# Olive oil/Rape Seed oil



## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

So is British rape seed oil healthier than the long lauded olive oil?

I note (and peering at the labels seems to confirm this) that rape seed oil is lower in fat and saturated fat than olive oil.

And it smokes at a higher temperature, which in theory makes it better for stir fries.

Can also be used for frying of course, which I do a fair bit of in preparing my italian pasta sauces.

Must admit that a small evil part of me would love to tell a few Italians of my acquaintance that olive oil is cancerous 

So over to you expert folk.


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## iandg (16 Feb 2018)

Don't know but we use rapeseed oil because wickerwoman prefers it.


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## Fab Foodie (16 Feb 2018)

wicker man said:


> Don't know but we use rapeseed oil because wickerwoman prefers it.


For what?


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## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

thanks for that wicker but not an answer is it?

Can you shout across the table/telly and ask her why?


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## Fab Foodie (16 Feb 2018)

Rapeseed and olive oil both have the same fat content. Their fatty acid composition is similar, both being high in mono-unsaturates ( as is lard incidentally).
Health and caloriewise they can be very close.
For frying use rapeseed not olive oil. In fact for many flavoured Italian sauces I don’t see the value in using good olive oil at all.


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## classic33 (16 Feb 2018)

*Rapeseed oil vs. olive oil*
Comparing to the olive oil, rapeseed oil contains more omega 3 fatty acids than olive oil (10 times more actually). This doesn’t mean you should now stop using olive oil and use rapeseed oil instead, not at all. Each of the oils has its place in cooking and food preparation.

Extra virgin olive oil is especially great in salad dressings and for drizzling on top of the food – using rapeseed oil instead just wouldn’t work the same.

Rapeseed oil is good to use for things like roasting, frying and baking since extra virgin olive oil is not suitable for high-temperature cooking (high temperatures modifies its molecules and degrade its quality).

When looking at the amount of saturated fat each oil contains, we can see that rapeseed oil contains over half the amount of saturated fat of olive oil. Both oils contain Vitamin E, but it’s the rapeseed oil which contains more. They certainly both have the place in the kitchen, just use them accordingly.

*http://www.behealthynow.co.uk/nutrition/rapeseed-oil-nutrition-health-benefits/#ixzz57JO7ER4R *


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## iandg (16 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> thanks for that wicker but not an answer is it?
> 
> Can you shout across the table/telly and ask her why?



Sorry, Friday night and too many beers


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## iandg (16 Feb 2018)

Fab Foodie said:


> For what?


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## Pro Tour Punditry (16 Feb 2018)

If you really want to feck your Italian chums over just tell them their mum hates them


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## iandg (16 Feb 2018)

Fab Foodie said:


> For what?


The discussion is rapeseed vs olive not rapeseed vs KY


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## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

Thanks classic, yes you confirmed my idea that rape seed oil is lower in saturated fat.

As for:

>>Extra virgin olive oil is especially great in salad dressings and for drizzling on top of the food

not criticising your post but that's not my thing - Italians seem obsessed with pouring olive oil over salad - I don't understand it at all - I have no need of it and surely it's still oil? I'd rather eat salad raw as nature/your personal god intended, or maybe sprinkle some balsamic vinegar on it.

Am struggling personally to think why I should bother much with the olive oil any more.

On my second bottle of rapeseed oil - first came from Aldi, this latest one from Lidl - proudly proclaims that it's from Norfolk so brings back happy memories of recent cycling there as well


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## Hill Wimp (16 Feb 2018)

wicker man said:


> Sorry, Friday night and too many beers


Note to self. When we arrive on the islands make sure it's a Friday


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## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

wicker man said:


> The discussion is rapeseed or olive not rapeseed or KY


Thanks for calling out fab foody's smut (and most of our minds must have wandered the same way) but can you please ask Ms wicker about its possible dietary benefits over the noble olive?


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## iandg (16 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> Thanks for calling out fab foody's smut (and most of our minds must have wandered the same way) but can you please ask Ms wicker about its possible dietary benefits over the noble olive?



I don't think that they've been considered, she prefers the flavours. When you eat a 'generally' healthy diet you don't consider the occasional deviation into something that might be less healthy - though I get a lot of flack about the amount of eggs and cheese that I eat.


