In this study, the effect of rapeseed mechanical hulling and thermal pre-treatment by microwaves (from 2 to 10 min with 2-min intervals, 800 W) and roasting (from 20 to 100 min with 20-min intervals, 165 °C) on the content of phytochemicals in the oil was investigated. Results showed that both pre-treatments applied differentiated the oils in terms of the content of bioactive compounds. In general, oils pressed from hulled and thermally pre-treated seeds contained higher content of tocopherols, PC-8 and phytosterols, while oils pressed from non-hulled and pre-processed seeds had significantly higher concentration of polyphenols. Both microwaving and roasting contributed to an increase of antioxidant capacity of studied oils. The increase of radical scavenging activity of oils was seen mainly in hydrophilic fraction of oil, which was highly positively correlated with the amount of canolol formed during seeds heating.
Keywords: Hulling; microwaving; phenolic compounds; phytosterols; radical scavenging activity; rapeseed oil; roasting; tocopherols.