Vegetable oils are used in cooking to flavor, fry and bake food in a variety of ways. The quality of a vegetable oil used in cooking will dictate, to some extent, how a culinary dish will taste. Vegetable oils are available in a range of grades and consistencies but they are first extracted from a specific plant. Some of the more common vegetable oils used in cooking include sunflower, sesame and olive oils.
Sunflower Vegetable Oil
Sunflower oil is one of the most popular vegetable oils used in cooking. It is used in frying and in salad dressings. Sunflower oil is extracted from the sunflower (Helianthus annuus). The oil is contained in the seeds of the sunflower; according to Len Price in Carrier Oils for Aromatherapy and Massage, the seeds contain approximately 30 per cent oil, although some species of sunflower may contain up to 50 per cent oil.
Sunflowers are native to South America but today sunflowers are grown in Europe, the United States, India and the former Soviet Union too. The seeds are contained in the large flower heads of the plant, which blacken before collection of the seeds. There is no mistaking the sunflower with its large yellow head that is characteristic of the Asteraceae botanical family to which it belongs.
Sesame Vegetable Oil
Sesame vegetable oil is also used to fry and flavor foods in cooking; it is a similar vegetable oil to olive oil. Sesame oil is extracted from the sesame plant (Sesamum indicum) which is a member of the Pedaliaceae plant family. Again, the oil is extracted from the seeds of the plant. However, Price writes that traditionally the seeds were harvested by hand due to the difficulty in harvesting the seed pods. Today, different species of sesame may have different shaped seed pods which allow for more economical means of harvesting (by machine).
Sesame is an ancient plant that is native to tropical regions of the East Indies; the plant resembles the foxglove (Digitalis sp.) in the shape of its flowers. It is likely that sesame oil was used by the ancient Egyptians as, according to Price, the plant was found in the tomb of Tutankhamen (1370 – 1352 B.C.).
Olive Vegetable Oil
Olive vegetable oil is a popular vegetable oil for flavoring foods; it is of Mediterranean descent in the modern world, although it is an oil that was prevalent in ancient times (and ancient places, such as Egypt). Olive oil is extracted from the fleshy fruit of the olive tree (Olea europaea).
The small olive tree belongs to the Oleaceae botanical family. The tree lives for up to hundreds of years and produces fruit after about 15 years. Olives vary in color as they mature from green to black and there are various types of olive oil produced. The highest grade of olive oil, extra virgin olive oil, is obtained from the top of the first pressing of the extraction process; subsequent pressings produce lesser quality oils.
Vegetable Oils for Cooking
There are many other plants that are grown and farmed commercially to produce vegetable oils for cooking, in addition to those mentioned in this article. However, plants that are used for such purposes are often hybrids or species that have been grown specifically for such purpose so may vary slightly, in botanical terms, to plants that were grown hundreds of years ago or are found growing in the wild.
References:
- Price, Len, 1999, Carrier Oils for Aromatherapy and Massage, UK: Riverhead
- National Sunflower Association website, accessed November 7, 2011
- The Olive Oil Source website, accessed November 7, 2011
Sharon Falsetto - Sharon Falsetto is a business owner, certified clinical aromatherapist & professional writer with a life-long interest in plants.
