Review- Marico Launches New Saffola Total Oil

The Oily Business & The Indian Continent

Edible oil is an inseparable part of Indian cooking and that explains the reason why the market is flooded with a plethora of brands and companies claiming to be better or cheaper than others. The market has been so enticing and ever growing that even foreign entrants esp in Olive Oil category are eyeing at Indian markets, increasing the ever competitive oil sphere in India with each company trying to outdo others by introducing new varieties of oil with even newer "refined" aspects. The focus has shifted from "Taste" to "Health" and "price" to "value proposition".

I can boast a lot cause I come from a family who had once owned an oil mill in a town of MPCG and eventually have to shut the business as they refused to compromise quality over margin pushing. Nevertheless, being a health-conscious professional that I am, I chose my oil very carefully and aim to strike balance between health, taste, and price of course.

About Saffola and SaffolaLife.com

Saffola is widely known as a heart care brand in the food category. It offers many products in the same category which includes- Cooking oil, Rice, Salt and off late functional foods. The brand esp in the edible oil category has been recommended as good by doctors in IMRB Track. To know more about their products, interesting recipes, video, do visit their website- www.saffolalife.com

Saffola Total

FMCG Major Marico has recently launched a new oil in its health category- Saffola Total. Having used their other variant including oats and Muesli, when the brand reached out to me to try their new product and post my honest feedback about them, I could not say no to one of the favorite brands of the nation. 

What the product/brand Claims

The brand claims that it is better than olive oil and has-

            

My Interpretation

Every time I read the word "high in antioxidants", I could not resist trying that product. No thanks to so many free radicals [which also occurs by even heating cooking oil in high temperature], our body needs antioxidants to fight the ill effects of the same. Saffola Total claims to have 5 antioxidants than 2 as present in Olive oils which are less suitable for Indian cooking but considered healthier than the "double/triple" refined oils which tend to get even harmful at each step of refinement. Talking is cheap and they say the proof of the pudding is in eating. So I used this oil and cooked all my meals for a week using the same. Here's my experiment with truth.

My Cooking Experience

I cooked various dishes with this oil to have a better idea and be able to post an honest review. The stuff that I cooked included- Parathas [India Bread] with and without stuffing, Legumes like Pulses [daal fry, Black Gram etc] Sabjis and Kadhis and breakfast items and also used it to make french fries etc.

I am an avid user of Olive oil and I use from Leonardo to Borges to many another variant as available in the market. I shelved away all my oils including olive, mustard and other refined oil that I use in everyday cooking to bring a different flavor and here are my two pence on it-

On Product

• The oil is indeed promising and gives a good cooking experience.  
• The oil has no typical or strong scent and is neutral to smell which is a good thing
• The oil is light and is low in saturated fats
• The oil does not get smokey when heated hence produces less free radicals. Hence, a good option for deep frying.

• It can be used for wide range of Indian foods i.e. Paratha, Vegetables to Rajasthani Kadhi to Methi Malai Matar [recipe coming soon on www.hautekutir.com] to Daal fry, Khichdi and all.

Price

I tried 1ltr pack prized at Rs195 is little high if you compare with other oil in general category. However, if you are health conscious and seeing the oil really works for you, comparing it with rates of overprized Olive Oil in India, it is competitively priced.

Packaging

The 1 ltr variant came in a plastic bottle with a usual design from Saffola. However, given the nature of oil [any oil for that matter], a jar makes good when it has necessary space to hold it, which was amiss here. Even the mouth [top] of bottle is too wide for direct supply to cooking wok, could have been better if it was as narrow or pointed like some olive oil that I use :)

Place

Well in today' world of converging screen and marketplace, the oil is well placed at all retail outlets including online stores like aaramshop.com. Availability seems to be no issue given the wide length and breadth of retail coverage of Marico's product in the market and their sale-ability.

Promotion

You would have seen TVC on various channels, here's one from a private channel showcasing real customer's opinion. Disclaimer- The below video does not belong to author nor the lady in the link is anywhere related to her. The link is taken from Youtube.com via aaraamtv.

The Final Verdict by HauteKutir

So after a week of detailed Indian Cooking with Saffola Total Oil, I came out with a fairly good experience. It is not just me who is talking this but also includes my father, a generation that hates all oil and being a diabetic, very conscious of type and amount of oil that goes in his food. He too liked the oil and we continued to cook with its day. Next on my wishlist is Pasta and Chow-mein [to experiment global cooking]. 

[Make a Saffola basket and use it for gifting purpose- indeed a healthier option than cookies etc that we do not eat much and often ends at notional value. A Gift of Health & nutrition. Image & idea courtesy- www.hautekutir.com]

 Would I recommend this oil?

The answer is yes. The oil is indeed good for daily use. It not just offers to be double with antioxidants but the usage of two oils is a good proposition. However, one suggestion here that I always tend to tell myself is- No matter how good the oil is, still it should be used in moderation. I had this tendency to add additional oil esp in case of Olive oil and this one [given the health benefit] but trust me, I cook with less oil instead of adding cups of it to just make food cooked fast and taste like a restaurant. 

Value for Money: Yes [4/5]

So what are you waiting for? Go ahead, bring home a "Saffola Total oil" today and notice the difference. You can also make a gift pack of this [like I show in the picture above] with other Saffola variants and earn brownie points. Here's a cheer for "Simple Living and Higher thinking". Hip, Thigh, Hoorah! 

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Disclaimer: all products reviewed on this site [whether own or sponsored] are genuine and are reviewed without any push from brands/products/agency as such. The opinions/ reviews expressed here are original and valid. You can rest assured for 100% right review here. And that is the reason I do fewer but qualitative reviews here.

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