Walnut oil

What it is and how it is produced

Walnut oil is a food product obtained by pressing the kernels enclosed in the fruit of the same name; given the high cost compared to commonly used seed oils, in Italy the production process of walnut oil is mostly relegated to small artisan businesses, typically confined to mountain areas.

The production of walnut oil begins with the breaking of the woody shell (endocarp) for the extraction of the seed (kernel); the latter is then subjected to a coarse grinding, heated and pressed on the press to extract the precious oil.

Walnut oil belongs to the category of drying oils; if exposed to air it tends to form a solid film, which makes it widely usable in the production of paints.

Food Uses

Hardly available in supermarkets, walnut oil is generally sold in natural and organic products shops.

It should be eaten raw and stored in dark glass bottles away from sunlight; walnut oil, in fact, goes rancid easily and should therefore be consumed within three months of production. This characteristic is due to the high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids, the same that give the product interesting health properties.

Organoleptic characteristics and combinations

The taste of walnut oil is original and delicate, and ennobles cold dishes giving it a touch of particular flavor. As for the possible culinary combinations, the product is combined with raw meats, fresh cheeses, pasta, legumes, potatoes, cabbage, asparagus, vinaigrette and fish.

Property

The walnut and the oil obtained from it represent one of the few vegetable sources of alpha linolenic acid, which instead abounds in sea fish. The acidic composition of walnut oil is characterized by its richness in polyunsaturated fats (65%), among which the fatty acid-rich triglycerides of the omega-six series (55%) and omega-three (10%) predominate; the monounsaturated fat content (oleic acid, 15%) is also discreet. This particular accidic profile gives the product hypotriglyceridemizing and hypocholesterolemic properties; walnut oil can therefore prove to be an excellent aid to bring back too high blood levels of cholesterol and triglycerides. To obtain benefits in this sense, it is important that the oil is placed in a low-calorie food context; it must also be consumed strictly raw (it is contraindicated for cooking food) and in partial substitution of animal and vegetable fats (margarine), never in addition.