01
Olive Oil
10.0best for cookies1 cup : 1 cup
Adds slight coconut flavor, good for sauteing
10.0
coconut oil substitute
in cookies.
Coconut-oil shifts a drop cookie toward extra spread and crisp edges — its 100% fat melts twice as fast as butter on a 350°F sheet unless you chill the dough hard first.
top substitutes
adjustment for this dish
Swap Olive Oil 1:1 by volume but choose a mild refined Olive Oil and skip the cream step — whisk into the sugar instead. Chill the dough 2 hours at 38°F to firm the all-liquid fat, scoop onto parchment, and bake 11 minutes at 350°F for tender chewy cookies with golden edges.
02
Almond Oil
10.0best for cookies1 tbsp : 1 tbsp
Refined type is neutral; unrefined adds flavor
10.0
adjustment for this dish
Swap Almond Oil 1:1 by volume; the nutty flavor complements brown-sugar cookies. Whisk Almond Oil into the sugar (no creaming on a liquid fat), chill the dough 2 hours at 38°F, scoop 2-tablespoon balls onto parchment, and bake 11 minutes for soft golden chew.
03
Palm Oil
7.5best for cookies1 tbsp : 1 tbsp
Solid at room temp, similar texture
7.5
show 12 more substitutes
04
Avocado Oil
6.71 cup : 1 cup
Good for high-heat cooking, neutral taste
6.7
05
Shortening
6.71 cup : 1 cup
Same solid texture, works well in baking
6.7
06
Margarine
6.71 cup : 1 cup
Dairy-free, solid at room temp, slight coconut taste
6.7
07
Grapeseed Oil
6.71 cup : 1 cup
Light flavor, high smoke point, good for baking
6.7
08
Peanut Oil
6.71 cup : 1 cup
Use refined for neutral taste at high heat
6.7
09
Lard
5.01 cup : 1 cup
Solid at room temp, dairy-free option for baking
5.0
10
Butter
6.71 cup : 1 cup
Similar solid-at-room-temp texture, adds richness
6.7
11
Butter Oil
6.71 tbsp : 1 tbsp
High heat stable, slightly sweet
6.7
12
Ghee
6.71 cup : 1 cup
High smoke point, adds nutty richness to baking
6.7
13
Whipped Butter
6.71 cup : 3/4 cup
Whip softened coconut oil; solid at room temp
6.7
14
Vegetable Oil
3.31 cup : 1 cup
Use melted coconut oil amount, neutral flavor
3.3
15
Sunflower Oil
3.31 cup : 1 cup
Neutral flavor, works for frying and sauteing
3.3
technique for cookies
technique
Cream 3/4 cup refined coconut-oil at 68°F with 3/4 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup white sugar for 3 minutes — the oil should hold a soft scoop shape, not melt into a slick. Beat in 1 egg and 2 teaspoons vanilla, then fold in 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour with 1 teaspoon baking soda and 3/4 teaspoon salt until the dough just comes together.
Chill the dough 90 minutes at 38°F (longer than a butter dough's typical 60 minutes) because coconut-oil re-melts above 75°F and a warm scoop spreads thin into a wafer instead of a tender chew. Drop 2-tablespoon balls onto parchment 2 1/2 inches apart and bake at 350°F for 11-12 minutes; pull when the edges are golden but the center is still soft, rest on the rack 5 minutes for carryover finish.
pitfalls to avoid
watch out
Chill the scooped dough 90 minutes at 38°F — coconut-oil re-melts above 75°F and warm balls spread thin into a crisp wafer instead of a chewy tender round.
watch out
Drop the balls onto parchment 2 1/2 inches apart, never 1 1/2 — coconut-oil cookies spread 30% wider than butter ones, and crowded scoops merge into one slab.
watch out
Don't bake past 12 minutes at 350°F — the all-fat dough crosses the line into hard-crisp by minute 13 and loses the tender chew the chill was protecting.
watch out
Rest the cookies 5 minutes on the rack before lifting — pulling sooner tears the still-soft golden bottom away from the edges instead of releasing clean.