shown and used coconut oil. It’s still too greasy for my hands, it would be ok for face at bedtime but what other oil is beneficial but not so greasy that I drop things . Haha. I put essentials oils in it and it whipped great just the oil is bugging me. Thanks!
You are welcome, Dawn!
Shea butter is oily, but you can get used to it especially when you start noticing the benefits to your skin. I would suggest applying shea butter to your hands then wearing gloves while doing the housework, this is what I do, and it works wonder for my hands!
Thank you so much for this recipe! Thanks for sharing.
I have tried both cold grating of the raw rock hard shea butter & the heat process for softening. I can get the shea butter & the other oils to mix and become fluffy.
However when either batch is made & finished the next day the product has somewhat hardened, it does melt on contact with skin. I want the product to remain fluffy soft. How do I get it to that consistency???
Hi Brenda,
Shea butter would solidify if placed in a cool place, try keeping yours in the kitchen in cold weather.
I live in South Florida we don’t have “cold” weather, I’m talking that the final product is hard at room temperature 78* & up. I think my next batch will be with cacao butter as the base, I always had a creamy product with it when finished.
Just whip it up again with more of the liquid oil. Works well. I live in Australia and have to tweak the ratio of liquid to solid oils, each season.
I have the same problem .
I just made your recipe using jojoba oil. (Lavender, pom seed oil, vit E, and hint of Tea Tree so my hubby will line the smell anduse it too) Ooooooh myyyy! I live in the desert and no amount of hydrating keeps my skin from drying and hardening anyway. I’d just recently read about shea benefits and bought some raw african kind last week. I definitely could see a result after 2 days of applying morning, then night. But, it was so pully on my already compromised skin that I dreaded using it and it takes so long to get it spread evenly. I started thinking how this would be such a perfect solution for my skin, cuh it was clearly working, if I could figure how to make it spreadable but not greasy. THANK YOU so much for giving the piece of the puzzle that makes shea butter now PEEERFECT in every way for me. That’s exactly what I needed.
You are welcome, Ellie!
I am glad that my post was helpful 🙂
I use Tamanu as one of the essentials, a great oil for skin healing. Coconut is good to keep it soft. Kukui but oil is my main carrier, along with a host of others. Tamanu is a miracle. Try it out is you all get the chance.
Thanks for the recipe, it worked GREAT!!…..I used sweet almond oil and unrefined Shea butter, using the cold method. I made two “flavors”; lavender and frankincense.
I used a food processor, which made the mixing a breeze.
I put the mixtures in 4oz cans I got off Amazon (labels included) and will be giving them to friends as gifts.
Of course, I will be keeping a nice supply for home use. 🙂
Thanks, again.
You are welcome!
I am glad my recipe worked well for you 🙂
I used Tamanu oil!! it has amazing skin healing and regeneration properties so with shea butter its a super power body butter and with Lavender its great for healing scars, burns, ezcema, dermatitis etc. The recipe is super easy and great end product!! Thankyou! 😀
You are welcome, Linda.
Glad it worked for you.
I think I should try Tamanu oil one day, thank you for sharing your recipe!
I would like to use castor oil, jojoba oil, aloe vera gel and vitamin E oil but am puzzled at a couple of things.. first is this Too many oils in one batch?? and second how on earth do i figure out how much of each without wasting a great deal of it and the shea butter in the learning curve..
i also have grape seed oil & coconut oil (both food grade) are they usable as well or instead of some ingrediants
thank you
Hi Robin,
I would suggest that you do small patches each time and use 1-2 oils in addition to the shea butter.
Also, it depends on what you wish to use your shea butter for; castor oil could be a great combination with shea butter for healthy hair, while coconut oil could be great for both your skin and hair.
Try combining shea butter (1/2 cup, vitamin E and 2 Tb coconut oil for a natural skin cream, or shea butter (1/2 cup) with 1 Tb castor oil and 1 Tb jojoba oil for using on your hair. Adjust the mixture by adding more oil to a lighter mixture, and more shea butter for a thicker one.
Hi – I tried this the first time mixing whipped Shea with Mango butter and fractionated coconut oil, a bit of coffee oil and vegetable glycerin – and it worked great.
But…this time I used the no heat method and raw Shea and just couldn’t get it fluffy. Do I add more Shea?
Hi Gwen,
Why don’t you try mixing it for a longer period? Also, adding some coconut oil would help to give your shea butter a fluffy texture.
you should also try out the aloe vera proudcts frfom forever living, it is an all natural 100 % organic product and helps the skin to be youthful
Hi Dima
Can you tell me how long this recipe will last if put in an amber bottle. Could I add Vitamin E oil to preserve for a longer shelf life? And if so, what quantity?
Thanks for your tips
Carole
Hi Carole,
You may keep your shea butter refrigerated to extend shelf life. Note that raw, unrefined 100% shea butter has an average shelf life of 12 to 24 months without the addition of preservatives, adding Vitamin E will extend its shelf life.
I store mine in a cool place, never put it in the kitchen or the bathroom, and always whip small quantities to make sure I get fresh shea butter every time.
I have been following this blog for a long time. Their writing such interesting and fantastic. I love to read their blog daily. And this article is too good.
Thanks again for such nice and informative posts.
Good luck
Why don’t I love this blog???
This is amazin, thanks a lot. I feel so excited reading this, like, you are such a life saver. wow! I’m gonna try this and share my feedback.
Ah-mazing
Thank you
My hair is fine/thin & natural. It normally benefits from me using Shea butter but it weighs heavy on my hair, even the purchased “whipped”. So my friend said I should double whip it, that lead me to this wonderful blog recipe – WoW! I had all of the ingredients, hubby thought i was making a dessert, lol. My hair thanks you so much for posting this recipe, it is nice & light and my hair does not feel weighed down & oily. Along with the Argon oil, the essential oil I added was rosemary oil, which is great for overall healthy hair. Thank you
You are welcomed, Lisa!
I am glad that you found it useful.