What is it? | Tucuma butter is a brittle plant-derived butter. |
INCI | Astrocaryum Tucuma Seed Butter |
Appearance | Hard off-white chunks and shards. |
Usage rate | Up to 100% |
Texture | Brittle, a bit glossy. Neat application leaves the skin looking a bit glossy and feeling smooth, soft, and a bit silicone-y. |
Scent | The refined version smells vaguely of fat. |
Absorbency Speed | Fast to medium |
Approximate Melting Point | 32°C (90°F) |
Solubility | Oil |
Why do we use it in formulations? | When used in higher concentrations (upwards of 50%) tucuma butter offers some firmness to our products. In something like a solid body butter bar it can provide the bulk of the hardening power, and in lower concentrations it can offer some firming to a formula.
It also offers lovely skin feel and emolliency, though this isn’t particularly unique to tucuma butter. I really likely it in body butter bars as the skin feel is great and body butter bars require a brittle butter at high concentrations to hold their shape. |
Do you need it? | No, but I enjoy it as an alternative to cocoa butter. |
Refined or unrefined? | I’ve only managed to find refined, and I like it. |
Strengths | Excellent no-scent brittle butter option. A fantastic option for those with cocoa allergies. |
Weaknesses | Can be harder to find and more expensive than cocoa butter. |
Alternatives & Substitutions | You’ll need another brittle butter; deodorized cocoa butter would be your best option, but kokum butter should also work. |
How to Work with It | Melt it into your heated oil phase; it is too brittle to cold process. |
Storage & Shelf Life | Stored somewhere cool, dark, and dry, tucuma butter should last at least one to two years. |
Tips, Tricks, and Quirks | Tucuma butter is rich in Lauric, Myristic and Oleoic fatty acids. |
Recommended starter amount | 100g (3.3oz) |
Where to Buy it | Buy it from an online DIY ingredient supplier or Amazon. |