Hemp seed oil is a distinctive cooking oil pressed from hemp seeds.

Hemp seed oil, also known as hemp kernel oil, is a vegetable oil made from hemp seeds, the mature seeds of the hemp plant in the Cannabaceae family, through processes such as cleaning, dehulling and pressing. Hemp has a long tradition of cultivation and consumption in Yunnan, Guangxi and other parts of China; in the Bama area of Guangxi, it is often used as an everyday cooking oil, and locals also boil hemp seeds in soup or grind them into a paste to eat. It should be noted that the raw material for hemp seed oil is the seed, and it undergoes processing, so it does not contain psychoactive components and is not the same thing as drug cannabis; it is an ordinary edible oil.

In appearance, hemp seed oil is mostly pale yellow to yellow-green, with a mild aroma and a nutty scent. Its fatty acid composition is mainly unsaturated fatty acids, containing linoleic acid and a certain proportion of linolenic acid, making it one of the sources of plant-based oils in the diet, so many people use it together with other cooking oils to help adjust the structure of their fatty acid intake.

For eating, hemp seed oil is more suitable for cold dishes, dipping, mixing into porridge or cooking soup, and it can also be drizzled over a dish just before it is taken off the heat to add aroma. Because it is not very heat-resistant, it is generally not recommended for prolonged frying, so as not to affect the flavour. For daily storage, keep it sealed and away from light in a cool, dry place, and use it up as soon as possible after opening to prevent the oil from oxidising and developing a rancid taste.

When buying, first check whether the colour is clear and transparent, then smell it to see whether the aroma is natural and free of off-odours, and try to avoid products that are cloudy in colour or have obvious sediment. In addition, hemp seed oil and the sesame oil pressed from sesame seeds only have similar names; their raw materials and flavours are completely different, and you can tell them apart by checking the ingredient list on the packaging when purchasing.