How to Make Vegetable Oil Soap

Traditionally soap is made with tallow or the rendered fat of an animal. Soap can also be made from vegetable oils, although the final product will be much softer than traditional soap and will not lather as well. Follow this recipe to make your own vegetable oil soap right at home.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• 2 cups heavy weight vegetable oil (such as coconut oil)
• 3/4 cup soft water
• 1/4 cup lye
• Glass or stoneware bowls
• Oiled molds or high sided baking pan
• Rubber gloves
• Safety glasses

1. Heat coconut oil or other heavy vegetable oil until completely liquefied and set aside.
2. Dissolve lye into the water, stirring constantly until completely dissolved. This process causes the water to heat up drastically, so care should be taken that none of the mixture is splattered on the skin. Allow mixture to cool.
3. Pour lye mixture into the oil and stir constantly to distribute evenly into the oil.
4. Continue stirring until the mixture becomes thick like a pudding.
5. Pour into prepared molds or baking pan. Allow the soap to set up for several weeks before attempting to cut into bars.
6. Dry the bars after cutting by setting on a wire or wooden rack for up to 1 week, turning often.

Tips & Warnings

• If desired, the soap mixture can be used as a liquid soap.
• Store the hardened soap away from water as this can cause the soap to re-soften.
• If desired, add a few drops of essential oil before pouring into the molds. This will give the scented soap in your choice of fragrance.
• Add a quarter cup of ground, pulverized oatmeal before pouring into molds to make an exfoliating soap.
• Rubber gloves and safety glasses should be worn at all times when working with lye mixtures.
• Never use plastic for making soap, the lye can cause plastic to melt.