What are all the vegetable oils?

Written by Tena Moore (- if this post appears on any site other than Vitaminstuff.com it has been stolen)


The main edible vegetables oils that are used in cooking and biodiesel production are, in alphabetical order: coconut oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil, palm oil, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, and sunflower oil. If you’re wondering why I haven’t included canola oil, one of the United States main cash crops, the reason is because it is a type of rapeseed oil.

Not all vegetable oils are edible. Castor oil, tung oil and linseed oil are oils made from vegetables that are inedible and used instead in paints, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, to name a few uses.

There are many, many other edible oils made from nuts, fruits and other plants, such as apricot oil, avocado oil, pine nut oil, cocoa butter (oil made from the cacao plant), almond oil, walnut oil, cashew oil, pecan oil, pistachio oil, hazelnut oil, macadamia nut oil, and flaxseed oil.

Other less popular edible oils are artichoke oil, babassu oil, ben oil, coriander seed oil, hemp oil, mustard oil, papaya seed oil, okra seed oil, perilla seed oil, pequi oil, poppyseed oil, prune kernel oil, quinoa oil, ramtil oil, rice bran oil, tea oil, thistle oil, tomato seed oil, and wheat germ oil.

There are, no doubt, other oils in other countries and little known oils that have not been included here.