3 quick & easy healthy red palm oil recipes for lower cholesterol
If you’re wondering why red palm oil is the most widely used vegetable cooking oil, here are three good reasons (well, other than its priceless health benefits);
- It contains a balanced ratio of saturated and unsaturated fats (50-50). Fats are essential for the generation of energy in our bodies.
- It has high heat resistant ability and does not break down or mutate under high temperatures.
- Yes, it has cholesterol but contains good cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, which absorbs body cholesterol and carries it to the liver for removal. This ultimately helps keep a healthy heart and control cholesterol levels.
Besides its invaluable input to our diet, red palm oil also helps maintain healthy skin, thus its wide use in creams and soaps. This high demand has led the European Palm Oil Alliance (EPOA) to support initiatives committed to sustainable palm oil farming.
Here are 3quick-fix recipes to incorporate red palm oil in your diet:
Fried yams with red palm oil
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup of red palm oil
- Sliced yams
- Ground black pepper
- Sea salt
Recipe:
- Rinse and soak the sliced yams in lukewarm water for about 15 minutes.
- As the yams soak, heat the red palm oil.
- Drain the water from the bowl of soaked yams and sprinkle salt evenly.
- Fry the yams in the hot oil until golden brown and drain in a strainer bowl.
- Sprinkle the ground pepper (or paprika) and serve while hot.
- Alternatively, for baking, spread red palm oil on a baking sheet and line the chopped yams to bake for up to 10 minutes. Serve them hot.
Red palm oil dressing
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup of red palm oil.
- 1 teaspoon mustard.
- 1teaspoon paprika.
- 1teaspoon ground black pepper.
- Sea salt.
- 2tablespoons red wine vinegar.
- 2tablespoons of parsley and chopped thyme.
Recipe:
- Pour in the mustard, red wine vinegar, parsley, thyme, and red palm oil in a bowl.
- Whisk until well blended.
- Sprinkle ground black pepper and paprika.
- Add sea salt to your liking.
- Let the dressing sit for about 1hour for proper flavor absorption into the oil.
- Drizzle over salad or a grilled dish.
Red palm oil marinade for chicken/beef
Ingredients:
- A diced medium-sized onion.
- ½ cup of red palm oil.
- Thinly sliced 3 cloves of garlic.
- 5tablespoons agave nectar.
- 2tablespoons apple cider vinegar.
- 1tablespoon ketchup.
- 1teaspoon of paprika, ginger, cinnamon, and hot sauce.
Recipe:
- Heat the red palm oil and add garlic and onions to fry until transparent.
- Sprinkle the apple cider vinegar and agave nectar and continue frying.
- Pour in the paprika, ginger, cinnamon, and hot sauce.
- Simmer for about 10 minutes and set aside to cool.
- Blend and then fully marinate the chicken/beef pieces in a plastic bowl.
- Leave overnight to absorb the flavor fully.