Sea Buckthorn Oil: A Cook’s Guide to the Kitchen’s Boldest Oil
By Helen Thornwyn, food author, with Natura Harmony.
At Natura Harmony, we have always believed that food is more than fuel. It is a link between nature, taste and the simple pleasure of eating well. That belief runs through my work with the team. Together we write cookbooks. Each one puts their cold-pressed, unrefined oils at the heart of the plate.
In this guide I want to talk about one of the most striking oils in the range: sea buckthorn. We make it, and we sell it, as a food. It is a vivid, golden finishing oil, and in 2025 it earned a Great Taste one-star award, judged blind by chefs, buyers and food writers. That is just how we will use it here: as an ingredient for the table.
An oil pressed from the whole berry
Sea buckthorn grows as a bright orange berry on a hardy, thorny shrub. Our oil is pressed from the whole berry. That means both the soft orange flesh and the seed inside.
This matters for taste and colour. The flesh gives the deep golden hue. It also gives the omega-7 the berry is known for, which is rare in plant oils. The seed brings omega-3 and omega-6. The berry is also known for its vitamin C. The carotenoids give it that glorious colour. The Great Taste judges called it “absolutely stunning”, an oil that “positively glows in the glass”.
What it tastes like
Here is a happy surprise. The raw berry is famously sharp. Bracingly sour, in fact, which is why some call it the Siberian pineapple. The oil is a different story. Pressing the whole berry gives something gentler and rounder: creamy and lightly nutty, with toasted seed and dried berry notes, and a soft citrus finish that lingers.
So do not expect a mouth-puckering hit. Expect warmth, a quiet fruitiness and a glow of colour on the plate. It pairs well with honey, mango and pineapple. It loves pears and apples too. Warm spices like ginger, vanilla and cinnamon suit it nicely. A few drops still go a long way.
How to use it in the kitchen
One golden rule first. Do not cook the oil. Heat dulls its flavour and its colour, so add it cold or right at the end. A little, used well, does far more than a lot poured in early.
Here are my favourite ways to use it:
- In dressings: whisk a drop or two into a dressing with honey and a mild oil. It lifts the whole bowl.
- Over breakfast: swirl it through yoghurt, porridge or overnight oats. Our cottage cheese and granola with sea buckthorn oil is a lovely place to start.
- In smoothies: a few drops add a gentle, fruity lift. It loves mango, banana and pineapple.
- As a finish: drizzle it over roasted carrots or squash, or over smoked salmon, just before serving.
- On something sweet: a thread over vanilla ice cream, cheesecake or a fruit tart is a real surprise. For a sweet topping, try our sea buckthorn berry sauce.
Choosing and storing your oil
For the fullest flavour, choose a cold-pressed, unrefined sea buckthorn oil. Cold-pressing keeps the colour, the character and the natural goodness of the berry. Refining would strip them away. There is more on this in Refined Oils vs Unrefined Oils.
Keep the bottle somewhere cool and dark, away from heat and light. Use it within a few months of opening, and reseal it tightly. Our bottle is dark glass, which helps to protect the colour and the flavour.
A golden little oil worth knowing
Sea buckthorn is one of those ingredients that turns an ordinary plate into something you remember. Used cold, and in small amounts, it brings colour, warmth and real character. It works in dressings, at breakfast and on puddings alike. The Great Taste panel summed it up in two words: “delicious and unique”.
Our sea buckthorn oil is cold-pressed, unrefined, vegan, GMO-free and ISO 22000 certified. If you enjoy characterful finishing oils, our Great Taste-winning pumpkin seed oil and our walnut oil are worth a look too. The whole range is in our shop.
Be one with nature.