Sesame oil

“ The small proportion of solid matter which separates from the oil on congelation cannot be removed by pressure, for even at many degrees below the freezing point it remains as a soft magma. In this respect sesamé oil differs from that of olive.
Sesamé oil contains an extremely small quantity of a substance, perhaps resinoid, which has not yet been isolated. It may be obtained in solution by repeatedly shaking 5 volumes of the oil with one of glacial acetic acid. ”

“ Sesamé oil possesses a light amber color when properly made, is free from any unpleasant odor, has an agreeable taste, and when expressed cold produces what is known as the cold-drawn oil which is regarded by many as of equal palatable value with olive oil. ”

“ We obtained from yellowish seeds 56 per cent. of oil; on a large scale, the yield varies with the variety of seed employed and the process of pressing, from 45 to 50 per cent.
Description—The best kinds of sesamé oil have a mild agreeable taste, a light yellowish colour, and scarcely any odour; but in these respects the oil is liable to vary with the circumstances already mentioned. The white seeds produced in Sind are reputed to yield the finest oil. ”

“ During the middle ages the plant, then known as Suseman or Sempsen, was cultivated in Cyprus, Egypt and Sicily; the oil was an article of import from Alexandria to Venice. Joachim Camerarius gave a good figure of the plant in his “Hortus medicus et philosophicus” 1588 (tab. 44) . In modern times sesame oil gave way to that of olives, yet at present it is an article which, if not so renowned, is at least of far greater consumption.
Production—The plant comes to perfection within 3 or 4 months ”

“ The various and most important oils and fats used in the manufacture of soap are, tallow, cocoanut oil, palm oil, olive oil, poppy oil, sesame oil, soya bean oil, cotton-seed oil, corn oil and the various greases. Besides these the fatty acids, stearic, red oil (oleic acid) are more or less extensively used. These oils, fats and fatty acids, while they vary from time to time and to some extent as to their color, odor and consistency, can readily be distinguished by various physical and chemical constants. ”

“ The expressed oil is as clear and sweet as that from almonds, and probably the Behens oil, used in varnish, is no other. It is called by the Arabs "Siriteh," and the seed, "bennie " seed, in Africa. S. orientals is grown in the West Indies under the name of "wangle." It is said to have been first brought to Jamaica by the Jews as an article of food. 1,050 bags of gingelly teel, or sesame seed, were imported into Liverpool, in 1849, from the East, South America, and Africa, for expressing oil, and 3,700 bags in 1850. ”

“ The peanut oil is probably used simply because it is cheaper. When the fish are thus sterilized and thoroughly cooked they are placed in boxes in the well known manner in which they are found and covered with oil, sealed, and, if necessary, again sterilized in order to prevent decomposition. Olive oil is the oil usually employed for packing purposes, though cheaper grades of edible oil are very commonly found in sardines. The substitutes for olive oils which are usually employed are peanut oil, cottonseed oil, and sesame oil, either single or mixed. ”

“ The goods are tanned with turwar bark and cassia bark, besides being impregnated with sesame oil, even to the extent of 30%. The first operation is to “strip” them of the oil and original tannage as far as possible, by drumming in a solution of soda; the soap thus formed is got rid of by thoroughly washing the goods, when they are “soured” in a weak bath of sulphuric acid to brighten the colour and remove iron stains, after which they are washed up and re-tanned by drumming in warm sumach, allowing about 4 oz. per skin. ”

“ Whenever vegetable oils and fats contain any especial quantity of linoleic acid, or any other fatty acid which has drying properties, they are rendered more or less unfit for human consumption. The number of drying oils is very great, but the most important are linseed oil, hempseed oil, and poppyseed oil. Other vegetable oils have, to a certain degree, drying [392] properties, and among those which are most marked in this particular may be mentioned cottonseed oil, sesamé oil, maize or corn oil, and rapeseed oil. ”

“ The sesame seed has naturally the oil inherent in it, and the body has also its incidents connatural with it; he who is not subject to his bodily accidents, is able to sever the wind and air with his sword. ”

