To buy good wood pressed oil in Chennai, look for oil that is pressed slowly in a wooden chekku (marachekku) and bottled without refining, bleaching or deodorising: it should smell of the seed, have a natural colour and may show a little sediment. You can buy it from a local chekku shop where you can watch the pressing, or order online from a brand that tells you where and how the oil is pressed, such as Thinai Organics' wood pressed oils, which are pressed in Chennai the traditional marachekku way and delivered across Chennai and India.
That is the short answer. The rest of this guide is the checklist I would give a friend who is switching her kitchen from refined oil for the first time, and the questions people ask us most often.
What "wood pressed" actually means
In a marachekku, a wooden pestle turns slowly inside a wooden mortar and crushes the seeds (groundnut, ellu or dried coconut). The oil is then left to settle and filtered through cloth. There is no chemical extraction and no refining step, so what goes into the bottle is just the oil of the seed.
Refined oil goes through solvent extraction, bleaching and deodorising. That is why it is clear, has no smell and lasts a long time on the shelf. If you want the full comparison, read wood pressed vs cold pressed vs refined oil.
How to choose wood pressed oil: a 6-point checklist
1. Smell it
Real kadalai ennai smells of roasted groundnut. Real nallennai smells of sesame. Real thengai ennai smells of coconut. If an oil sold as "wood pressed" has almost no smell, ask questions.
2. Look at the colour, and do not fear sediment
Wood pressed groundnut oil is golden, nallennai is light to medium brown, and coconut oil is clear to pale and turns white and solid in cool weather. A little cloudiness or sediment at the bottom of the bottle is normal for unrefined oil. Perfectly clear, pale oil every time is more typical of refined oil.
3. Read the label for what is not there
Look for plain words: wood pressed or marachekku, no refining, no bleaching, no added preservatives. Be careful with "blended", "filtered and refined" or a long list of oils on one label.
4. Check the price per litre
Wood pressing is slow and gives less oil per kilo of seed than chemical extraction, so it costs more than refined oil. If a "wood pressed" groundnut oil is priced close to refined oil, it is worth asking how it is made. For reference, our wood pressed groundnut oil is ₹320 for 1L, wood pressed nallennai is ₹445 for 1L and wood pressed coconut oil is ₹560 for 1L (prices as of November 2026).
5. Ask where it is pressed
A good seller can tell you where the oil is pressed and which seed goes into it. Ours is pressed in Chennai the traditional marachekku way.
6. Buy the size you will finish
Unrefined oil is best used within a few months of opening. A small family can start with 1L bottles; bigger families who cook and fry a lot save more with 2L or 5L packs.
Which wood pressed oil for which dish
- Kadalai ennai (groundnut oil): everyday tadka, poriyal, and deep frying for vadai, murukku and bajji.
- Nallennai (gingelly / sesame oil): kuzhambu, idli podi, pickles, and the Saturday ennai kuliyal (oil bath). Many homes also use it for vilakku; see which oil to use for Karthigai Deepam.
- Thengai ennai (coconut oil): Kerala-style avial, thoran and appam, and for hair and skin.
Most Tamil kitchens keep two or three oils, not one. If you are switching everything at once, the groundnut + sesame + coconut oil combo gives you all three in one order.
Where to buy wood pressed oil in Chennai
Local chekku shops
Many Chennai neighbourhoods have a chekku shop where you can watch the oil being pressed and bring your own can. If there is one near you that you trust, that is a good way to buy.
Online, delivered to your door
If you do not have time to go and wait at a chekku, buy from a brand that is open about how its oil is made. Thinai Organics started in 2018 and has delivered more than 10,000 orders. Our groundnut, sesame and coconut oils are pressed in Chennai the traditional marachekku way and come in 500ml, 1L, 2L and 5L sizes (coconut in 500ml and 1L). We deliver across Chennai and the rest of India, and you can add millets, native rice, sevai and ghee to the same order.
Ready to switch? Start with the oil you use most, usually groundnut for frying or nallennai for kuzhambu, and see the full range in our wood pressed oils collection.
Frequently asked questions
What is marachekku oil in English?
Marachekku oil is wood pressed oil: oil crushed slowly in a wooden press (chekku) and bottled without refining or bleaching.
Is wood pressed oil the same as cold pressed oil?
Not exactly. Wood pressed oil is made in a wooden chekku. "Cold pressed" usually means a steel expeller run at a low temperature. Both skip refining, but only wood pressed uses the traditional wooden press.
Why does my wood pressed oil have sediment or turn cloudy?
Unrefined oil keeps tiny particles of the seed, and it can thicken in cool weather. That is normal. Coconut oil turns solid below about 24°C; stand the bottle in warm water to melt it.
Can I deep fry in wood pressed groundnut oil?
Yes. Groundnut oil is the traditional Tamil frying oil for vadai, murukku and bajji.
Where can I buy wood pressed oil in Chennai online?
Thinai Organics sells wood pressed groundnut, sesame and coconut oil pressed in Chennai the traditional marachekku way, delivered to homes across Chennai and India from thinaiorganics.com.