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## iandg (16 Feb 2018)

Hill Wimp said:


> Note to self. When we arrive on the islands make sure it's a Friday



Be quick, I may be leaving soon.


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## ColinJ (16 Feb 2018)

I always thought that too much fuss is made about reducing/eliminating fats. Lots of nations with lower rates of heart disease consume much more than we do. This article suggests that I was right.

Olive oil is great for salad dressings but don't cook with it!


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## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

wicker man said:


> Be quick, I may be leaving soon.


it's true what they say about the notorious Sundays then?


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## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

ColinJ said:


> Olive oil is great for salad dressings but don't cook with it!



Ta for this Colin.

i think it's going to be Norfolk's finest from here on, with the odd miniature of olive oil.


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## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

Marmion said:


> If you really want to feck your Italian chums over ....



How to annoy/puncture the delusions of an Italian is a mega subject of its own marmion as you possibly know. Some American stuff on youtube I think. A year ago an Italian American was sounding off about this in my local but I resisted the temptation to enter the conversation.


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## iandg (16 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> it's true what they say about the notorious Sundays then?



The notorious Sundays are correct, but I've been here for more than 20 years now and things are slowly becoming more normal. Unfortunately my empoyers have fallen out with me and don't agree with my POV. It's going to be a settlement or tribunal - when it's all over I'm moving.


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## tyred (16 Feb 2018)

Oh, I thought this would be a discussion on chain lubrication!


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## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

tyred said:


> Oh, I thought this would be a discussion on chain lubrication!


you've wandered into the health bit....


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## Pro Tour Punditry (16 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> How to annoy/puncture the delusions of an Italian is a mega subject of its own marmion as you possibly know. Some American stuff on youtube I think. A year ago an Italian American was sounding off about this in my local but I resisted the temptation to enter the conversation.


I have Italian/Scottish family, it's a hoot when we get together to see the delusion/self-deprecation angst


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## ColinJ (16 Feb 2018)

In case anybody is interested, I put the olive oil in my DIY thick salad dressings ... (they have the consistency of mayo.) Obviously, experiment and make your own mind up!

Extra virgin olive oil. (A British Standard Glug.)
Balsamic vinegar. (A slightly smaller Glug!)
Freshly squeezed lemon juice. (Half a lemon.)
Tamari. (5 splashes.)
Freshly ground black pepper. (15-20 twists of the mill.)
Multigrain mustard. (One teaspoonful)
Natural yoghurt/Greek yoghurt. (2 dessert spoonfuls of each.)
Honey. (I teaspoonful.)
Crushed garlic. (2-3 cloves.)

Whisk it all up and see what you think. I must have given that to about 20 different people over the years and so far everybody has really liked it.

PS If I am not sharing it with 'normal' people, I often chop a hot chilli into the dressing to give it a bit of a kick!


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## Blue Hills (16 Feb 2018)

do feel free to start that as a separate thread 

lots of Italian scots of course.

edit - reply to marmion's last post - colin barged in


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## raleighnut (17 Feb 2018)

Rapeseed oil is very yellow though, I tried frying Mushrooms in it once (I'd run out of Olive Oil )

They looked bleargh.


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## Bonefish Blues (17 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> On my second bottle of rapeseed oil - first came from Aldi, this latest one from Lidl - proudly proclaims that it's from Norfolk so brings back happy memories of recent cycling there as well


Note that the regular 1ltr oils (in Aldi, Lidl et al) are usually 100% rapeseed oil, so don't buy the ickle bottles of rapeseed oil being sold at stupid prices - it's the same stuff!


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## Heltor Chasca (17 Feb 2018)

I use rapeseed oil for cooking for the reasons you say in your OP @Blue Hills . I use olive oil cold in salad, couscous and alongside balsamic vinegar to dip homegrown, organic globe artichokes in. This year I have propogated some seed that I got from Sicily.


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## Randomnerd (17 Feb 2018)

Cold pressed rapeseed oil is best. The other extraction methods remove much of the goodness of the oil, and, I believe, much of the taste. You'll have a local farmer making it. Here's mine. Eat the view etc. https://www.yorkshirerapeseedoil.co.uk/home


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## Blue Hills (17 Feb 2018)

woodenspoons said:


> Cold pressed rapeseed oil is best. The other extraction methods remove much of the goodness of the oil, and, I believe, much of the taste.



