Cold Pressed vs Refined Groundnut Oil: Which Is Better for Your Family?

Quick answer: Cold pressed (kachi ghani) groundnut oil is pressed out of groundnuts mechanically, without chemical solvents or refining, so it keeps its natural nutty aroma, golden colour and more of its natural vitamin E. Refined groundnut oil is usually extracted at high temperature, often with a solvent, and then refined, bleached and deodorised. For everyday Indian and Gujarati cooking, cold pressed is the more natural choice. Refined oil mainly makes sense for very high-heat commercial frying.

Walk into any kirana store in Ahmedabad and you will see two kinds of groundnut oil — pale, clear refined oil in plastic pouches, and darker, golden ghani nu singtel that smells of groundnuts. Both start with the same seed. What happens after that decides what reaches your kitchen. Here is a simple, honest comparison.

Key takeaways

• Process is the real difference. Cold pressed oil is only pressed and filtered. Refined oil goes through solvent extraction and several chemical and heat treatments.
• Nutrition: both are mostly unsaturated fat, but cold pressed oil keeps more of the natural vitamin E, antioxidants, aroma and colour.
• Frying: both can be used for Indian cooking; refined oil tolerates higher heat, so never let any oil smoke.
• Safety: in an August–September 2026 Consumer VOICE lab test, all 10 cold pressed groundnut oil brands tested met Indian food safety standards, with no adulteration found.
• Price: cold pressed oil costs more because it yields less oil and is made slowly, in smaller batches.

Cold pressed vs refined groundnut oil: comparison table

	Cold pressed (kachi ghani)	Refined
How oil is taken out	Groundnuts are pressed mechanically, without external heat	High heat, usually followed by solvent (hexane) extraction
After extraction	Settled and filtered	Neutralised, bleached and deodorised
Colour	Natural golden	Pale, almost clear
Taste & aroma	Nutty, smells of groundnut	Neutral — aroma removed
Natural vitamin E & antioxidants	More retained	Partly lost during refining
High-heat frying	Good for home frying — avoid smoking	Higher smoke point (about 232°C)
Ingredients	Groundnuts only	Groundnut oil; additives may be used
Price	Higher	Lower

What is cold pressed (kachi ghani) groundnut oil?

Cold pressed groundnut oil is made by pressing clean groundnuts slowly in a press (ghani) without adding external heat and without chemical solvents. The oil that comes out is allowed to settle and is filtered. That is the entire process.

In India it is known as kachi ghani oil — “kachi” means raw. In Gujarati homes it is simply ghani nu singtel, and in Hindi kachi ghani mungfali ka tel. All of these names describe the same thing: oil that has been pressed, not processed. You can see every step we follow on our how we make our oil page.

How is refined groundnut oil made?

Refined oil is built for high yield, long shelf life and a neutral taste. After pressing, the leftover groundnut cake is usually treated with a food-grade solvent called hexane to pull out the remaining oil. The oil is then refined in several steps:

1. Degumming and neutralising — removes gums and free fatty acids
2. Bleaching — removes natural colour
3. Deodorising — high-temperature treatment that removes smell and taste

The solvent is removed during processing, and residue limits are regulated by FSSAI. But along with the smell and colour, refining also removes part of the oil’s natural antioxidants and vitamin E. The result is an oil that is clear, neutral and stable — but no longer tastes like groundnuts.

Which is healthier: cold pressed or refined groundnut oil?

Both oils come from the same seed, so their basic fat profile is similar. Groundnut oil is mostly unsaturated fat — roughly 16% saturated, 57% monounsaturated and 20% polyunsaturated, according to standard composition data — and it is a natural source of vitamin E.

The difference is in what the process leaves behind. Because cold pressed oil is not refined, bleached or deodorised, it keeps more of the natural vitamin E, plant antioxidants and phytosterols that come from the groundnut itself. It also contains nothing except groundnuts.

Two honest points: oil is still oil — use it in moderation as part of a balanced diet — and nutrition experts suggest not depending on a single oil for everything. The Consumer VOICE 2026 report on cold pressed groundnut oils gives the same advice: rotate between two or three oils and match the oil to the cooking method.

This article is general information about cooking oils, not medical advice. If you have a heart condition, high cholesterol or a peanut allergy, ask your doctor which oil is right for you.

Is cold pressed groundnut oil good for frying?

Yes — groundnut oil has been the frying oil of Gujarat for generations, from puri and bhajiya to fafda and dhokla tadka. Refined groundnut oil has a higher smoke point (about 232°C), which is why restaurants and food factories prefer it for long, continuous deep frying. Cold pressed oil has a lower smoke point than refined oil, but home frying works well if you follow a few simple rules:

• Heat on medium to medium-high — never let the oil smoke.
• Fry in batches instead of overcrowding the kadai.
• Don’t reuse frying oil again and again; use leftover oil for tadka within a day or two.
• For tadka, sabzi and dal, cold pressed oil adds flavour, so many families find they need less.

Why does cold pressed groundnut oil cost more?

Cold pressed groundnut oil usually costs more per litre than refined oil. The reasons are simple:

• Lower yield — pressing without heat and without solvents leaves more oil in the cake, so it takes more groundnuts to make one litre.
• Slow, small batches — the press runs slowly to avoid heating the oil.
• Nothing to stretch it — pure cold pressed oil is not blended with cheaper oils.

A practical way to save is to buy a larger pack. Many Gujarati families buy a 15 litre singtel tin once a year, which works out cheaper per litre than buying bottles again and again.

How to tell if your cold pressed groundnut oil is genuine

• Read the label — look for “cold pressed”, “kachi ghani” or “filtered” groundnut oil, an FSSAI licence number, and an ingredient list that says groundnuts only.
• Smell it — real cold pressed groundnut oil smells clearly of groundnuts. A neutral smell usually means refined or blended oil.
• Look at the colour — natural golden to light amber. Slight natural sediment at the bottom is normal for unrefined oil.
• Check freshness — Consumer VOICE advises checking the remaining shelf life before buying large packs above 5 litres.
• Ask the maker — a good producer can tell you how and where the oil is pressed.

Which should you choose for your family in Ahmedabad?

If you cook Gujarati food at home every day — vaghar, sabzi, dal, thepla, puri and farsan — cold pressed groundnut oil is the more natural, traditional choice. It tastes of real groundnut, contains nothing else and keeps more of its natural goodness. Refined oil mainly makes sense if you need a completely neutral taste or run long, high-heat commercial frying.

Root & Press makes cold pressed groundnut oil in Ahmedabad in small batches, from groundnuts only, and delivers to homes across the city — from Satellite and Bopal to Gota, Chandkheda and Maninagar. Start with a 1 litre bottle and taste the difference.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Consumer VOICE, Comparative testing of cold pressed groundnut oils (August–September 2026)
• Wikipedia, Peanut oil — fatty acid composition and refined oil smoke point

Written by the Root & Press team, Ahmedabad. Last updated: November 2026.