Red Palm Oil and Shea Butter Deep Conditioner

Red palm oil can be used on hair as a rich pre-rinse treatment: melt it with shea butter, work it through, cover for 30 minutes to an hour, then rinse out. Baraka's shea butter is handmade by women's producer groups at the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre in Wa, Ghana. It is unrefined, strained and filtered only.

Red palm oil for hair

Red palm oil is a deep red-orange oil that is soft and semi-solid at room temperature, which makes it easy to melt and blend with a butter. In this recipe it is mixed with shea butter, applied to the hair and scalp with the focus on the ends, and rinsed out after a long leave-in time. This is a rinse-out treatment, not a leave-in.

The oil is pressed from the orange flesh around the stone of the oil palm fruit. It keeps its natural colour, and the colour is strong. It will tint anything it goes into and stains cloth and surfaces, so use an old towel and an old shirt. It also has a distinctive savoury, earthy smell that carries into the finished conditioner.

Red palm oil is not palm kernel oil. Palm kernel oil is pressed from the kernel inside the stone. It is white to pale yellow, has very little smell and carries no colour. The two are often confused, and only red palm oil belongs in this recipe. Baraka's red palm oil is from Ghana.

Red palm oil conditioner

A red palm oil conditioner like this one has two ingredients, red palm oil and shea butter, in equal parts. Neither contains water, so there is nothing to spoil in the way a water-based mix can.

Shea butter is solid at room temperature and melts on contact with skin. It has traditionally been used on dry skin, lips, hands, feet and hair. Its natural colour ranges from ivory through cream to pale yellow and varies between batches, and a mild nutty smell is normal. Baraka shea butter is tested periodically by the Ghana Standards Authority against Ghana's national standard for unrefined shea butter. Wayne Dunn has worked directly with the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre for over 15 years.

The red palm oil in the recipe comes from Baraka too. Baraka Red Palm Oil is the one to use here, because it is the whole-fruit oil that keeps its natural colour rather than palm kernel oil.

How to make red palm oil and shea butter deep conditioner

Melt equal parts red palm oil and shea butter together, apply to hair and scalp, cover with a shower cap for 30 minutes to an hour, then rinse thoroughly with warm water. The amounts below make one application.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup (60 ml) red palm oil
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) shea butter
• Optional: up to 20 drops essential oil (about 1 g, under 1% of the total weight)

Directions

1. Melt the red palm oil and shea butter together in a microwave-safe bowl or over a double boiler. Heat gently until just liquid.
2. If you are using essential oil, stir it in once the mixture has cooled slightly.
3. Apply the melted mixture to your hair and scalp, focusing on the ends. Let it cool a little first so it is warm, not hot, on your skin.
4. Cover your hair with a shower cap and leave the conditioner on for 30 minutes to an hour. Keep an old towel around your shoulders, because the colour transfers.
5. Rinse thoroughly with warm water.

These are starting amounts. You can experiment with different ratios of the two ingredients. If you add essential oils, keep them to no more than 2% of the total weight, and leave them out for babies and young children.

Storage

Melt only what you need for one session and keep the rest of each ingredient in its own container. Store both in a cool place, away from heat and direct sun. Shea butter keeps 2+ years when stored properly. Red palm oil is soft and semi-solid at room temperature, so a firm lid keeps it tidy.

This recipe was originally published in "40 Haircare Recipes and Blogs".

Quick answers

Red palm oil for hair

In this recipe, red palm oil is melted with shea butter and applied to the hair and scalp, focusing on the ends. Leave it on under a shower cap for 30 minutes to an hour, then rinse well with warm water. Red palm oil keeps its natural deep red-orange colour, which transfers strongly and stains cloth and surfaces, and it has a savoury, earthy smell. Baraka's red palm oil comes from Ghana. More in Directions:

Red palm oil conditioner

This red palm oil conditioner has two ingredients: 1/4 cup red palm oil and 1/4 cup shea butter, melted together and used as a deep conditioner. Shea butter is traditionally used on hair. The red palm oil here is pressed from the orange flesh of the palm fruit, so it is not palm kernel oil. More in Directions:

How to make red palm oil and shea butter deep conditioner?

Melt 1/4 cup red palm oil and 1/4 cup shea butter together in a microwave-safe bowl or over a double boiler. Apply the melted mixture to your hair and scalp, focusing on the ends, cover with a shower cap, leave it on for 30 minutes to an hour, then rinse thoroughly with warm water. Baraka's shea butter is unrefined, strained and filtered only. More in Directions: