Mustard oil omega 3: nutrition, calories and fat per 100g

The table below puts mustard oil next to groundnut oil and ghee, the other two cooking fats in the same composition tables, and the numbers are per 100 g. Mustard oil calories come to 884 kcal per 100 g, all of it 100 g of fat, with zero protein, carbohydrate and fibre. The Indian tables carry mustard oil under fatty acids alone, with no energy line, mineral line or vitamin line, so the numbers below come from USDA FoodData Central, the record the table cites.

The fat profile is what people search for. Per 100 g, mustard oil holds 11.6 g of saturated fatty acids, 59.2 g of monounsaturated fatty acids and 21.2 g of polyunsaturated fatty acids. The omega 3 is alpha-linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3) at 5.9 g, and the omega 6 is linoleic acid (18:2) at 15.3 g; divide one by the other and the omega 6 to omega 3 ratio lands at about 2.6 to 1. Among the monounsaturates, erucic acid (22:1) dominates at 41.2 g, with oleic acid (18:1) at 11.6 g.

Per 100 g raw, edible portion. Composition: USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy), FDC ID 172337, NDB 4583; USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy), FDC ID 171410, NDB 4042; USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy), FDC ID 171314, NDB 1323. — means not reported. These are average values for the food; the label on a pack gives the values for that product.

Nobody cooks with 100 g of oil at a time; Indian kitchens measure it in spoons, one teaspoon at 5 g and one tablespoon at 15 g. From the per-100 g profile, a single tablespoon of mustard oil carries about 133 kcal, 0.9 g of omega 3 (ALA), 2.3 g of omega 6, 1.7 g of saturates and 8.9 g of monounsaturates. A teaspoon is a third of that: 44 kcal, 0.3 g of omega 3, 0.8 g of omega 6 and 0.6 g of saturates.

The dietary guidelines read these spoons a second way. Their table of foods that furnish a minimum 100 mg of n-3 PUFA lists mustard or rapeseed oil at 0.7 g, a fraction of a teaspoon, and on requirements the same guidelines set 2.2 g of n-3 PUFA and 6.6 g of n-6 PUFA as the daily minimums for a 2000 kcal diet. One tablespoon of mustard oil therefore covers about 40 percent of the day's n-3 minimum. How each fatty acid behaves in the body, and who should hold back, is on the mustard oil hub.

Mustard oil protein is the easiest question on this page: there is none. Per 100 g, the record prints 0 g of protein, 0 g of carbohydrate and 0 g of fibre, and groundnut oil and ghee print the same three zeros beside it in the table above. Every oil is fat by definition, and the dietary guidelines note that a gram of fat or oil gives 9 kcal, against 4 kcal for a gram of protein or carbohydrate.

The practical meaning is simple. Sarso ka tel adds energy and fatty acids to a meal, and nothing else: whatever protein or fibre a dish carries comes from the dal, the grain or the vegetables cooked in the oil. A pack label may print small mineral figures for a particular batch, but the reference record for mustard oil reads zero for iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, zinc, folate and vitamin C, which the last section explains.

A glycemic index belongs to foods with carbohydrate, and mustard oil has none, so there is no mustard oil GI figure to quote. The University of Sydney, which maintains the GI database, describes the glycemic index as a ranking of carbohydrates by how far they raise blood glucose after a meal. With 0 g of carbohydrate per 100 g, mustard oil does not enter that ranking, and no GI value is printed for it.

At the table this means one thing. A spoon of mustard oil adds fat to a dal or a subzi, not glucose, so the blood-glucose response of the meal is set by the rice, roti or dal beside the oil. Anyone tracking the glycemic index of their meals should track the grain, and leave the oil out of that sum.

Mustard oil's micronutrient story is a short one: per 100 g, the USDA record lists 0 mg of calcium, 0 mg of iron, 0 mg of magnesium, 0 mg of potassium, 0 mg of sodium and 0 mg of zinc, with 0 mcg of folate and 0 mg of vitamin C. Cooking oil is not where a meal's minerals come from; the dal, vegetables and grain cooked in the oil carry those.

What the oil does carry are the minor components of unrefined fats. The dietary guidelines note that dietary fats contain minor components such as tocopherols, tocotrienols and sterols, that the natural flavour of an oil is largely due to these minor components, and that most of them are antioxidants that keep the fat from going rancid. Cold pressing matters here: the same guidelines describe kachi ghani oils as expeller-pressed without heat, which preserves antioxidants and phytonutrients, while noting that such oils also contain undesirable compounds similar to crude oil. How that difference plays out against refined oil is on our comparison of mustard oil and refined oil, and the oil's own pungency is what carries a batch of mango pickle.

Does mustard oil contain omega 3?

Yes. Per 100 g, mustard oil holds 5.9 g of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), the plant form of omega 3, which is about 0.9 g in a tablespoon (USDA FoodData Central). ALA is one of the two essential fatty acids the body cannot make, and the dietary guidelines count mustard among the plant sources of n-3 PUFA. Fish and seafood supply the longer-chain omega 3 forms instead.

Does mustard oil have saturated fat?

Yes. The USDA record for mustard oil prints 11.6 g of saturated fatty acids per 100 g, so a tablespoon carries about 1.7 g. That sits against 59.2 g of monounsaturates. WHO's 2023 guideline recommends adults and children reduce saturated fatty acids to 10 percent of daily energy, so the day's fat budget is where the 11.6 g has to fit.

Is mustard oil good for health?

It is a cooking fat, 884 kcal and 100 g of fat per 100 g, so the amount poured decides more than the oil itself. The dietary guidelines set the daily visible-fat range at 20 to 50 g, sized to a person's physical activity. Within that, mustard oil brings 5.9 g of ALA and 59.2 g of monounsaturates per 100 g, plus an erucic acid question weighed in refined oil vs mustard oil.

Does mustard oil increase cholesterol?

Mustard oil itself has no cholesterol in it; as the guidelines put it, plant foods carry none, so the oil adds none to a meal. On heart health the guidance is split, and the 2022 review that recounts it covers both sides: the US FDA's cooking ban, which rests on erucic acid, and the Lipid Association of India's heart-healthy recommendation. With high cholesterol, settle your fat plan with your doctor or dietitian.

Is sarso ka tel good for weight loss?

No oil makes a diet lose weight on its own; what counts is the amount poured. At 884 kcal per 100 g, one tablespoon of mustard oil is about 133 kcal, and the dietary guidelines hold all visible fats to 20 to 50 g a day. Used within that limit, mustard oil can sit inside a weight-loss plan, but the portion is the decision; work the number out with your doctor or dietitian.