Coconut Flour vs Okara Flour: The Full Scoop

Coconut flour and okara flour are two intriguing options when it comes to gluten-free alternatives to all-purpose flour, with coconut flour already a popular staple in the baking community and okara flour being a unique soy-based option. 

But which one should you choose and how are they different from one another? Both provide unique pros and cons, so which one is best for you to bake with? 

In this article, we’ll break down all your questions and explore which flour is best for you.

Let’s dive in!

Comparing coconut flour vs okara flour

	Coconut Flour	Okara Flour	All-Purpose Flour
Substitution ratio vs all-purpose flour	You can replace 100% of all-purpose flour with 25% coconut flour (example: the recipe calls for 1 cup all-purpose, use ¼ cup coconut)	Swap out 20% of your all-purpose flour for okara flour for added nutrition. Use okara only as the primary flour in recipes designed for it.*	N/A
Gluten-free?	Yes	Yes	No
Keto-friendly?	Yes	Yes	No
Paleo-friendly?	Yes	No	No
Allergens	Coconut (tree nuts)	Soy	Wheat, gluten
Liquid absorbency	High, so you may need to add extra liquid ingredients.	High	Medium
Pantry shelf life (unopened/sealed)**	1-2 years	18 months	6-8 months
Best for baking…	Most desserts – especially cakes, cookies, pie crusts, muffins, and dense breads.	Dense bread, muffins, cookies, and biscuits.	Non-yeast recipes (think cookies, biscuits, and some breads)

*Okara flour might absorb more liquid than all-purpose flour, resulting in less sticky batter or dough. I recommend starting by substituting a small amount of all-purpose flour with okara flour, and gradually increasing the ratio as you become familiar with its properties. 

Differences between coconut flour and okara flour

Coconut flour and okara flour seem to have more similarities than differences, but there are a couple things we want to take a closer look at.

First, okara flour is NOT paleo-diet friendly due to being from legumes, while coconut flour is paleo-friendly. This is important to consider if you’re following a specific diet.

Second, and one of the biggest differences, is the taste between the two. Coconut flour has a mild and sweet taste, with notes of coconut. This isn’t overpowering, but blends in nicely to give a little something special to your bakes. In fact, there are a lot of great bakes to make with coconut flour!

Okara flour has a neutral flavor, similar to all-purpose flour. This makes it pretty versatile and can be used for a wide variety of bakes without affecting taste – which can be great if you’re experimenting with different taste profiles of other ingredients!

Baking with coconut flour vs okara flour

Baking with either flour can be a little tricky due to their high liquid absorbency and high fiber contents.

Okara flour is great for vegan baking since it’s plant-based and is a good source of fiber and protein. However, because it absorbs a lot of liquid, it often has less sticky dough than all-purpose flour, which is why I recommend mixing it with something like almond flour or other wheat flour to help your bakes hold their shape better. 

Another good way to use okara flour is to swap out 20% of all-purpose flour for it instead, giving you added nutrition in your bakes.

Coconut flour can be a little tricky as well because it’s also highly absorbent due to its high fiber content. You should only use about 25% of the amount of all-purpose flour that’s called for in a recipe, and try to take advantage of its sweetness by making things like coconut flour waffles. 

Both are great for making bakes dense, so keep that in mind and adjust accordingly!

Ingredients in coconut flour vs okara flour

Coconut flour is made by grinding dried coconut meat/flakes, with no added preservatives needed. The best coconut flours tend to be the ones that are made with the purest ingredients. 

Okara flour is made from soybean pulp, AKA okara, which is a byproduct of soy milk production. The pulp is dried and ground into a fine powder, creating okara flour. This means that it’s purely made from soybean pulp, with no (or very minimal) processing!

Coconut flour + okara flour nutritional facts

Per 1/4 cup serving	Coconut Flour	Okara Flour	All-Purpose Flour
Calories	120	70	110
Carbs (g)	18	12	23
Fiber (g)	10	10	1
Sugar (g)	6	0	0
Fat (g)	3	1	0
Protein (g)	6	3.5	4
Glycemic Index Score	45	Likely moderate*	85

NOTE: These values can vary slightly from brand to brand. 

*It was tough finding any clear numbers of the GI Score for okara flour, but sources generally suggested that it was likely moderate. 

The calories in okara flour are nearly HALF as much as in coconut flour, making it a great low-calorie option for your baking.

Check out our list of other low-calorie flour options if you want to try something different than okara flour. 

Okara flour also has less carbs, sugar, fat, and protein than coconut flour – each have low net carbs due to the high fiber contents, and both are suggested to be fairly similar in the glycemic index department. 

Both flours are gluten-free, meaning that they’re great options if you’re wanting to get on the gluten-free baking train or are dealing with gluten sensitivity. 

Coconut flour vs okara flour storage 

Coconut flour has a very good shelf-life, lasting in your pantry for up to 2 years when unopened or stored in a sealed container. 

Okara flour isn’t too shabby either, lasting for up to 18 months. You want to store both flours sealed and in a cooler place like a fridge or freezer to squeeze the most amount of shelf-life out of them. 

Coconut flour vs okara flour: The ultimate verdict

This can flip-flop based on your goals and baking preferences.

Coconut flour is very versatile, adds a nice sweetness to your bakes, and has a lot of popular recipes. 

Okara flour is unique, and gives a great plant-based flour for those that are fans of soy and people wanting to try gluten-free baking while watching their calories.

I do find coconut flour is a little easier to find, and it is a bit more convenient – but don’t think that convenient means better! There’s a whole new world of baking when trying okara flour!

There are many factors to consider here, and the final verdict really comes down to preferences in baking. 

Let me know what your experiences are with either of these in the comments section, I would love to hear about them!

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