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Cottonseed Oil - A Widely Used Commercial Oil
Cottonseed oil is a vegetable oil, which is often used in industrial food preparation. It is mild and medium yellow in color. Cottonseed oil is made from the seed of the cotton plant after the lint has been removed. The cotton plant produces twice as much seed as fiber so uses for this seed were researched in the late 18th century. Cottonseed oil has to be refined to remove gossypol, which is a naturally occurring toxin that protects the cotton plant from insects. Cotton oil was the first oil to be refined in the US.
What is Cottonseed Oil Used For?
It is used in shortening, making salad dressings and frying. Cottonseed oil is often used to make cereals and snacks like potato chips. Like soybean oil, it is often partly or fully hydrogenated, making it unhealthy. This oil does can be used unhydrogenated for frying.
Cottonseed Oil for Frying
This oil is commonly used in the restaurant industry for frying. Soy oil or canola oil is used once then has to be thrown away, which is no good for a busy restaurant, since the oils break down after being used once and if they do not, they take on the flavor of whatever you have cooked in it. Cottonseed oil has to be hydrogenated in order to be used more than once which makes its usage cheaper and easier but is not so good for your health. When frying with this oil, you need to frequently remove food particles, else the oil will go dark and taste bitter.
Benefits of Cottonseed Oil
In its natural, unhydrogenated state, cottonseed oil has no cholesterol. This is true of all vegetable oils. It does not have trans fatty acids either. Not many foods can be purified and refined and still keep their nutritional value intact. Cottonseed oil contains over 50% omega-6 fatty acids and a very small amount of omega-3 fatty acids. This imbalance is thought to be unhealthy if cottonseed oil is consumed a lot. This oil also contains palmitic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, and small amounts of other acids. Cottonseed oil is rich in vitamin E but the fact that it is naturally high in saturated fats and low in monosaturated fats makes it an unhealthy choice if you eat too much.
Cottonseed Oil Shelf Life
This oil needs to be kept in a container with a tight lid, somewhere cool and dark. It will keep for several months. You can store cottonseed oil in the refrigerator. It goes cloudy when cold but the cloudiness disappears when it is warmed. Do not use copper pans or utensils with this oil because it reacts with it and causes it to deteriorate rapidly.
Frogs' Legs in Cottonseed Oil
You can buy canned frogs' legs in cottonseed oil but if you want to make your own, you can! You need to trim and prepare some frogs' legs (you can find them in Chinese food markets) and marinate them in a mixture of garlic, olive oil or cottonseed oil, chopped parsley, lemon juice, salt and pepper for an hour. Dip them into a light batter and fry until golden brown. Drain them on paper and serve with fried parsley and curry sauce.
