It gained in popularity during WW11 when there was a shortage of other oils when other oils. It contains 32% polyunsaturated fat and 46% monounsaturated and smokes at 225oC. So far so good. It’s available cold pressed – good again. Allergy’s – most highly refined peanut oils remove the peanut allergens and have been shown to be safe for ‘the vast majority of peanut-allergic individuals’. Cold-pressed peanut oils may not remove the allergens and thus could be highly dangerous to people with peanut allergy. Since the degree of processing for any particular product is often unclear, it’s best to avoid all peanut oils if you have an allergy. Also, peanuts that contain the mould that produces highly toxic aflatoxin can end up contaminating the oil derived from them. Not good. The run down – there are better oils to use for high temperature cooking like macadamia and avocado, although they are more expensive of course. If you really want to use peanut oil then be sure to buy it cold pressed, organic and in a dark glass bottle. ANd let everyone know you’ve used it, in case people with allergy’s are around. #CookingOilsWeek #peanutoil