Palm Fruit Oil: Ancestral, Nourishing, and Misunderstood

We had no idea this was going to happen… but we found ourselves making traditional palm fruit oil by hand.

Early during our manioc research in Brazil, we helped prepare acarajé, a beloved regional specialty. As we cooked, we learned that palm fruit oil—called dendê—is essential to the dish and deeply embedded in its cultural tradition. Once that clicked, we couldn’t miss the chance to experience it ourselves—the traditional way.

What we discovered reframed how we think about this rich red oil. It’s not only tied to ancient culinary history and contemporary communities, but also nutrient-rich, sustainable, and produced in a way that aligns with our ancestral food philosophy.

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Palm Fruit Oil’s Deep Prehistoric Roots

Palm fruit oil isn’t a modern health trend—it’s one of the oldest known plant-based cooking fats. Archaeological evidence shows that oil palms (Elaeis guineensis) were cultivated in West and Central Africa at least 5,000 years ago. In Ghana, Kintampo culture settlements dating to about 2,500 BCE contain residues of palm oil. Even more remarkably, traces have been found in ancient Egyptian tombs, indicating it was traded and consumed far from its origins.

These early uses didn’t rely on industrial tools or chemicals. Instead, they used fire, water, time, and human labor—the same methods still used in traditional production today. Palm fruit oil is one of the few plant-derived fats that could be made from scratch in antiquity and still can be made in exactly the same way today.

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A Traditional, Low-Tech Process with Zero Waste

Our hands-on experience making palm fruit oil was revelatory:

1. We simmered the palm fruits in water for hours to soften them.

2. Then we crushed them in a wooden mortar with a heavy pestle, separating fibers from seeds.

3. After rinsing, we placed the seeds aside and returned the fiber-water mixture to the pot.

4. We brought it to a gentle boil, then carefully skimmed off the bright red oil and bottled it.

Nothing was wasted: the fibers were dried for fire starters, and the seeds were sold for palm kernel oil production—but that’s a completely different beast. The method required no machinery or chemicals—just ancestral knowledge and respect for the plant and the process.

It reminded us of everything we value at Modern Stone Age Kitchen: genuine food traditions, connection to place, and honoring the people behind ingredients.

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Nutrient Profile: Like Animal Fat, But Plant‑Based

Unrefined palm fruit oil has a fatty acid profile resembling traditional animal fats. It contains around 45% saturated fat, giving it excellent stability for cooking—similar to lard or tallow. It also contains monounsaturated fats and a small amount of polyunsaturated fats.

Palm fruit oil also offers rich micronutrients:

• Beta-carotene (which gives it a deep red-orange color and converts to vitamin A)

• Vitamin E (tocopherols and tocotrienols)

• Vitamin K

These nutrients are naturally preserved because the oil is not refined, bleached, or deodorized. This makes it a nutrient-dense, highly bioavailable fat.

Although we haven't yet begun using it at the Modern Stone Age Kitchen, this experience strengthened our intention to introduce it into our cooking—because it perfectly embodies what we stand for: nourishing, stable, and unprocessed fat.

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A Cultural and Environmental Standout

It is crucial to distinguish between palm fruit oil and the industrially produced palm kernel oil that dominates many global supply chains.

Palm fruit oil is derived from the pulp of the palm fruit using heat and water.

Palm kernel oil comes from the seed and is extracted using solvents like hexane and heavy processing.

These are completely different foods with different impacts.

Environmentally, traditional palm fruit oil production supports smallholder economies and preserves food traditions. In contrast, palm kernel oil production—typically in Southeast Asia—is associated with widespread deforestation, biodiversity loss, and human rights violations.

One oil embodies stewardship and connection; the other symbolizes industrial exploitation.

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Palm Fruit Oil vs. Palm Kernel Oil

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A Fat Worth Celebrating

Making traditional palm fruit oil reminded us that the most nourishing foods are also the simplest and oldest. Here is a plant-based fat that behaves like animal fat, nourishes like ancestral food, and supports ecosystems rather than destroying them.

It belongs in thoughtful, whole-food diets—not because it's trending, but because it’s real, rooted, and respected.

We look forward to incorporating palm fruit oil into our work at Modern Stone Age Kitchen—because its flavor, nutrients, and cultural story belong at our table.

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Where to Purchase Traditional Palm Fruit Oil

The palm fruit seeds after processing the fruit oil

For those inspired by this post, here are a couple ethically-minded sources that offer unrefined, fruit-derived palm oil, made without solvents or industrial processing:

• Cepêra Dendê Oil – Brazilian brand featuring traditional, food-grade palm fruit oil. Known for authenticity and minimal processing. Mon Petit Brésil
  

• Organic Palm Fruit Oil RSPO‑IP (Get Natural Essential Oils) – Certified organic and responsibly sourced palm fruit oil, extracted with heat and water only. Ensures traceability and alignment with small-scale ethical production. Amazon+10getnaturalessentialoils.com+10Mon Petit Brésil+10
  

If you’re looking for a nutrient-rich, culturally grounded cooking fat to use or learn from, these offer a meaningful, well-sourced place to start.

There will be more on this topic coming as we had a film crew with us during this whole experience!