“ Peanut oil is highly prized as a salad oil either alone or mixed with other oil, notably olive oil and sesamé. The oil is purified by a large settle and by filtration and by the processes usually practiced with other oils of vegetable origin. The oil is easily and completely digested and furnishes an abundant source of heat and energy to the system. The number of calories produced by the combustion of one gram of oil, either by ordinary burning or by oxidation in the body is about 9,300. ”

“ There are many other adulterants which are used in unison with cotton seed oil, such as sesame, palm nuts, hemp, cupra or sunflower, and a host of others of strange origin. It is not safe to say that these supposititious comestibles are always innocuous. Many an oil retains the subtle qualities of the plant which produced it, and it may be that obscure maladies which puzzle the doctor are not unfrequently caused by the detestable practice of supplying for the genuine article something which looks sufficiently like it to mislead, and, it may be, poison the hapless public. ”

“ Six pounds of seed will sow one acre, broadcasted and ploughed in by the native implement. The duration of the growth is five months. The crop receives one hand-hoeing and five waterings. It is harvested in October before it becomes dead ripe, to prevent the shedding of seed. Sesame is grown for the sake of the oil, which it yields to the extent of over fifty per cent. This oil is used for domestic purposes, especially by the upper class Egyptians. The production of seed per acre is about twenty-five bushels, valued at 13 pounds. ”

“ That is why it is used in painting. Such oils are called "drying" oils, although the hardening process is not really drying, since they contain no water, but is oxidation. The "semi-drying oils," those that will harden somewhat on exposure to the air, include the oils of cottonseed, corn, sesame, soy bean and castor bean. Olive oil and peanut oil are "non-drying" and contain oleic compounds (olein) . The hard fats, such as stearin, palmitin and margarin, are mostly of animal origin, tallow and lard, though coconut and palm oil contain a large proportion of such saturated compounds. ”

“ Cotton seed oil is insoluble, and the solution obtained by heating the solution solidifies at 60° Fahr. to a white jelly. Sesame and peanut oil react in a similar manner. Sunflower oil dissolves, but at 60° a granular precipitate falls. Rape oil is entirely insoluble and floats like oil on the surface. Castor oil on the contrary dissolves completely, just like olive oil, and hence cannot be detected therein by this method. To detect this oil we must take the melting point of the acids along with the solubility of the oil itself in alcohol. ”

“ The mill grinds twice a day; a fresh man and team being employed on each occasion. When sesame [Pg 536] oil is to be made, about seventy seers measure, or two and a half bushels of seeds are thrown in; to this ten seers, or two quarts and three-quarters of water, are gradually added; this on the continuance of the grinding, which lasts in all six hours, unites with the fibrous portion of the seeds, and forms a cake, which, when removed, leaves the oil clean and pure at the bottom of the mortar. From this it is taken out by a coco-nut shell cup, on the pestle being withdrawn. ”

“ The melting point of the fatty acids in the oils used to adulterate olive oil differs considerably from this. The melting and solidifying points of the acids in cotton seed, sesame, and peanut oils lie considerably higher, those of sunflower, rape, and castor oils decidedly lower than those of olive oil. ”

“ Almond oil is often adulterated with other cheaper oils. Among these those which are principally used are cottonseed oil, walnut oil, poppyseed oil, sesamé, peanut, apricot-kernel and peach-kernel oil, and lard oil. ”

“ The oils expressed from the sesame seed or the earth-nut (arachis oil) are also frequently admixed with olive oil. Almond oil is adulterated with the closely allied oils from the peach-kernel or the pine-seed. Deodorized paraffin hydrocarbons also enter sometimes as adulterants into edible oils. There is, however, a marked improvement in the purity of oils generally. Flour and bread as sold in England are almost invariably genuine. The old forms of adulteration, such as the use of alum for the production of a white but indigestible loaf from bad flour, have disappeared. ”

