How Do You Make Soybean Vegetable Oil?

Soybean vegetable oil is primarily made by extracting oil from whole soybeans. This process involves a series of steps to separate the oil from the solid components of the bean and purify it for consumption.

Here's a breakdown of the typical manufacturing process:

Steps in Soybean Oil Production

The production of soybean oil involves several key stages, starting from the raw bean and ending with a refined product.

1. Preparation:

   • Cleaning: Raw soybeans are cleaned to remove any foreign material like dirt, stems, or stones.
   • Conditioning: The beans are heated to a specific temperature to make them easier to process.

2. Processing:

   • Dehulling: The outer shell, or hull, is removed from the soybean. This hull is high in fiber and low in oil content, so removing it improves the oil yield and quality.
   • Crushing: The dehulled soybeans are then crushed or flaked. This increases the surface area of the beans, making the oil extraction process more efficient.

3. Oil Extraction:

   • This is the critical step where the oil is separated from the solid parts of the bean (meal). Common methods include:
     • Solvent Extraction: This is the most widely used method in large-scale production. A solvent, typically hexane, is used to dissolve and extract the oil from the soybean flakes. The oil-solvent mixture is then heated to evaporate the solvent, leaving the crude oil behind.
     • Mechanical Pressing: In some cases, especially for smaller operations or specific types of oil, mechanical presses (like screw presses) are used to physically squeeze the oil out of the beans.

4. Refining:

   • The crude soybean oil obtained from extraction contains impurities that can affect its quality. According to the reference, the oil is then distilled and refined to remove contaminants that may affect the flavor, smell and color of the oil. This stage involves several steps:
     • Degumming: Removing phospholipids and other compounds.
     • Neutralization: Removing free fatty acids.
     • Bleaching: Removing pigments to lighten the color.
     • Deodorization: Removing compounds that cause undesirable odors and flavors.
     • Winterization (Optional): Removing saturated fats to prevent the oil from solidifying at lower temperatures.

After the refining process, the soybean oil is ready for packaging and distribution as vegetable oil. The leftover defatted soybean meal is a valuable co-product, often used as animal feed due to its high protein content.

Understanding these steps helps illustrate the transformation of a simple bean into a versatile cooking oil found in kitchens worldwide.