Organic Cold Pressed and Regular Oils: Know the Differences

Oils form an essential part of the everyday diet as they are widely used to prepare different kinds of dishes, from salads to main courses and even snacks. Thus, opting for the right kind of oil should be a conscious decision because it largely influences your cardiovascular health.

With the growing inclination towards a healthy lifestyle, people are opting for cold-pressed oils and ditching regular/refined oils to maintain optimal functioning of their heart. It is hard to determine the difference between the two kinds of oil while cooking or tasting food, but both of them have different nutritional content, physiological and chemical properties.

Cold-pressed oils:

The cold-pressed oils are extracted from nuts, seeds, and peels of fruits with the help of steel pressers. These oils do not use heat for extractions and are pressed at low temperatures, making them one of the best. The seeds are crushed raw without roasting. 

It helps to retain the aroma, flavors, and healthy nutrition. Cold-pressed oils are also known as extra virgin oils, making them the best for skin and hair. Since these oils have high nutritional value, they are also used in cooking.  Cold-pressed oils help to fight aging, nourishing and maintaining healthy skin and hair. 

Regular or Hot-pressed oils:

Unlike cold-pressed oils, regular or hot-pressed oils are extracted from seeds after roasting, through expellers using heat and pressure.

These oils are made aromatic with the help of chemicals. The flavor and aroma together make it comfortable to be used in cooking, however, they might compromise on health.  

In the hot-pressed oil extraction method, the oils are extracted at 230 degrees centigrade and this leaves the final product to oxidize. Due to this oxidation process, issues like skin inflammation, cancer, and pigmentation can occur.

Here is the difference between cold pressed and hot-pressed oils-

1. Production method- The first difference between the two types of oil is the way they are made. In cold pressing, oil is extracted at room temperature, at around 27 degrees centigrade, and the acid value is relatively low, so oil products are obtained after precipitation and filtration. This means that there is no need for any refinement. Hot pressing involves extracting oil at high temperatures, and because the acid value rises significantly, it loses most of its natural quality. Therefore, hot pressed oils are refined to make them fit for consumption.

2. Composition- Cold pressed oil retains most of its natural physiological and chemical properties and most importantly its original taste. Unlike cold pressed oil, hot pressed oil retains little of its natural composition. The high temperatures not only change the chemical structure of oil, but in the process, a lot of important substances like vitamin E, sterols, and carotenoids. On the bright side, hot pressed oil smells good, especially when extracted from the seeds of oily plants like sesame.

3. Yield and cooking process- The yield for cold pressed oils is on average 35% of the total weight of the total oil content, while hot pressing oils yields an average of 37% of the total oil content. When cooking, cold pressed oils do not foam or silt, while it is possible for hot pressed oil to undergo these changes while cooking.

From a health perspective, cold pressed oils are the clear winner. Hot pressed oils undergo oxidation, which can cause complications like cancer and inflammation. Moreover, a lot of healthy compounds are lost from the oils while hot pressing, whereas in cold pressing, all beneficial compounds are retained. Another important factor that makes organic cold pressed oils a better choice is that it involves no refinement, unlike hot pressed oils which are refined to improve taste and acidic content.