Hydnocarpus (Marotti) Oil for Skin: Kerala's Traditional Seed Oil

Hydnocarpus oil — called marotti enna in Malayalam and chaulmoogra oil in older English writing — is pressed from the seeds of a Western Ghats tree, Hydnocarpus pentandrus (also known as H. wightianus). In Kerala and classical Ayurveda it has a long traditional place in skin-care oils and pastes. Today it is used in small amounts in herbal soaps and oils for its traditional skin-care character, always diluted.

What is hydnocarpus?

Hydnocarpus is an evergreen tree of the moist forests and riverbanks of the Western Ghats, from Kerala and Karnataka up the Konkan coast. It bears hard, round, brown fruit the size of a small orange, packed with angular seeds. The seeds are rich in oil, which is pressed and used externally.

Strictly, "chaulmoogra" first referred to a related Burmese species, but in India the name is used for the Western Ghats tree too.

How is marotti oil made and used?

1. Ripe fruits are collected and the seeds removed and dried.
2. The seed kernels are pressed to release a thick, yellowish oil with a distinctive smell.
3. The oil is filtered and usually blended into another oil, a paste or a soap — it is rarely used neat.

In traditional Kerala practice, marotti oil appears in external preparations: mixed into herbal oils for skin, blended with neem or turmeric pastes, and used in bath preparations for the body.

What is hydnocarpus oil traditionally used for?

• traditionally used in Ayurveda and Kerala folk practice for rough, dry or troubled-looking skin
• blended into body oils for a clean, cared-for feel
• a classic partner to neem in skin-care oils

Ayurvedic texts list Tuvaraka among herbs used externally for the skin. Its tradition is strongest in South India and Southeast Asia.

What has research looked at?

Hydnocarpus oil has an unusual place in the history of science. Its oil contains rare cyclic fatty acids — known as hydnocarpic and chaulmoogric acids — that are found in very few other plants. In the early twentieth century, chemists and doctors studied chaulmoogra oil intensively, before modern medicines replaced it. Laboratory work since then has looked at these fatty acids and their antimicrobial behaviour in lab tests. This history explains why the oil is respected, but it does not make a soap or body oil containing it a medical product.

How to use it safely

• Choose finished products — soaps or blended oils — where marotti oil is already balanced with other oils.
• Do not apply neat seed oil to the face.
• Patch test a new product on the inner arm for 24 hours.
• Stop if you notice redness, burning or itching.
• Store products containing it away from heat and sunlight, as seed oils can turn rancid over time.

Because the tree grows wild in forests, good-quality seed oil depends on careful collection and pressing, so buy from makers who name the botanical source.

Why put hydnocarpus oil in soap?

In a soap, a small amount of hydnocarpus oil becomes part of the bar alongside a main oil such as coconut. The soap is lathered and rinsed off, so the skin gets a brief, gentle contact with the traditional oil. In cold-process soap-making, oils are not cooked at high temperature, which many makers prefer for keeping the character of special oils. Our guide on cold-process vs machine-made soap explains the difference.

Key takeaways

• Hydnocarpus (H. pentandrus) is marotti in Malayalam and Tuvaraka in Sanskrit; its oil is often sold as chaulmoogra.
• It is a Western Ghats tree whose seed oil has a long traditional place in external skin care.
• Its rare cyclic fatty acids made it a subject of early twentieth-century research.
• Use it only diluted or inside finished products; never internally.
• For skin conditions, see a dermatologist.

Marotti oil in Herbal Plus soap

Daksha's cold-process Herbal Plus soap includes hydnocarpus oil with neem, turmeric, sesame and almond oils on a coconut-oil base, with a TFM of 85.96%. See the Herbal Plus Natural Skin Care Soap, or message us on WhatsApp.