Cooking with rapeseed oil comes with many benefits, as well as potential risks. A yellow flowering plant that is a member of the Brassica family is used to make this oil. Often times, you'll find it labelled as canola oil at the grocery store.
Culinary rapeseed oil and industrial rapeseed oil are two kinds of rapeseed oil. The distinction between the two is important because both these oils come from different variations of the rape plant.
1. Industrial rapeseed oil: Machine and chemical industries use it to make biodiesel. The rapeseeds used to produce this type of oil contains high amounts of erucic acid. This compound is harmful to humans to consume at such high levels of concentration. Studies have found a link between the compound and heart issues in animals.
2. Culinary rapeseed oil: This oil is used for cooking in various ways. Scientists in the 1970s developed a rapeseed plant that contained much lower amounts of erucic acid and high amounts of a type of monounsaturated fat called oleic acid. Due to the fact that it contained less than 2 per cent of erucic acid, it was renamed canola.
Even though many chefs have given this oil their stamp of approval, there is still a lot of controversy around it. Why? Because of the way this oil is made. In a report by a news portal, Jess Cording, RD, a registered dietitian, explained that a large portion of the canola or rapeseed oil is extracted with high heat and chemical solvents. To achieve an oil that is flavourless with a high smoke point, more chemicals are then used to produce it. This process could reduce the number of antioxidants and vitamins in the oil, as well as, damage essential fatty acids.
However, this doesn't mean you have to stay away from all types of rapeseed and canola oil. Cording suggests"cold-pressed, extra-virgin rapeseed oils are available (often online) as a less processed choice.”
“Additionally, an organic product will not have gone through the genetic modifications," Jess told a news portal.
Although rapeseed oil does contain a lot of benefits, it isn't high on the list for may nutrition experts. “If it’s going to be your primary cooking oil, I would spring for the option with fewer concerns attached to it,” Cording explained. Adding, “There are so many other great options to try that are more readily available in organic and non-GMO varieties. Avocado oil gets my top pick for a neutral oil with a high smoke point.”
