Using Specialty Oils in the Kitchen

Janella Purcell has offered her thoughts on using specialty Kitchen Oils in your recipes

Almond Oil

Like all nut oil, it's better to use almond raw - on salads and in sauces - as heating will destroy their precious oils. Try finishing off your houmus with a drizzle of almond oil or over your steamed veggies. Its cosmetic use is wide and varied, especially for keeping your skin supple and smooth.

Avocado Oil

It is low in saturated fatty acids and high in monounsaturated oil so is automatically a healthy choice. Avocado oil adds a unique twist to dishes. This slightly nutty and rich oil is great over mushrooms stuffed with quinoa and feta.

Brazil Nut Oil

Like most other nuts, Brazil nuts contain heart healthy monounsaturated fats that can reduce bad cholesterol levels. Use it in salad dressings and sauces where you normally use olive oil. It's nice in pesto and with chunky wholegrains like freekeh, barley and brown rice. Keep it raw.

Coconut Oil

This oil is very useful in reducing weight. It contains short and medium-chain fatty acids that help in weight control. It is also easy to digest. Refined coconut oil has a fairly high smoking point so is ok to heat. Use it to sauté your veggies when making patties, in curries, stir fry's or anywhere where you want a lovely coconut flavour.

Mustard Seed Oil

In parts of India, it is the preferred oil for cooking. Other than rapeseed (canola), flax and mustard oils, there are few other common sources of plant based omega-3 in the Western diets, so useful source for vegetarians.
However, high heat can damage the omega-3 in the oil so use it raw or at low temperatures where you can. Use it to fry your spices before adding the other ingredients and turning up the heat.

Olive Oil

A monosaturated oil that has numerous health benefits including helping to reduce cholesterol. Because of its beautiful taste and precious oils it's recommended you use virgin and extra virgin olive oil raw, but not essential as it still has a high smoking point. Infuse your oil with a couple of rosemary sprigs and a few cloves of roasted garlic. Yum.

Peanut Oil

Made from pressed, steam peanuts. Peanut oil has a bland flavor so is good for cooking because it doesn't absorb or transfer flavors. Peanut oil is desirable for deep-frying due to its high smoking point - the point at which the oil begins to give off smoke and start to burn. Peanuts aren't actually a nut, but a legume. Peanuts are often grown with loads of toxic sprays, so buy it organic.

Pumpkin Seed Oil

It has an unusual flavor that is a bit nutty. Pumpkin seed oil is typically used as a salad dressing combined with apple cider vinegar and salt. Like most seed and nut oils it's best to use it raw, as heating at high temperatures will destroy the good fat content. For a extra hit of zinc, try tossing your steamed beans with pumpkin seed oil and dry roasted pepitas.

Sesame Seed Oil

Made from pressed sesame seeds. Sesame oil comes in two varieties - light, (untoasted sesame seeds) and dark, the (toasted sesame seeds). Light sesame oil has a nutty flavor and is especially good for frying. Dark sesame oil has a stronger flavor and is better used in small quantities for flavoring or foods, more like a garnish. Both varieties are high in polyunsaturated fat.

Sunflower Seed Cooking Oil

The seeds of which contain more Vitamin E than any other vegetable oil and low in saturated fat. They contain high levels of the essential polyunsaturated fat. It is also known for having a clean taste and low levels of trans fat. It is commonly used for frying.

Wheat germ Oil

Wheat germ oil has one of the richest sources of vitamin E and Octacosanol. Add it raw to salad dressings or drizzle on top of buckwheat noodles or baked vegetables. Try adding it to your Breakfast Booster smoothie for an extra hit of nutrients or use wheat germ oil to cut olive or flax oil with. Do not heat wheat germ oil. Its valuable qualities break down in high heat.


Janella Purcell 2011