Coconut palm oil, one of the oldest vegetable oil is mainly used in tropical countries, where the coconut trees are grown in plenty. This healthy oil with good saturated fat is also a metabolism booster. It is versatile and tasty and goes well with all cooking and frying.
This oil is extracted from the fruit of the coconut palm tree and is used in some natural medicines other than using it for cooking. It is now established that the palm oil has saturated fat, which is good for health and has the capability to boost metabolism and reduce weight.
How to pick the best quality oil with optimum health benefits? Those labels on the bottle like “virgin”, “expeller-pressed” and “extra virgin” are all very confusing. Two main categories of coconut oils are refined and virgin or unrefined, and both the types are pure without adding any other essence and it is the production processing that makes the difference.
Uniqueness of the Oil
Coconut palm oil has saturated fat and lauric acid and it is richest natural source for lauric acid other than breast milk. This makes the oil unique and highly beneficial for consumption. Both virgin and refined oil will have the benefits of these fatty acids, but in the case of hydrogenated refined oil with trans-fat, it is harmful for health.
Qualities of Virgin or Unrefined Oil
It is the most natural product with very less processing, and retains its original odor and taste to a great extent because it is not exposed to high temperature to deodorize. Traditional handcrafted virgin oil is the purest, but it involves a lot of labor and mass production is difficult. This purest form retains the highest level of antioxidants and the processing is done by extracting fresh coconut milk from which oil is separated by heating.
Machine made virgin oil is produced by an expeller press to remove oil from dehydrated coconut and this can also be made using centrifuge machine to extract oil from coconut milk. Extra virgin is a marketing term and there is nothing extra in it other than the qualities of virgin oil.
Qualities of Refined Oil
In this process, dry coconut is used and after removing the meat, the shell is burned to dry the coconut or it is dried in the sun light, which is much better. It is refined in the factory to make it edible by bleaching and deodorizing. Bleaching is done by sieving through clay and no chemical is involved, and then steamed for deodorizing.
Some refined oils are made using chemical bleaches, and sometimes a small quantity of the chemicals can be found in the oil and the end product will be of inferior quality.
Advantages of Buying Online
You can choose the best quality oil from a wide range online and it will cost you less provided you know how to choose the finest product. Features given on the website will help you find out more about the quality of the products and the process that will retain maximum benefits.
You can use this oil for cooking or moisturizing your skin or hair, but choose the highest quality product for the best benefits from online.
