Sweet almond

As well as in salads, sweet almond oil is used in soaps, ointments, balms, lotions and many other beauty products. We spread it on our skin with relish, dipping our hands into the jar of cream. However, few people have tasted the quintessence of the "Greek nut" in cooking, a golden elixir extracted by cold-pressing very lightly roasted almonds. "Its delicate, buttery flavour makes it one of the most subtle seasonings there is," says Pascal Barbot, the young Michelin-starred chef at the Parisian restaurant L'Astrance. This rare and enchanting oil inspired the restaurateur's signature dish: a reinvented Californian salad (thin slices of avocado, crab meat drizzled with lime juice and sweet almond oil), which has been on the menu for three years. Delicately fragrant, it pairs well with light dishes: mushrooms, artichokes, fish, poultry, and especially duck. But it also calls for a counterpoint of a slightly acidic or tart note, such as Banyuls vinegar, citrus juice or yoghurt...

Peanut

A light-coloured oil pressed from peanuts and used for hundreds of years in South America. Highly resistant to heat, it can withstand temperatures as high as 230°C, making it ideal for frying. Its mild flavour is suitable for salads and is used in the preparation of margarine, mayonnaise and vinaigrettes.

Argan

Argan oil flows in the desert. Berber women extract it from the seeds of a thorny tree that has withstood the onslaught of sand in southern Morocco for 80 million years. The argan tree, native to the Sous region (in the south-west), provides them with both nourishing oil and a beneficial ointment that they apply to their hair and skin to protect them from sunburn and windburn. Their well-kept beauty secret has finally crossed the Mediterranean, thanks in particular to Maison de l'Arganier, the first company to import argan oil in 1997. This golden liquid, with its myriad virtues, now sells for £50 a litre in France. It's not cheap, of course, but it takes twelve hours of work and 100 kilos of fruit to produce one litre of oil! After harvesting and drying the fruit, which resembles a large pale green olive, the kernel is separated from the pulp, crushed and then mixed with water to extract the oil. This gentle extraction process, carried out by hand or using a press, but above all without chemicals, preserves all of its active ingredients, which are so valuable in cosmetics. "Moroccan women use it mainly for its moisturising and healing properties, but recent scientific research has also demonstrated its antioxidant power against wrinkles," says Zoubida Charrouf, professor at the University of Rabat and author of a thesis on argan oil. Several French brands use it, such as Galénic, whose Argane line was launched in 1986, and the fledgling Bordeaux-based company AR 457.

Beyond its dermatological properties, argan oil, a traditional ingredient in tagine and couscous, has won over the greatest French chefs. Alain Passard, the three-star chef at L'Arpège, appreciates "its praline, even cocoa-like fragrance and its intense, musky sweetness." For the past year, he has been boldly combining "its earthy essences with those of salted caviar, on a bed of steaming semolina". Argan oil naturally harmonises with the vegetables and meats (lamb and mutton) eaten in Mediterranean countries, but it also goes wonderfully with fish and sweet and savoury combinations, and can be used in many recipes.

Canola

Trade name for rapeseed oil. The most widely used oil in Canada, this oil has the lowest saturated fat content (6%). It may help lower blood cholesterol levels and has beneficial effects on the brain. Tasteless, it is suitable for cooking, salad dressings and pastries, but gives off an unpleasant odour when heated to high temperatures.

Safflower

Extracted from the seeds of safflower, a plant native to the East, this oil has a strong aroma and is mainly used cold. The unrefined oil, with a mild nutty flavour, is dark amber yellow, while the refined version, with a neutral flavour, is very pale yellow. Safflower oil is low in saturated fat and oxidises very quickly.

Copra

Also known as "coconut oil", this oil obtained from the flesh of the coconut is solid at room temperature. Widely used in the food industry for making chocolate, ice cream and margarine, and as a cooking oil, it is also found in the cosmetics industry, where it is used in particular in the manufacture of soaps. It has a very high saturated fat content.