“ The soot obtained in burning the oil is said to constitute one of the ingredients in India or Chinese ink. The plant might be cultivated with advantage in almost all the tropical and semi-tropical colonies of Britain, but will not succeed in any part of Europe. ”

“ Some ladies anoint their bodies with scented oils, but, for the most part, a predilection exists in favor of that extracted from the sesamum, or mustard seed; which is likewise in very general use throughout every branch of culinary preparation, among the natives of every sect. 443When the oil is applied to the body, (over every part of which it is smeared, the gratified individual generally exposing himself to the influence of the sun while the unction is performing,) it is in its raw state ”

“ When pure and fresh they usually have little or no taste or smell; but, when exposed to the air, they become darker in color, have a disagreeable taste and smell, and are called rancid. As examples of vegetable oils we have cottonseed-oil, linseed-oil, olive-oil, almond-oil and cocoa-butter. Linseed is brought largely from Russia and India; Africa supplies palm-oil; India and the Pacific islands cocoanut-oil; while the best olive-oil is brought from Italy. In animal oils the principal ones are butter, lard, tallow, neatsfoot-oil and sperm-oil. ”

“ It would be impossible to enumerate all the available sources of vegetable oils, for all seeds and nuts contain more or less fatty matter and as we become more economical we shall utilize of what we now throw away. The germ of the corn kernel, once discarded in the manufacture of starch, now yields a popular table oil. From tomato seeds, one of the waste products of the canning factory, can be extracted 22 per cent. of an edible oil. Oats contain 7 per cent. of oil. From rape seed the Japanese get 20,000 tons of oil a year. ”

“ If the beetles do not destroy half the trees, the estates here when in bearing, if they yield anything, will give half that quantity; and it must be borne in mind that coco-nut oil is not a strong oil, like palm oil, and that soap boilers will never use it to any extent, for it will allow but little admixture of rosin, &c.; its use in Europe will be principally for candles and fancy soaps; but as by refining and compression they can now purify tallow, and make of it candles fully equal to those made from coco-nut oil, the consumption of the latter is not likely to increase. ”

“ So important are vegetable oils deemed, that the Society of Arts, in its prize list for 1851, offered gold medals for the importation or introduction into this country of any new plants or trees from China, India, or elsewhere, producing oils or fatty substances, such as can be used as food, or are applicable to manufacturing purposes; and also to the person who shall manufacture and import the finest specimen of oil, not less than ten gallons, the produce of olives grown in any British colony in Africa or Australasia. ”

“ All the species grow well in a sandy loam and may be increased by suckers.
The value of the oil of this palm, as an article of commerce, is exemplified by the large annual imports, averaging more than 516,000 cwt. for many years past.
Our supplies of palm oil are almost wholly derived from the West Coast of Africa, of which it is the staple article of export.
Palm oil has the greatest specific gravity of any of the fixed vegetable oils. It is used principally in this country for making yellow soap. But the inhabitants of the Guinea coast employ it for the same purposes that we do butter. ”

“ It is stated that a bushel of peanuts (twenty-two pounds in the hull) subjected to the hydraulic press, will yield one gallon of oil. The yield by cold pressure, is from forty to fifty per cent. of the shelled kernels, though if heat be used, a larger quantity of oil, but of inferior quality, is obtained. The best Peanut oil is nearly colorless, with a faint, agreeable odor, and a bland taste, resembling that of olive oil. It is more limpid than olive oil, and becomes thick when exposed to a temperature a few degrees below the freezing point of water. Peanut oil is not one of the drying oils. ”

“ Most people prefer lemon juice or the juice of fresh West Indian limes, well mixed into either olive oil, nut oil or a blended oil such as the “Protoid Fruit Oil” or Mapleton's Salad Oil. The ordinary “salad oils” obtainable at grocers are seldom to be recommended; they almost invariably contain chemical preservatives and other adulterants. It is better to have the best oil and use it sparingly if need be, than take any faked product just because it is cheap.
With most people the addition of pure oil assists the digestion of the salad, as well as serving other purposes in the body. ”