The Influence of Vegetable Oil: Structure, Composition, and Physicochemical Properties on Oleogel Formation and Its...

Oleogels are innovative lipid-structuring systems that entrap liquid vegetable oils in three-dimensional networks, offering sustainable alternatives to traditional solid fats and reducing dietary trans and saturated fats. As oleogels are predominantly composed of liquid oil, the fatty acid (FA) profile, triacylglycerol composition, minor lipid components, polarity, viscosity, and oxidative stability critically impact gel formation, network structure, and functionality. However, current literature stems from the diverse chemical nature of both oils and gelators, highlighting the necessity to understand oil-gelator compatibility for effective structuring. Furthermore, oils influence interfacial dynamics in derived systems like oleogel-based emulsions, bigels, and oleofoams, where oil-water or oil-air interactions determine stability and performance. Although these interfacial phenomena have attracted increasing attention, the role of oil characteristics in modulating oil-water and oil-air interfacial behavior remains insufficiently clarified. Therefore, this review summarizes oil composition and physicochemical properties, including FA unsaturation, chain length, glyceride structure, minor lipid components, polarity, viscosity, and oxidative stability. It further discusses how oil characteristics affect network formation, rheological behavior, and functional performance in oleogel and its derivatives by regulating oil-gelator interactions and interfacial behavior. This review provides theoretical guidance for the rational design of oleogel and its derived systems.