Excellent
oil for cooking and frying purposes, particularly chips and other
snack foods. The standard when making organoleptic comparisons among other oils. |
The marvel of the cotton plant is such that it provides both fiber for our clothing and an excellent oil for cooking and frying purposes. Cottonseed oil was the original American vegetable oil and, in fact, maintained a pre-eminent position on the United States oil scene from the mid 1800's until soybean oil's phenomenal growth years, beginning in the 1950's. Many of the techniques used today in oilseed processing and edible oil refining can trace their roots back to the early work done on cottonseed and cottonseed oil. Cottonseed oil's fortunes have long ebbed and flowed with the demand for cotton fiber and cotton in textiles. Recent consumer preference for cotton as a natural fiber has helped push production of cottonseed to record levels. The combination of a sustainable, secure supply, coupled with the tempest surrounding tropical oils, provided the opening necessary for cottonseed oil to reemerge as the preferred oil in many potato chip and snack items.
Despite availability of increasingly
sophisticated scientific testing and equipment, sensory evaluation of refined oils remains a critical indicator of quality. Although this organoleptic measurement is complex, an oil exhibiting poor flavor or odor characteristics is readily recognized as objectionable by consumers. Cottonseed oil, with its excellent bland to slightly nutty taste, is often used as a standard when comparing other oils. This bland flavor and mild odor provide a favorable contrast with most well known oils, particularly those oils containing linolenic acid (C-18:3), such as canola and soybean. Products with cottonseed oil as an ingredient, enjoy the dual benefits of superior flavor enhancement and extended natural
stability, thanks to the functional properties of this traditional vegetable oil.