Yes, same with olive oil. Has to be mechanical cold extraction. The lidl stuff is cold pressed.


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## Gravity Aided (17 Feb 2018)

Canola, over here. I have not experimented with canola on a bicycle chain, although olive oil was heartily recommended on another thread. Further testing.


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## ozboz (17 Feb 2018)

Italian food , v nice , 
But , 
How did that song go ? 

'Macaroni , Ministerone ?
Ohhhh give us a bash of the Bangers n Mash me Mother used to make ''


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## ozboz (17 Feb 2018)

Bonefish Blues said:


> Note that the regular 1ltr oils (in Aldi, Lidl et al) are usually 100% rapeseed oil, so don't buy the ickle bottles of rapeseed oil being sold at stupid prices - it's the same stuff!



Interesting your use of the word 
'Ickle' the only person I have ever use that word in my life is my GF , she hails from S Yorkshire bordering on Nottinghamshire , 
Would you be from that neck of the woods ?


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## Blue Hills (17 Feb 2018)

Maybe you should worry ozboz - a fatal slip by bonefish.


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## Bonefish Blues (17 Feb 2018)

ozboz said:


> Interesting your use of the word
> 'Ickle' the only person I have ever use that word in my life is my GF , she hails from S Yorkshire bordering on Nottinghamshire ,
> Would you be from that neck of the woods ?


No, but I'm something of a magpie with words and phrases so will have picked it up somewhere in my past


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## mjr (17 Feb 2018)

ozboz said:


> Interesting your use of the word
> 'Ickle' the only person I have ever use that word in my life is my GF , she hails from S Yorkshire bordering on Nottinghamshire ,
> Would you be from that neck of the woods ?


Ickle fairly widespread from Notts to Northants AFAIK.

I thought rapeseed didn't seem to have the benefits of olive, cold at least, but it wasn't yet understood why. Most oil threads on health forums I read don't get far, though, before a butterball bounces in claiming verbosely that all oils are death and butter is natural... yet you never see cows churning it theirself


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## Blue Hills (17 Feb 2018)

Can't help but wonder how the health benefits of olive oil were established.

One thing I can't help wondering about with regard to Italian habit of chucking it on everything (along with salt ) :-

If you have a bowl of salad or veg in front of you is it healthier to eat it as it is or with the olive oil added?

I can't help but think the former.


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## ColinJ (17 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> If you have a bowl of salad or veg in front of you is it healthier to eat it as it is or with the olive oil added?
> 
> I can't help but think the former.


There is a reason why '_essential fatty acids_' are called '_essential'_, you know! 

I think that the Italians know what they are doing (or stumbled across a healthy diet by accident!) ...


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## Fab Foodie (17 Feb 2018)

ColinJ said:


> There is a reason why '_essential fatty acids_' are called '_essential'_, you know!
> 
> I think that the Italians know what they are doing (or stumbled across a healthy diet by accident!) ...


And is Olive oil high in essential fatty acids?


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## ColinJ (17 Feb 2018)

Fab Foodie said:


> And is Olive oil high in essential fatty acids?


I sense a cunning trap ...!


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## ColinJ (17 Feb 2018)

Hmm ... What's wrong with olive oil!


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## Blue Hills (17 Feb 2018)

ColinJ said:


> There is a reason why '_essential fatty acids_' are called '_essential'_, you know!
> 
> I think that the Italians know what they are doing (or stumbled across a healthy diet by accident!) ...


but lots of things are essential colin (including salts) but surely it's a matter of how much?
I'm not sure Italians know everything about food at all to be honest - the way they chuck salt around/into stuff can be downright alarming

(though this does give them the excuse to have yet more tests).

So are you sure about this?


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## oldwheels (17 Feb 2018)

Beef dripping on toast with marmite. Non of this namby pamby foreign stuff.


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## slowmotion (17 Feb 2018)

[QUOTE 5154786, member: 259"]Lard for frying anything except for chips, which require beef dripping. And I suppose goose grease is alright for roasties.[/QUOTE]
I attempted to use some goose fat for Christmas lunch roast potatoes when it was being pushed by Delia a few years ago. It was a total soggy disaster. I've never been back.


