Mustard Oil in Hindi: Sarson Ka Tel & Names Across India

In Hindi, mustard oil is सरसों का तेल — sarson ka tel (you'll also see it spelled sarso ka tel). It's the golden, sharp-smelling oil pressed from sarson, the mustard seed, and almost every Indian language has its own everyday word for it. In Bengali it's shorishar tel, in Tamil kadugu ennai, in Telugu aava nune, in Kannada sasive enne, in Malayalam kaduku enna, in Odia sorisha tela, in Gujarati rai nu tel, in Marathi mohariche tel and in Punjabi sarson da tel. In Urdu it's the same as Hindi — sarson ka tel. The seed itself is called sarson (the larger yellow or black kind) or rai (the small brown seed used for tadka and achaar). So mustard oil, sarson ka tel and sarso ka tel all name the very same thing: the golden, unsaturated-fat-rich oil pressed from mustard seed that Indian kitchens reach for to temper, pickle and fry over high heat.

What is mustard oil called in Hindi?

Mustard oil in Hindi is सरसों का तेल — sarson ka tel. Break it down and it's simple: sarson means mustard seed, and tel means oil, so sarson ka tel literally reads as "oil of mustard." The everyday spellings sarso ka tel and sarson ka tel are the same word; people just write the nasal sound differently. If someone asks "mustard oil yani kya hota hai" or "mustard oil ka hindi," the one-line answer is sarson ka tel.

Mustard oil name in different Indian languages

Because mustard oil is a kitchen staple from Kashmir to Kerala, it has a familiar name in nearly every regional language. Here's how to say it across India:

• Hindi — सरसों का तेल (sarson ka tel / sarso ka tel)
• Urdu — سرسوں کا تیل (sarson ka tel)
• Bengali — সরিষার তেল (shorishar tel)
• Punjabi — ਸਰ੍ਹੋਂ ਦਾ ਤੇਲ (sarson da tel)
• Gujarati — રાઈનું તેલ / સરસવનું તેલ (rai nu tel / sarsav nu tel)
• Marathi — मोहरीचे तेल (mohariche tel)
• Odia — ସୋରିଷ ତେଲ (sorisha tela)
• Assamese — সৰিয়হ তেল (xoriyoh tel)
• Tamil — கடுகு எண்ணெய் (kadugu ennai)
• Telugu — ఆవ నూనె (aava nune)
• Kannada — ಸಾಸಿವೆ ಎಣ್ಣೆ (sasive enne)
• Malayalam — കടുക് എണ്ണ (kaduku enna)

You'll notice a pattern: the word for the oil usually just joins the local word for mustard seed with the local word for oil. In Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada the seed is kadugu / kaduku / sasive; in Telugu it's aavalu; in Bengali and Odia it's sorisha / shorisha; in Gujarati it's rai or sarsav; in Marathi it's mohari.

What is the mustard seed called? Sarson, rai and other names

The mustard seed has more than one name because there's more than one seed. In Hindi, sarson usually refers to the larger yellow or black mustard seeds, while rai (or kali sarson) is the smaller brown/black seed used for tadka and pickles. So the "mustard oil different name" people search for is often just the seed name in front of "oil": sarson oil, rai oil, kadugu oil. Peeli sarson means yellow mustard and kali sarson means black mustard — both are pressed into oil.

You may also see mustard oil sold as "kachi ghani" oil or "cold-pressed" mustard oil. That's not a different seed — it describes how the oil is made (traditional slow pressing), which we explain next.

Mustard oil kaisa hota hai? What the oil actually is

Mustard oil is a golden-amber, pungent cooking oil with a sharp, nose-tickling aroma that mellows the moment it hits a hot kadhai. That bite comes from natural mustard compounds in the seed. Nutritionally, mustard oil is naturally high in monounsaturated fat (MUFA), contains omega-3 (ALA) and omega-6 (linoleic acid), and is low in saturated fat; like every plant oil it contains no cholesterol. As with any oil, expect roughly 884 kcal and about 100 g of fat per 100 g — USDA FoodData Central is the reference point for oil nutrition. It also has a high smoke point (around 250°C / 480°F), which is exactly why Indian kitchens reach for it for high-heat frying and tempering.

Traditional mustard oil is also naturally high in erucic acid — often around a fifth to two-fifths of its fat. Because of that, mustard oil is a permitted, everyday edible oil in India, regulated by the FSSAI, while in the United States the FDA does not authorise it as a domestic cooking oil — imported mustard oil there must be labelled "for external use only." So the "mustard oil banned" story is a US and some-Western regulatory position, not an Indian one. In India, sarson ka tel is a legal, staple cooking oil.

Kachi ghani vs refined

Kachi ghani means the seed is crushed slowly at low temperature — no added heat, no solvents, no bleaching or deodorising — so the colour, aroma and the seed's natural compounds stay intact. Refined oils, by contrast, are heat- or solvent-extracted and then degummed, bleached and deodorised, which strips out most of the smell and colour.

Mustard oil benefits in Hindi (sarson ke tel ke fayde): tradition vs evidence

It helps to separate what is tradition from what is evidence. As a matter of composition, mustard oil is high in MUFA, carries some omega-3 ALA and omega-6, and is low in saturated fat — and health bodies such as the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health's Nutrition Source and the ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition generally favour unsaturated-fat-rich oils used in moderation as part of a balanced diet. Traditionally, sarson ka tel is prized in Indian homes for cooking, achaar-making and warm-oil malish (massage). Where you'll see health claims, treat them as "studies suggest" or "traditionally used for" rather than proven — the most honest statement is that mustard oil is a flavourful, unsaturated-fat-rich cooking oil, best used in moderation.

The safest way to read any "fayde" list: report composition and tradition as fact, and treat health outcomes as things some evidence hints at — never as cures.

This is general information, not medical advice. For anything to do with a specific health condition, cholesterol, pregnancy or fertility, talk to a qualified doctor or registered dietitian before changing what you eat or use. And for babies: mustard-oil malish is an old tradition, but some guidance cautions against using mustard oil on newborn skin — please check with your pediatrician before using it on an infant.

Mustard oil uses across Indian kitchens (Tamil, Kannada and beyond)

Whether you call it kadugu ennai in Tamil, sasive enne in Kannada or sarson ka tel in Hindi, the uses are wonderfully consistent. Mustard oil's high smoke point and pungency make it the default for high-heat and boldly flavoured cooking. Common uses include:

• Tadka / tempering — heating the oil till it just smokes, then adding rai, curry leaves, hing and chillies
• Achaar and pickles — its bite and preserving character make it the classic pickle oil across North and East India
• Bengali fish and sabzi — shorishar tel is central to macher jhol, kasundi and everyday cooking
• Sarson ka saag and Punjabi cooking — where the oil's sharpness is part of the dish
• Deep-frying and pakoras — thanks to that high smoke point
• Traditional non-food uses — warm-oil body and hair malish (patch-test first; see the infant caution above)

How much does sarson ka tel cost, and what to look for

The cost of sarso oil varies with how it's made and packed, so it's hard to name a single price. As a rule of thumb, kachi ghani (cold-pressed) mustard oil usually costs a bit more than mass-refined oil, because slow, low-temperature pressing gives a smaller yield and keeps the oil's natural colour and aroma. When you buy, look for the words kachi ghani or cold-pressed, an FSSAI licence on the label, a clear pressing or best-before date, and that deep golden colour and strong smell — those are the everyday signs of an honestly-made sarson ka tel.