Budget curry and soup cooks
A light canned coconut milk may suit a curry, soup or sauce when you want a cooking ingredient rather than a coconut drink. Check the can size against the amount your recipe needs.
Who is choosing light coconut milk?
Shoppers comparing fat figures
Read both fat and saturates per 100ml on the particular can. Tesco Light lists 6.0g fat and 5.2g saturates per 100ml; Waitrose Essential Reduced Fat lists 6.2g and 5.5g.
Shoppers choosing between cans and cartons
A carton coconut drink and canned culinary coconut milk serve different uses. Check which format the recipe asks for before choosing on the basis of a nutrition figure.
What should you check before choosing?
Match the product format to the recipe first, then compare the nutrition panels and choose a can size you can use.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Cooking format | Check whether the product is canned culinary coconut milk or a carton drink. Follow the ingredient format specified by the recipe. | My curry or soup calls for coconut milk as a cooking ingredient, so I do not want to choose a drink just because its fat figure is lower. |
| Fat and saturates | Compare both figures per 100ml on the exact product. Tesco lists 6.0g fat and 5.2g saturates for Tesco Light; Waitrose lists 6.2g and 5.5g for Essential Reduced Fat. | I want to know what the can contains rather than treating “light” and “reduced fat” as identical nutrition figures. |
| Can size | Check the pack quantity against the recipe and the number of meals planned. Tesco Light and Waitrose Essential Reduced Fat are listed in 400ml cans; Sainsbury's Coconut Milk Light is listed as 400g. | For a budget shop, I want to buy an amount I can use in the curries, soups or sauces I have planned. |
Common buying mistakes
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Assuming “light” means low in saturates
Tesco Light lists 5.2g saturates per 100ml, and Waitrose Essential Reduced Fat lists 5.5g per 100ml. The wording on either can does not replace its nutrition figures.
Compare fat and saturates per 100ml on the products you are considering.
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Choosing a coconut drink for a canned-milk recipe
Alpro Coconut No Sugars is a drink format, whereas light canned coconut milk is sold as a cooking ingredient. The drink’s lower fat figure does not establish that it will produce the same curry or soup.
Check the recipe and product format before substituting a carton drink for a can.
Brand and format references
Tesco
Tesco Light Coconut Milk is a 400ml canned cooking option.
- Tesco lists 6.0g fat and 5.2g saturates per 100ml.
- Tesco’s statement that it has 50% less fat compares it with Tesco standard coconut milk, not with other brands’ light cans.
Sainsbury's
Sainsbury's lists Coconut Milk Light in a 400g pack.
- It is labelled as a lighter coconut milk.
- Check fat and saturates on the current pack before making a nutrition comparison with another can.
Waitrose Essential
Essential Reduced Fat Coconut Milk is a 400ml canned option.
- Waitrose lists 6.2g fat and 5.5g saturates per 100ml.
- Its reduced-fat wording alone does not establish a lower fat figure than another brand’s light can.
M&S
M&S lists a Reduced Fat Coconut Milk.
- The product is identified as a reduced-fat option.
- Read its current nutrition panel before comparing fat and saturates with other products.
Alpro
Alpro Coconut No Sugars is a 1-litre coconut drink rather than a canned cooking ingredient.
- Alpro lists 1.2g fat and 0g sugars per 100ml.
- Those drink-format figures do not make it a like-for-like substitute for canned coconut milk in a recipe.
A canned cooking option on Joybuy
This reduced-fat canned coconut milk fits the curry and soup cooking scenario; compare its current label with your recipe requirements.
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Morrisons Reduced Fat Coconut Milk 400ml
This 400ml reduced-fat can is a cooking-format option for a curry or soup rather than a carton coconut drink. Check fat and saturates per 100ml on the current label when comparing it with other cans.
Questions about light coconut milk
Does “light” tell me how much fat is in the can?
No: read the per-100ml nutrition panel for the particular product. Tesco Light lists 6.0g fat and 5.2g saturates per 100ml, while Waitrose Essential Reduced Fat lists 6.2g fat and 5.5g saturates per 100ml.
Can I use a carton coconut drink instead of canned coconut milk in a curry?
Do not assume the two formats will give the same result. Alpro Coconut No Sugars is a 1-litre drink listing 1.2g fat per 100ml, whereas Tesco Light is a 400ml canned cooking ingredient; check what your recipe calls for before substituting one for the other.
What should I check on a prepacked coconut milk label?
Check the ingredients and allergens, date marking and nutrition information, alongside the amount your recipe needs. UK food-labelling guidance from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and the Food Standards Agency identifies these as information provided on prepacked food labels; use the current pack when making your choice.