Palm Kernel Oil

Palm kernel oil is an edible plant oil pressed from the kernel of the oil palm tree, Elaeis guineensis, related to but distinct from palm oil, which comes from the fruit's pulp, and coconut oil, from the coconut kernel. Like those relatives it is one of the few highly saturated vegetable fats, semi-solid at room temperature and even more saturated than ordinary palm oil, with lauric acid making up about 48.2 percent of its fatty acids and myristic acid 16.2 percent. It is widely used in commercial cooking because it costs less than many other oils, stays stable at high cooking temperatures and stores longer, and it is also broken down industrially through hydrolysis and saponification into fatty acids and glycerin for use in other products. Despite its high saturated fat content it contains no cholesterol or trans fatty acids.