safflower (redirected from safflower oil)

safflower, Eurasian thistlelike herb (Carthamus tinctorius) of the family Asteraceae (aster family). Safflower, or false saffron, has long been cultivated in S Asia and Egypt for food and medicine and as a costly but inferior substitute for the true saffron dye. In the United States, where it is sometimes called American saffron, it is more important as the source of safflower oil, which has recently come into wide use as a cooking oil. Safflower is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Asterales, family Asteraceae.

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safflower

Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius)

(credit: J.C. Allen and Son)

Flowering annual plant (Carthamus tinctorius) of the composite family. Native to parts of Asia and Africa, it is now widely grown as an oil crop in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Israel, and Turkey. Oil obtained from the seeds, an ingredient of soft margarines, salad oil, and cooking oil, is valued for its high proportion of polyunsaturated fats. Since the oil does not yellow with age, it is also a useful base for varnish and paint. The plant, which grows 1–4 ft (0.3–1.2 m) high, has flowers in red, orange, yellow, or white, which were formerly a source of textile dyes.

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safflower

a thistle-like Eurasian annual plant, Carthamus tinctorius, having large heads of orange-yellow flowers and yielding a dye and an oil used in paints, medicines, etc.: family Asteraceae (composites)