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## Fab Foodie (17 Feb 2018)

slowmotion said:


> I attempted to use some goose fat for Christmas lunch roast potatoes when it was being pushed by Delia a few years ago. It was a total soggy disaster. I've never been back.


You’re such a failure....


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## slowmotion (17 Feb 2018)

Fab Foodie said:


> You’re such a failure....


At least I tried, FFS....


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## PK99 (17 Feb 2018)

slowmotion said:


> I attempted to use some goose fat for Christmas lunch roast potatoes when it was being pushed by Delia a few years ago. * It was a total soggy disaster.* I've never been back.



Your fat was not hot enough.


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## Fab Foodie (17 Feb 2018)

PK99 said:


> Your fat was not hot enough.


This^^^^^


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## slowmotion (17 Feb 2018)

PK99 said:


> Your fat was not hot enough.


 That's entirely possible. We were in a strange kitchen that Christmas. The oven temperature was all over the place according to my digital meat thermometer.


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## ColinJ (17 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> but lots of things are essential colin (including salts) but surely it's a matter of how much?
> I'm not sure Italians know everything about food at all to be honest - the way they chuck salt around/into stuff can be downright alarming
> 
> (though this does give them the excuse to have yet more tests).
> ...


It all gets very complicated! 

Let's face it, doctors had been telling us for 30+ years that fat is very bad for us but then eventually did a u-turn. Processed carbs are now the baddies ... 

I think that a lot of poor science was done and is now being undone. A confusion between correlation and causation ...

I suggest reading about fats, carbohydrates, vitamins etc and drawing your own conclusions. I definitely recommend reading Vitamin K2 And The Calcium Paradox, which contains lots of very interesting information and references to hundreds of research papers. (Currently only £1.24 for the Kindle app/devices.)


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## Blue Hills (18 Feb 2018)

oldwheels said:


> Beef dripping on toast with marmite. Non of this namby pamby foreign stuff.


I hate to break this to you/upset your digestion but wiki says that marmite was invented by a german scientist. Whether he intended it to be a food product I don't know.


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## Blue Hills (18 Feb 2018)

Lots of truth in your post above colin. I followed that barmy advice for a while and ended up putting on a fair bit of weight from a pasta heavy diet. And I well remember half buying into the theory behind a female work colleague's latest wonder diet which was basically built on the theory that you could eat as much bread as you wanted


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## flake99please (18 Feb 2018)

Can avocado oil get an honourable mention in this thread? My wife & I prefer to use it over olive oil.


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## Bonefish Blues (18 Feb 2018)

flake99please said:


> Can avocado oil get an honourable mention in this thread? My wife & I prefer to use it over olive oil.


You should also try it on its own sometimes


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## Blue Hills (18 Feb 2018)

Bonefish Blues said:


> You should also try it on its own sometimes


You mean without the olive oil and without the wife?


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## Gravity Aided (18 Feb 2018)

mjr said:


> Ickle fairly widespread from Notts to Northants AFAIK.
> 
> I thought rapeseed didn't seem to have the benefits of olive, cold at least, but it wasn't yet understood why. Most oil threads on health forums I read don't get far, though, before a butterball bounces in claiming verbosely that all oils are death and butter is natural... yet you never see cows churning it theirself


Yet the butter and cream are in the whole milk, along with lots of other things. 
https://www.iowastatefair.org/about/butter-cow/
I'll show you Iowa's butter cow, as the Illinois State Fair butter cow was made by Prairie Farms, which is* just wrong!*


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## Reynard (22 Feb 2018)

Lard for frying things like bacon, eggs, sausages, black pudding, bread. Half oil (rapeseed), half butter for frying everything else. Beef dripping for roasties (with a tablespoon of garlic oil).

I only use olive oil for salad dressings, dips or for making bread. But more often than not, it's ordinary rapeseed oil (Tesco's own brand), either straight from the bottle or from the large jar in which I store my preserved garlic.

Garlic oil is the bees knees


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## Reynard (22 Feb 2018)

[QUOTE 5160491, member: 259"]Rapeseed often gets recommended for cast iron pans but I find if you heat it very high it smells a bit fishy, so we tend to use lard for searing now. It's not a problem at lower temperatures though.[/QUOTE]

Mmmm, I have neither cast iron pans that aren't enamelled, nor much of a sense of smell due to sinus probs. So can't say I've ever noticed


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## raleighnut (23 Feb 2018)

Reynard said:


> Mmmm, I have neither cast iron pans that aren't enamelled, nor much of a sense of smell due to sinus probs. So can't say I've ever noticed


You need one of these,





the one 'snagette' is being Cast Iron they rust if you wash em in detergent.


