Palm Nut Oil
Palm nut oil is distinctly different from palm oil. Palm oil is obtained
from the flesh of palm fruit and is used as shortening, cooking oil, and
in many food products. Palm nut oil is extracted from the kernel, or seed,
of palm fruit and is nearly 80 percent saturated fat. The characteristics
of the two are different both chemically and physically. Palm nut oil
is very similar to coconut oil and can be used in place of it with virtually
no difference in chemistry.
Palm fruit oil contains a balance of polyunsaturated, monounsaturated
and saturated fats. Virgin palm fruit oil has a reddish-orange color and
can be fractionated into a liquid (olein), solid (stearin), and an intermediate
fraction as shortening. Palm fruit oil as a liquid for frying and other
cooking processes is a healthier alternative to other sources of cooking
oil and as a shortening for baking and in pastries provides a light, flaky
texture.
While palm oil has greater use in food products and is rich in carotene
and Vitamin E, palm nut oil or palm kernel oil may sometimes be used as
the fatty substance in non-dairy coffee creamer and margarine and is sometimes
used in livestock feed. However, more frequently because of its undesirable
high saturated fat content, palm nut oil is used in non-food products - specifically
soap. Soap manufacturers use palm nut oil as a lather-boosting ingredient
in soaps. Palm nut oil is primarily a solid fat, but can also be purchased
in flake form as an additive to handmade soap recipes. Palm nut oil is
typically not the main oil ingredient in soap and accounts for about 15
to 20 percent of the total ingredients. Flaked palm nut oil is sold for
about $3.00 per pound, is usually bleached white and is odorless.