An exciting way to add flavour using essential oils
When you’re cooking with real whole foods, adding natural flavours is a fun part of the creative process. And that’s why I have SUCH exciting news to share, because it’s about to get a whole lot EASIER for you!
Young Living Australia have just announced (February 2016) that a number of their essential oils are now labelled as being able to be used in food as flavouring and flavour enhancers!
What oils can I use as flavouring or flavour enhancer?
These are some of the current essential oils that are labelled for use as a flavouring or flavour enhancer (more are added each year):
Citrus
Bergamot, Grapefruit, Jade Lemon, Lemon, Lime, Orange, Tangerine
Herbs
Basil, Coriander, Fennel, Lemongrass, Marjoram, Oregano, Peppermint, Rosemary, Spearmint, Tarragon, Thyme, Sage
Spices
Black Pepper, Cinnamon Bark, Clove, Dill, Ginger, Nutmeg, Ocotea
Other
Frankincense, Geranium, Lavender, Lemon Myrtle, Rose
What makes this so special?
Young Living essential oils meet all the standards and requirements set by Food Standards Australia and NZ to be used in food as flavouring or flavour enhancers! This is yet another reason why I am so happy in choosing Young Living Essential Oils, they are such an ethical company and have ensured that they have labelled everything in compliance with our Australian labelling laws to make sure that YOU know which of their oils are safe to consume in this way.
Are these oils different to the existing Young Living aromatic/topical oils?
No! They are the exact same Young Living essential oils that follow their same exceptional Seed to Seal quality processes! This is just a change in the labelling of the oils in order to meet the standards set by Food Standards Australia and NZ to make it easy for you to determine that they’re safe to consume in this way.
Similar labelling changes have recently been made in the USA (with some extra oils included there for the moment). There they have launched all their food flavour enhancing oils under their new Vitality TM line which includes new bottles that are labelled for dietary use, but again they are the same oils as their existing aromatic/topical oils. And Europe has a Plus line of oils, again just different labelling to comply with their local laws about usage.
IMPORTANT - Please note that this does NOT automatically apply to all other aromatic/topical essential oils out there, so if you do want to use any essential oils within food I would suggest using Young Living essential oils, or ensure you do your research to make sure they are in fact safe to consume as they are VERY potent and powerful substances and not all are created equal. 98% of the world’s essential oils are altered with synthetics, and this is not something you want to be consuming.
How do you use them as flavouring or flavour enhancer?
All I can say here from experience is that a little goes a long way! For example, 1 drop of Peppermint essential oil is equivalent to 28 cups of peppermint tea, and 1 drop of Lemon essential oil is equivalent to the zest of 1/4 lemon! When you us the Italian style herbs such as Basil, Oregano and Thyme, begin with 1/2 drop (dip a toothpick into 1 drop) because they are super strong and this amount is equivalent to about 1 tablespoon of dried herbs!
So please see each individual bottle for directions on how much is suggested to use, and begin slowly and increase it 1-2 drops at a time.
Recipe inspiration!
Here are just a few recipes from the Young Living website to get you inspired about how easy it is to begin using these essential oils in your cooking!
And here is a list of the recipes I currently have on my website where you can also use these oils to add a real POP!
Snacks
Raw Cashew Blueberry Cheesecake (for a variation try with fresh mangoes and lime essential oil!)
Mains