DIY Groundnut/Peanut oil

Groundnut oil making at home is easy as it is a labour of love. The volume of oil you will get out of your groundnuts will depend on the quality and quantity of your groundnuts. In this post, I will be showing you a cheat code to make your groundnut oil process at home easier. It would save you all that energy and time you’d otherwise spend kneading the oil out of your groundnut paste.

I would use the words Groundnuts and Peanuts interchangeably throughout this post to accommodate readers in different regions.

Ground oil has a nutty aroma and flavor that enhances the flavor of dishes cooked in. It contains Vitamin E and is described as a heart-friendly oil.

“One of the most important factors is its high smoke point of 437 °F (225 °C), which means it can withstand high temperatures without breaking down into trans-fats. This property aids in the retention of essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals, making the oil a healthy cooking option.” Source Organic Gyaan.

Groundnut is quite calorie-dense, with about 884kcal in 100g of Groundnut oil. So consume in moderation especially if you are trying to lose weight.

Making your groundnut oil will give you an appreciation of the work farmers and workers in the rural communities particularly in Northern Nigeria put in to get this delicious oil to our table. And why it is so highly priced.

Recipe

Ingredients

• Groundnuts (Shelled Raw or Toasted)

Procedure for making Homemade Peanut Oil

• You can skip to Step 2 by buying already roasted and peeled groundnuts.
• Start with toasting some shelled groundnuts/peanuts. Unlike when you want to make roasted groundnuts for eating, it’s not imperative to pre-soak and dry the groundnuts before toasting. You can toast it directly.
• Toast till the skin is easy to peel off, it will start to make a little popping sound.
• Using a sieve sift the peanuts from what you are toasting it in.

You can learn how to make Homemade Nigerian Roasted Peanuts/Groundnuts by clicking on this

Next, peel off the husk from your roasted/toasted peanuts

Step 2

Blend your groundnuts in a blender to a smooth paste. No need to add any oils or water, just keep blending this it is a smooth paste. You need a strong blender for this. Like you are making peanut butter.

Learn How to make Peanut Butter at home by clicking here.

Step 3

Now you would add water gradually in small portions till the paste congeals. See a short video below.

Step 4 (without the cheat code)

Skip to cheat code

• Traditionally at this point you would work those muscles kneading this paste to extract the oil.  You would knead till oil starts to ooze out of the paste enough for you to scoop out with spoon.
• You would repeat this till there is no oil left to scoop, then you would make the paste into little balls, squeeze to get more oil or put in a cheesecloth to squeeze to extract more oil

Using the traditional kneading method is more advisable if you intend to make kuli-kuli from the pulp after squeezing out the oil. Kuli-kuli recipe coming up soon.

CHEAT CODE

Because I love cheat codes and simpler ways, these are two cheat codes.

CHEAT 1

Use a mixer. You can use a stand mixer or a hand mixer. Use your whisk or paddle attachment and mix the paste continuously till the oil starts to ooze out of the paste and separate.

Transfer into a cheesecloth, squeeze the oil out and bottle it in an airtight container.

CHEAT 2

Place the paste into the microwave for 15 – 20 mins (depending on how hot your microwave is), stirring every 5 minutes intermittently. You can scoop out the oil as it is getting released or you can wait till the end to transfer to a cheese and squeeze out all the oil

Transfer to a cheesecloth and squeeze to get out all of the oil

Bottle up your oil and store it in a cool dry space.

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