Fats

Liquid or solid substances used to cook, season, bind, emulsify or preserve food. These fats are of animal origin (butter, lard, beef fat, tallow, goose fat) or vegetable origin (vegetable fat, most margarines, corn oil, sunflower oil, nut oil). The amount of fat consumed, and more particularly saturated fat, must be taken into consideration.

Wheat germ

Oil obtained by cold pressing the germ or using solvents. It is added to foods as a vitamin supplement and is an excellent source of vitamin E.

Ghee

Clarified animal fat, very popular in Arab countries and India, traditionally obtained from buffalo milk butter. Most often prepared from clarified butter, ghee is used as a cooking fat, in baking and for making sauces. Quite expensive and high in cholesterol, it can be found in specialised grocery stores.

Lard

Fat located under the skin of the pig. Fat bacon, found between the flesh and the rind, is mainly used to make lard. Lean bacon, or belly bacon, comes from the chest. Fresh, salted or smoked, it provides bacon bits that are used in stews and fricassees and can be added to vegetables, salads and omelettes. Approximately 100 g of bacon contains an average of 880 calories.

Corn

One of the most widely used amber-coloured oils in the world, obtained from corn. Relatively odourless and tasteless, it is a very practical ingredient for cooking and is also used in the preparation of salad dressings, margarine and for frying. It is very rich in polyunsaturated fats and contains fatty acids that help fight cholesterol. It is available in refined and unrefined versions.

Margarine

Developed in France in^{the 19th} century to replace butter, which was rare and expensive at the time, margarine is made from vegetable fats, but may also contain animal fats. Like butter, margarine is high in fat and energy; it contains the same amount of fat and calories as butter. However, unlike butter, margarine made exclusively from vegetable oil is cholesterol-free. Look for margarine that is low in hydrogenation, i.e. soft, which is better for your health.

Hazelnuts

This oil deserves all the praise it gets. Its sweet, fragrant taste goes well with all salads. It can be used like butter on all starchy foods, vegetables, fish, pasta and pastries. Just a drizzle of hazelnut oil on potatoes, green beans or grated carrots, and the dish takes on a festive air.

Walnut

This oil has a very fruity taste and is used as a seasoning and to make vinaigrettes. Used in baking to flavour certain cakes, it also adds flavour to fish, poultry and vegetable dishes. Walnut oil production is limited, making it an expensive oil. This oil is low in saturated fatty acids and has a short shelf life, even in an unopened bottle. It goes rancid quickly.

Pecan

Oil with a strong flavour between walnut and almond. This oil is particularly suitable for accompanying rice in all its forms, cold rice salad, white rice, wild rice. Highly prized for flavouring cakes.

Palm

Palm oil, which is solid at room temperature, is obtained from the fruit of a species of African palm tree. With a mild taste and aroma, it is suitable for all uses, from frying to making salad dressings. Very popular in African and Brazilian cuisine, this oil contains 79% saturated fat.

Grape seed

This oil, made from grape seeds recovered after winemaking, is increasingly becoming an alternative to sunflower oil for cooking and frying. It is resistant to both heat and cold, making it ideal for marinades.Relatively recent – the first oil mill was opened in the Tarn region under Napoleon – it has been the basis for the success of the Caudalie cosmetics brand, founded by Mathilde Thomas in 1995. The daughter of the owners of the famous Bordeaux vineyard, Smith-Haut-Laffite, she has made it the basis for all the products in her range. "Easily absorbed by the skin, it softens and nourishes it thanks to the polyunsaturated linoleic acid and vitamin E it contains," she explains.

Pine nuts

We call it "the queen of oils," one of the most subtle, its sweetness and flavour enhancing the taste of dishes. Add just a dash of oil at the last minute to emulsify shellfish sauces, various other sauces, especially wine sauces, and soups such as minestrone, pumpkin, etc. This oil goes very well with a Landes salad and is essential for pesto.