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## Reynard (23 Feb 2018)

Mmmm yes, it's just a "wipe clean after use" kind of thing then... I use heavyweight stainless steel pans for frying - which I can also wang in the oven as they're all metal.


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## BoldonLad (23 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> So is British rape seed oil healthier than the long lauded olive oil?
> 
> I note (and peering at the labels seems to confirm this) that rape seed oil is lower in fat and saturated fat than olive oil.
> 
> ...



Hmm....

Problem is, after you have been using it for several years, feeling all healthy and smug, some "expert" will publish "research" saying it is toxic. This applies to any food or drink product IMHO.


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## Reynard (23 Feb 2018)

Akh, I subscribe to the school that says _everything is fine in moderation - including moderation_.


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## Fab Foodie (23 Feb 2018)

raleighnut said:


> You need one of these,
> 
> 
> View attachment 397027
> ...


They shouldn’t if seasoned properly.


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## raleighnut (23 Feb 2018)

Fab Foodie said:


> They shouldn’t if seasoned properly.


Salt 'n' Pepper stops rust. 


Yep I know what 'seasoning' a pan is but I treat it the same as my Steel Wok and my Balti pan and just wash all 3 simply in very hot water and use a washing up brush (the water is too hot to stick your hands in) then dry with kitchen roll just before I use them.


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## Milzy (23 Feb 2018)

It pains me that nobody knows what it is when there’s thousands of yellow fields :/


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## raleighnut (24 Feb 2018)

Milzy said:


> It pains me that nobody knows what it is when there’s thousands of yellow fields :/


When I was a kid my Dad told us it was Mustard.


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## Blue Hills (24 Feb 2018)

raleighnut said:


> When I was a kid my Dad told us it was Mustard.


Did he think it was?


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## raleighnut (24 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> Did he think it was?


I'm pretty sure he did but he could have been 'Messing' with us kids.


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## summerdays (24 Feb 2018)

I use Rapeseed oil, and buy a big tub of it every now and again (lasts ages). I used to get it at the farmers market but they didn't attend it when I needed a replacement so mail order from Oxfordshire over half term. I use it for general cooking but also in a few cake recipes and bread etc.


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## Blue Hills (24 Feb 2018)

summerdays said:


> I use Rapeseed oil, and buy a big tub of it every now and again (lasts ages). I used to get it at the farmers market but they didn't attend it when I needed a replacement so mail order from Oxfordshire over half term. I use it for general cooking but also in a few cake recipes and bread etc.


Why would you need to mail order rape seed oil?


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## Fab Foodie (24 Feb 2018)

Reynard said:


> Lard for frying things like bacon, eggs, sausages, black pudding, bread. Half oil (rapeseed), half butter for frying everything else. Beef dripping for roasties (with a tablespoon of garlic oil).
> 
> I only use olive oil for salad dressings, dips or for making bread. But more often than not, it's ordinary rapeseed oil (Tesco's own brand), either straight from the bottle or from the large jar in which I store my preserved garlic.
> 
> Garlic oil is the bees knees


Spot-on.


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## summerdays (24 Feb 2018)

Blue Hills said:


> Why would you need to mail order rape seed oil?


I've just got used to this particular brand, and liked it. And when they used to turn up to the market it was nice buying it from the producers directly (well their employees). And you don't see big bottle of it in the supermarket. I've been buying it for the last 6 years and it's become much more common over that time.


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## Reynard (24 Feb 2018)

Fab Foodie said:


> Spot-on.



Forgot... Lard for egg fried rice as well...


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## Alan O (25 Feb 2018)

raleighnut said:


> When I was a kid my Dad told us it was Mustard.


Well, mustard does have "bright yellow flowers (like commercially grown rape – it belongs to the same Cruciferae family)" and it is grown in the UK.
http://shakenoak.co.uk/brief-history-of-english-mustard/


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## PK99 (25 Feb 2018)

raleighnut said:


> When I was a kid my Dad told us it was Mustard.



it might well have been - mustard is grown as a green manure.


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