Vegetable Oil Uses

From the very name of the product, it can be inferred that vegetable oil is produced from plant matter. Even though oil can be derived from various parts of the plant, usually seeds and nuts are used for this purpose.

Oil extracted from other parts of the plants, like flowers and leaves are usually tagged as essential oils, which are volatile in nature. Oil obtained from the seeds and nuts are found to be more dense and fatty and are classified as fixed oil.

While fixed oil can be derived from plant as well as animal matter, vegetable oil is a fixed oil that is derived from plant matter. Fixed oils are used for cooking and various other applications. However, all vegetable oils are not edible.

For example, olive oil, coconut oil, soybean oil and sunflower oil are edible vegetable oils, whereas castor oil and tung oil are inedible. So, the uses may vary with the type of oil.

Common Uses of Vegetable Oil

Most vegetable oils are extracted by pressing the crushed plant material. In some types, solvent extraction process is employed, so as to produce oil. It is said that vegetable oil has been used in humans for a very long time.

Even though the modern extraction and refining process are recent in origin, ancient people were aware of some crude techniques to extract oil, which was then mainly used for religious and medicinal purposes.

Today, we have many different types of vegetable oils, both edible and inedible. Apart from culinary purposes, these oils are also used for medicinal, industrial and cosmetic purposes.

Culinary and Industrial Uses

It is a common fact that most of the edible vegetable oils are used for culinary purposes.

Olive oil 
is consumed directly as in salads and indirectly, for cooking food items. It is also used in the manufacture of cosmetics, soaps, etc. Olive oil is said to have various health benefits and is also believed to be beneficial in skin and hair care.

Coconut oil

 is one of the popular cooking oil in tropical regions, especially, Asia. Apart from its use in cooking and making soaps, this oil is also a part of the manufacture of certain herbicides and engine lubricants. It is also said to have numerous health benefits and is good for the skin and hair.

One commonly used cooking oil, soybean oil has various industrial applications too. It is used in the manufacturing of printing inks, oil paint, etc. Another commonly used cooking oil is sunflower oil, which is the most popular frying oil used in packaged fried snacks. It is also used in certain cosmetics and is said to be good for skin and hair. Sunflower oil is also used in making biodiesel.

The above said are some of the commonly used vegetable oils. Apart from these, there are many others like palm oil, which is used for cooking in some tropical regions. It is also used in making biofuel. Even canola oil, cotton seed oil, corn oil and peanut oil are used for cooking.

Other vegetable oils that are used for culinary purposes include grape seed oil, safflower oil, sesame oil and rice bran oil. As far as inedible vegetable oils are concerned, the use may vary with the type of the oil.

For example, tung oil is very popular as wood finishing, castor oil has various industrial as well as medicinal uses. Of late, 
used vegetable oil, which is the left overs from food industries are used for making pet food, cosmetics, as well as animal food. Such waste oil is also used as biofuel, after refining.

Apart from the above said, you may make use of these oils in some day-to-day activities. Here are some useful tips for the same.

• You may bring back that sheen in your leather shoes, by rubbing it with some vegetable oil. Make sure to remove the dirt in the shoes, beforehand.

• You can use these oils to prevent mosquito breeding in still water, like that in birdbaths. Oil forms a layer over the water, preventing the mosquito breeding.

• Most of the vegetable oils can be excellent for polishing old furniture. All you have to do is to mix the oil with some varnish and apply it all over the furniture with a buffing cloth. Even metal fixtures can be polished with vegetable oils.

• Vegetable oil can help you in removing splinters easily. All you have to do is to apply a few drops of oil on the affected part, so as to soften the skin. The next step is to remove the splinter with tweezers.

• You can use vegetable oil to separate glasses that are stuck one inside the other. Pour a few drops of oil along the rim of the glass (in the bottom) and the glasses will separate within seconds.

• You can also remove paint from skin, by applying vegetable oil on it. Once the oil is applied over the paint, remove it with a soft washcloth.

• Even labels and stickers on utensils and plastic containers can be removed easily, after applying some vegetable oil on them. Vegetable oil is also used for seasoning cast iron cookware.

If you are interested in knowing more, you may conduct a deep study about this topic. This will be more beneficial if you want to know about some particular vegetable oil types.