Is Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil Healthy?
It’s January. We all have the best of intentions for the new year, but many of us may never see our new year resolutions materialise – feeling that we’ve failed before the month ends! We’ve decided that we’re going to take the pressure off and just put ourselves on a path to forming new, small habits that will become part of our every day, and we can do that with just little changes.
Those little changes can start in the kitchen. It’s well known that cold pressed rapeseed oil is the healthy choice, and this blog explains why.
What is Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil?
Let’s start with the seeds. The seeds used to make Yorkshire Rapeseed Oil are cold pressed. That means that we simply squeeze them to make the good stuff that goes into our products. There’s a reason why we don’t use any other way to extract the oil, and that’s to retain the benefits of the rapeseed.
A large screw-like device is used within the press to squeeze the oil from the rapeseed. It is then naturally filtered a couple of times and then sent down the bottling line where we bottle it ready for you. Full of flavour and the nutritional benefits you love about our Yorkshire Rapeseed Oil.
Is Rapeseed Oil good for me?
We've seen a lot of confusing messages lately about seed oils and their impact on our health. If a Rapeseed Oil isn’t cold pressed, it’s likely that that the producer will have used heat or chemical methods to get the very last drop of oil from the seed. We recommend avoiding this at all costs. Our oil is cold pressed in a natural, chemical-free way.
What are the health benefit of Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil?
Time to look at those nutritional and health benefits. Cold pressed rapeseed oil contains only half the saturated fat of olive oil and the lowest saturated fat of any oil. Rapeseed oil is mainly made up of monosaturated fats. These fats promote healthy cholesterol levels, and we should be looking for these, rather than saturated fats and trans fats. These can cause all kinds of health issues, including raising blood pressure, cholesterol levels and increase the risk of heart attacks. Our oil contains less than 1% of these trans fats.
With 11 times the Omega 3 of olive oil (omega oils are what are known as the healthy oils), rapeseed oil is a great source of Omegas 3,6 & 9, in just the right combination to work together as your body needs them. It’s also rich in Vitamin E which can help protect our DNA and promote a healthy immune system.
What makes Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil a healthy cooking option?
In the kitchen, cooking with rapeseed oil is the oil of choice if you are heating it to a high temperature. Heating any oil past its smoke point gives our food an acrid, burnt flavour and smell. This is a substance called acrolein. This releases harmful free radicals which can damage cells. With cold pressed rapeseed oil you can heat it to around 220C which is much higher than extra virgin olive oil. It’s a hit with home cooks and professional chefs for this very reason – and for its great flavour too!
As it's grown in the UK, our oil is also GM free, and it is also suitable for vegetarian and vegan diets.
Does Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil have a strong flavour?
With a mild, gentle and nutty flavour it is perfect for all culinary applications, and with Yorkshire Rapeseed Oil being grown on the chalky Yorkshire Wolds it gives our rapeseed oil a unique and characterful flavour.
It really is the perfect culinary oil for every kitchen – whether you are dipping, drizzling, baking, roasting or frying – it’s up to you. The perfect store cupboard staple - the health benefits are a bonus!