Crystal Nelson
Shining golden yellow and full of valuable fats: rapeseed oil is the most popular edible oil in Germany. But how healthy is the oil really? We clarify.
Rapeseed oil is one of the most popular cooking oils in Germany.
In addition to cold-pressed rapeseed oil, there is refined rapeseed oil that is also suitable for frying at high temperatures.
Rapeseed oil has healthy, polyunsaturated fatty acids – but it shouldn’t be too much oil.
Rapeseed oil is very popular in Germany – in 2018 we bought a total of 76.1 liters of the yellow oil. But not all oils are the same, because edible oils can differ significantly in terms of production and quality.
1. Is virgin or refined canola oil better?
Native cooking oils are cold-pressed, while refined oils are hot-pressed. This makes them more heat-resistant and tasteless.
You can also choose between virgin (cold-pressed) and refined oil for rapeseed oil. If you like the seedy, slightly nutty taste of your own, it is best to use native rapeseed oil. If you don’t appreciate the taste of rapeseed, refined rapeseed oil is just as good a decision. If you want an organic product in any case, you have native and steamed rapeseed oils to choose from, because refining is not allowed with organic cooking oils.
How healthy is canola oil?
Fatty acids are very important for our metabolism and cardiovascular system. The individual edible oils have a different fatty acid spectrum and therefore consist of different proportions of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids. The polyunsaturated fatty acids are the healthiest. We have to ingest them through food because our body cannot produce them itself.
Rapeseed oil has the following fatty acid pattern:
- 8 percent saturated fats
- 60 percent monounsaturated fats
- 32 percent polyunsaturated fats
2. It depends on the polyunsaturated fatty acids
In the case of polyunsaturated fatty acids, the ratio of omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids is particularly important. Humans need both fatty acids, but not to the same extent.
The German Nutrition Society (DGE) recommends a ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids of 5:1. In the case of rapeseed oil, the ratio is 2:1. It is therefore best to switch between vegetable oils and use sunflower, olive oil and linseed oil in addition to rapeseed oil.
3. Too much (rapeseed) oil is not healthy!
What you should not forget: Oils provide us with a lot of energy, but at the same time they also have a lot of calories due to the fats. A gram of fat has nine kilocalories (kcal), more than twice as many as a gram of protein provides. If you want to eat a balanced diet, you should therefore not overdo it with oils.
Use healthy rapeseed oil correctly
Both virgin and refined rapeseed oil are suitable for gentle frying and steaming. If you want to sear food, it is better to use refined oil.
It is best to keep an opened bottle of rapeseed oil in a dark and cool place. The refrigerator or the basement are suitable places.
With cold dishes, the full flavor of the rapeseed oil is retained, so it is ideal for salad dressings.