Pistachio

This oil has a very distinctive taste, is long on the palate and has persistent aromas. It does not mix well with vinegar, except perhaps a very good balsamic vinegar or a small amount of honey vinegar. It is excellent on a lentil salad, in poultry sauces such as duck, for marinating langoustines and lobster, and is suitable for a salad of thinly sliced endives topped with a few shavings of smoked trout or salmon, drizzled with a vinaigrette of pistachio oil, balsamic vinegar, pepper and chives, or simply with a green bean salad. Don't forget pistachio oil with asparagus.

Lard

A fine, white substance produced by melting fatty bacon. It is used for frying, slow-cooking cabbage or pork stews and for making pastries. Lard contains 99% fat. Due to its very high saturated fat content, it is recommended that it be used only very rarely.

Sesame

Like an irresistible magic spell, this full-bodied, amber-coloured oil instantly opens the doors to Asia. Its toasted, almost caramelised aromas evoke Canton, Tokyo, Seoul or Bangkok, where culinary traditions use it in all kinds of dishes. A classic in wok cooking (a utensil used for Asian and Chinese cooking), it adds a striking exotic touch to any dish, provided it is used sparingly so as not to fall into the caricature of the Chinese restaurant around the corner. This powerful, toasted oil needs ingredients with a strong personality (duck, red meat). Patrick Pignol, the whimsical chef at Le Relais d'Auteuil, enjoys "complicating the flavours of the sauce with a few drops of this oil" when cooking game.

Sesame is used to make alcohol, wine, ink and oil, but also painkillers, anti-cholesterol and anti-wrinkle remedies. The plant, a cousin of mint, sage and nettles, leaves behind rustling pods after its white and mauve flowers bloom, filled with small flat pearls with a nutty taste. These are pressed to obtain the miracle oil - one of the oldest in the world. Today, this panacea is also used in creams, masks and body lotions "for its role in protecting and rebuilding the skin's intercellular cement," explains Thierry Courtot, head of the Embryolisse laboratories. "Sesame has the same properties as argan, but in less concentrated form," says Michel Pobeda, founder of Codina, a company specialising in vegetable, cosmetic and dietary oils. "But it is much cheaper."

Shortening

Vegetable oils, sometimes mixed with animal oils, chemically transformed into solid fat through a process called hydrogenation. Shortening is flavourless and is usually used for cooking, frying, doughnuts, pastries, bread and cakes. Note that the hydrogenation process converts unsaturated fats into saturated fats, thereby destroying their beneficial effects. Shortening can be stored at room temperature for up to one year.

Soy

A light, yellowish, creamy oil extracted from soybeans. Widely used in America for the manufacture of margarine and shortening, it is mainly used cold, as a seasoning. Its neutral flavour makes it a main component of blended oils, known as "vegetable" oils. It contains only 15% saturated fat and contains fatty acids that may help control blood cholesterol.

Suet

Fat surrounding the kidneys of beef and mutton, traditionally used in England for pastries, puddings and stews. This fat can be purchased fresh from the butcher, but is also available in flaky form in some supermarkets. Kidney fat is mainly composed of saturated fat, so it should be used with caution.

Sunflower

Extracted from sunflower seeds, which are now widely cultivated, this pale yellow oil with a delicate flavour is suitable for stir-frying, making vinaigrettes and mayonnaise, and gentle frying. Often used in margarine, this oil is highly recommended by dieticians because of its high proportion of essential fatty acids. In addition, its high polyunsaturated fat content and low saturated fat content make it a truly healthy choice.

Vegetable

Trade name given to a blend of vegetable oils, the main component of which is often canola or soybean oil. Although this blend of oils offers the advantage of a good balance of fatty acids, it sometimes contains saturated oils such as copra oil and palm oil; it is therefore recommended that you read the label carefully to check its composition. Vegetable oil is mainly intended for frying.