By now, we’re sure you know all about CBD and the benefits of CBD oil when you take it medicinally. What you might not realize, though, is that you can actually get the benefits of CBD by cooking with hemp oil.
Here’s everything you need to know about how to cook with hemp oil so you can reap the benefits of the cannabis plants and get some tasty nutrition at the same time.
What is hemp oil?
Let’s start by defining what hemp oil is … and what it’s not. Even though you might see the terms used interchangeably online, hemp oil is not the same thing as CBD oil; you can’t cook your foods with the same CBD oil that you use to help you fall asleep at night. It’s also different from other types of oil that you use for cooking, like olive oil and vegetable oil. Make sure you understand the best (and worst) ways to cook with hemp oil before you get started! (We’ll get into it in just a sec.)
Unlike CBD oil, hemp oil doesn’t contain any cannabinoids, which are the main component of CBD. Hemp oil instead contains a blend of nutrients, vitamin E, and polyunsaturated acids. It’s sourced from the seeds of the cannabis plant, whereas CBD is sourced from the whole plant, including the flowers and leaves.
The benefits
The benefits of hemp oil are far-reaching. Some of the major areas it’s been shown to improve health care in the skin, the brain, and the heart. Additionally, hemp oil is known for helping with aches and pains, especially for pain related to inflammation. It can even ease painful symptoms of PMS and menopause.
Hemp oil contains healthy fatty acids, which makes it an excellent way to add some nutrients to your diet so you can stay full and focused, even if you aren’t dealing with pain right now.
Where to buy hemp oil for cooking
You can find hemp oil for cooking online through retailers like Amazon. You can also find it at some natural food stores. As it becomes more common among home chefs, hemp oil is starting to turn up at several well-stocked grocery stores and even some big-box chains across the country. You can start by looking for it at your local store. If they don’t have it, search online.
When you’re shopping, look for cold-pressed hemp oil that’s unrefined. This ensures that you’re getting pure hemp oil that hasn’t had anything added to it to take away from its health benefits.
Frying with hemp oil
Frying with hemp oil is a no-go, so, unfortunately, you can’t make yourself fries that have the health benefits of hemp. Because it’s so delicate, hemp oil can’t really handle any heat. It has a low smoke point, which essentially means it doesn’t take much heat to burn. You can easily ruin a meal by trying to cook or fry vegetables or meat in hemp oil.
When to use hemp oil
So, if you can’t fry hemp oil, or heat it up at all, when can you use it?
Don’t worry. There are plenty of ways you can add hemp oil to add nutrition plus an earthy, nutty flavor to your favorite recipes. Hemp oil is great drizzled on a salad or added into hummus. You can put it in your morning smoothie or onto cooked, roasted vegetables. As long as you remember not to overheat it, you can use hemp oil pretty much anywhere else you would use olive oil.
Here are some recipes and ideas for how to incorporate hemp oil into your meals to get you started!
Salad dressing recipes
Adding hemp oil to your salad is an easy and tasty way to get the added benefits of hemp into your everyday life. Because you don’t have to heat it up, you won’t risk ruining the flavor of hemp oil. Here are some great hemp oil salad dressing recipes to try:
Simple Garlic Hemp Oil Dressing
Easy Hempseed Oil Vinaigrette Dressing
Hemp Oil Honey Mustard Salad Dressing
Recipes for skin health
You don’t necessarily need to ingest hemp oil to see and feel the benefits on your skin. Just place the hemp oil directly on your skin. You can also create a hemp oil compound to put on your skin that consists of ¼ cup hemp oil, two teaspoons melted coconut oil, and 4 – 5 drops of a skin-boosting essential oil (think rosemary or lavender).
If you prefer to enjoy your hemp oil in food, then take a look at some of these tasty recipes that include hemp oil. You’ll get the health benefits for your body and your skin at the same time. Talk about a win-win!
Try cooking with hemp oil for a holistic way to manage pain and inflammation, clear up skin issues, and improve your brain and heart health!
Kate Williams has a Ph.D. in English and freelance writer. She is also the CEO of People First Content, a…
