Cottonseed Oil Comeback Tour | “America’s Original Vegetable Oil”

QSR Mag: “2010: Year of the Cottonseed”

U.S. cotton growers and members of the cottonseed crushing industry have a little added bounce in their step this year. As we blog, crushers are receiving the first loads of new crop cottonseed, expected to be part of the largest crop in at least three years! With continued favorable weather, growers could harvest an additional 3 million cotton acres, resulting in more than 6 million tons of cottonseed, compared to last year’s 4.1 million tons. More cottonseed is delish news for the food industry, which relies on cottonseed oil as a quality ingredient in preparing everything from potato chips and French fries to fried catfish and tempura. In fact, QSR Magazine proclaimed 2010 the “Year of Cottonseed!”

Flap your wings – it’s National Turkey Lovers Month

June is National Turkey Lover’s Month! In celebration of your favorite bird, why not make a special feast sure to be enjoyed by all! Try a longtime tradition of deep frying turkey in cottonseed oil – it’s perfect for enhancing the natural turkey flavor while maintaining the moisture that makes turkey gobble-worthy! Plus, cottonseed oil is one of the healthiest choices for preparing your lovely bird. For more information about cottonseed oil and for great deep-fried recipes and tips, click here.

Happy National Doughnut Day

National Doughnut Day ranks right up there with Thanksgiving and Mardi Gras. Besides serving as delicious excuses for indulging, these food holidays have another thing in common: they wouldn’t be quite as delicious without cottonseed oil. There’s no better oil for frying a turkey or whipping up batches of hot beignets. Don’t just take our word for it – ranking high on the list of America’s Top 10 Doughnuts is Café du Monde, who has fried their beignets (aka “official state doughnut of Louisiana”) in nothing but cottonseed oil for more than 100 years.  If you feel like whipping up some Café du Monde-style doughnuts in celebration of National Doughnut Day today, check out this recipe.

Bigger crush expected in 2010

Growers are planting 1.3 million additional cotton acres in 2010 - great news for the cottonseed crushing industry! Assuming good weather and reasonable growing conditions, the 2010 crop could yield up to 1 million additional tons of cottonseed. This would raise the crush to about 2.3 million tons, up from 1.8 million tons in 2009. Learn more about this versatile oil!

The Buzz around Better Made

Cottonseed oil comeback tour favorite, Better Made Snack Foods, is known throughout Michigan for its salty snacks and crisp chips in countless flavors. This regional manufacturer uses locally grown potatoes and trans fat-free cottonseed oil to make chips that are noticed by customers near and far. Most recently, Better Homes and Gardens took note and included Better Made Snack Foods in an article spotlighting favorite local chips.

Are you also a fan of Better Made Snack Foods? If so, be sure to enter its recipe contest for a chance to receive shipments of Better Made products.

In Season: Cooking Wild Game

The art of hunting and cooking wild game is migrating into the territory of the home cook, according to wild game experts. With spring turkey hunting seasons opening across the nation in March and April, it’s not too early to get your kitchen in order. Paramount for moist and flavorful wild game dishes? The right cooking oil, of course.

 “The secret to moist and flavorful game, such as deep fried turkey, is the cooking oil,” says WildCheff Denny Corriveau. “Cottonseed oil has a neutral flavor, which allows the distinctive flavor of the game to reach the palate – not the taste of oil.”

Click here for tips on deep frying wild turkey.    

Beignet stories so good … your mouth will water

Mardi Gras may be over, but the delicious taste of fresh beignets still linger. If you long for a beignet, and don’t need a holiday to justify frying up a batch, check out the Baltimore Sun, Chef Informer, Life Love Beauty, San Diego Union-Tribune or With a Southern Twist for tips and recipes. Make sure to listen to the experts and use cottonseed oil for the best flavor.

Watch cottonseed oil make HISTORY!

Cottonseed oil is about to make history! The History Channel, that is. Tune in tonight at 9 p.m. EST to watch host Bobby Bognar of the new hit TV series Food Tech trace the journey that ingredients make from farm to plate.

Cottonseed oil plays a starring role in the show’s fifth episode, “Southern Fried,” when host Bognar treks to Texas in search of the perfect frying oil to prepare Southern staples such as catfish and gator. He finds it in some big, white, fluffy piles of cottonseed.

“You know the old saying: if it grows together, it goes together,” Bognar says. “Cottonseed oil is produced throughout the South and has become a favorite for frying locally farmed catfish and alligator, not to mention hushpuppies, chicken and other Southern fried standbys.”

Visit The History Channel website for more airtimes.

Forget the beads…throw me some beignets!

At National Cottonseed Products Association, we have a special place in our hearts for N’Awlinz. We tend to think Mardi Gras should be a national holiday, and that Café du Monde beignets fried in 100% cottonseed oil should become the “official fried donut of Carnival.” If you didn’t have time to fry up your own beignets in cottonseed oil this year, head on over to Café du Monde and order yourself plate of piping hot doughy goodness with a café au lait on the side. Happy Mardi Gras!

New Orleans in the spotlight

With the Saints winning their first-ever Super Bowl and Mardi Gras just about a week away, all eyes are on New Orleans. Rich in culinary history, New Orleans is known for its legendary Café du Monde beignets. These piping-hot pillow-shaped treats, fried in 100% cottonseed oil and piled high with powdered sugar have been a Southern favorite for generations. Get recipes and tips to make these legendary treats at home.