What is "cottonseed oil"

Cottonseed oil \Cottonseed oil\ A fixed, semidrying oil extracted from cottonseed. It is pale yellow when pure (sp. gr., .92-.93). and is extensively used in soap making, in cookery, and as an adulterant of other oils.

n. A pale yellow vegetable oil extracted from cottonseed; used in salad dressings, margarine etc

n. edible oil pressed from cottonseeds

Cottonseed oil is a cooking oil extracted from the seeds of cotton plants of various species, mainly Gossypium hirsutum and Gossypium herbaceum, that are grown for cotton fiber, animal feed, and oil.

Cotton seed has a similar structure to other oilseeds such as sunflower seed, having an oil-bearing kernel surrounded by a hard outer hull; in processing, the oil is extracted from the kernel. Cottonseed oil is used for salad oil, mayonnaise, salad dressing, and similar products because of its flavor stability.