Monday, January 21, 2008

you know those things you spit out?

who'd have thought you could make a great oil from something you brainlessly spit out and discard from one of the world's most ancient fruit without even a second thought. well, obviously, someone at some point, did. it's no wonder grapeseed oil is costly — can't imagine just how many of those little grape seeds it takes to squeeze out a litre of oil.

grapeseed oil is one of my favourites when it comes to cooking, especially for frying things. if you haven't tried it, you should. amazingly, there is little smell in comparison with other vegetable oils which is a big plus when you have to fry anything. while it's not completely odourless, it is noticeably tamer. another good thing about frying with grapeseed oil is that its smoking point is at a much higher temperature than regular vegetable oils (approx 215 C).

beyond frying, it is also good for salad dressings and general use.

buy some. try it. as martha says, "it's a good thing" ;)

more about it, here and here. just remember, however, to buy PURE grapeseed oil and not a blend.



11 comments:

Anonymous said...

it's a great oil, isn't it? but way too expensive.i get it in little cute tin jars but, please! do buy the spanish one not the italian.can't imagine how much it costs there!
i like to mix it with olive oil to make mayonesa, yummy.

burekaboy — said...

sari - love it. it's about the same price as extra V olive oil here but you get a smaller amount. nunca he visto este aceite de tipo espanol; tenemos solo lo que viene de italia. that reminds me, i gotta make more mayo!!

Anonymous said...

I love this stuff! I use it to fry and also mix it half and half with extra virgin olive oil to drizzle on veggies, salad, etc.

It also makes a great massage oil -- light and non-greasy.

We are lucky that here in Lux it is readily available and not so expensive.

Anonymous said...

take a look at this

http://www.borges.es/borges/pagina.php?c=pr-pepitauva.inc&t=Aceite%20refinado%20de%20semillas%20pepita%20de%20uva&menu=1&submenu=6&tg=http://www.borges.es/img/productos/aceivintit.gif

it's made in catalonia.very good.we call it here "aceite de pepita de uva"

burekaboy — said...

hi expat - haven't tried it mixed with olive oil; will do that the next time around. it certainly is a versatile oil. i still can't believe there's oil in those hard little grape seeds, LOL!

hey sari - never seen that brand before. i'm sure it must be good. thanks for the link/info.

Roo said...

I just have an image now, of hundreds of little old ladies spitting seeds into a big vat - it's gross I know! ;o)

Happy New Year, sorry it has taken so long to get over and say hi

Roo

burekaboy — said...

hi roo - LOL, that's THE funniest visual. grotesquely funny. and you've never wondered how they get all those seeds? hehe!!

thanks for the new year's wish. regards & 'the best of...' to you and yours also ;) no need to apologize, commenting on others' blogs hasn't been my forte of late. i've not forgotten, however! thanks for the visit and comment. hope the kitchen is now up and running.

דורית said...

Hi Boreka!
I just bought some with your influenece. I was surprised to find it here at the local market...I'll try some tonite with my salad.
Thanks

Anonymous said...

French cooks (chefs) use grapeseed oil mainly for bakink as it taste is a mild one, specially for cakes and biscuits.

It also ends beautifullly in cooking mushrooms or anything on its way to sweet and sour :)

P.S. This month was my buttermilk pancake trial month...Still trying... Thank you for your tips ;)

the chocolate doctor מרת שאקאלאד said...

I have found grapeseed oil very helpful during peysekh. Last year it was the medium for the world's greatest French fries (French fries and mayonnaise are two things I make only during peysekh, because it would just be too abandoned to make them all year).

burekaboy — said...

sorry all for the delay in replying!

prettybaker - hope you enjoy/ed using the oil. there isn't much a pronounced flavour to it however it is useful in many ways. choshev shey po b'zman shel pesach ro'im et ha shemen hezeh b'chanuyot.

hi anonymous - i haven't used it a lot in baking but will try it. i'm sure it works quite nicely.

hope you will be successful finding a recipe you like for your buttermilk pancakes. the one i posted in my blog i quite like a lot. not sure if your buttermilk is the same as ours (the one they sell here is thick (sort of like heavy cream consistency) and is called "cultured buttermilk"; i don't think it's exactly the same as the european one).

hi chocolate lady! - i will have to remember to make french fries this pesach! it never dawned up me to do so. any weight gain will have to blamed on you! LOL. french fries and mayonnaise, indeed two of the best cooking "inventions". oddly enough, pesach is fast approaching {gulp}.