The present invention relates to novel non-aqueous gels of natural oils and their derivatives and provides a novel process for the gelation of natural oils and their derivatives that does not require the addition of gellants or the irreversible heat bodying of the oil. The gels and method of the present invention are applicable to a wide range of natural oils, and the method is easily tailored to provide thermoreversible gels of any desired viscosity. The natural oil based gels of the present invention and the method of their preparation have many advantages over the prior art. The natural oil based gels provided have exemplary properties and find use in a variety of applications.