Pour oil in a hot pan and it begins to smoke, right? Not all oils is created equal. Some ruin food, others produce harmful smoke. The chart above links oils to their best use and smoke point. No more guesswork when cooking!
First, understand the importance of the smoke point. This is the point when an oil reach its limit, and begins to smoke. At this stage, the fats begin to break down, creating unhealthy by-products and unwanted flavors. Burnt oil taste awful and is bad for you. For high-heat cooking, therefore, you need an oil that can absorbs high temps without breaking down.
How to Use Oil in Cooking
Avocado oil has a smoke point of 520 degrees Fahrenheit, making it the leader of the pack. Whether you’re grilling veggies or searing a steak, avocado oil give you crispy texture without any acrid flavor, while ghee and peanut oil is excellent for high-temp roasting. Other good performers in this area include ghee and peanut oil. With stability in hand, these guys will tackle deep frying and roasting with confidence while keeping they’re cool.
Delicate oils, on the other hand, take their place. Nutrient-rich but fragile, some like walnut and flaxseed oil are best kept cold. That’s because heating them, even just a little; will make their nutritional value useless; you’ll lose all of that goodness and end up with something that tastes bitter. Never cook with these oils! Reserve them for drizzling after plating a salad, or whisking into a vinaigrette at the moment of service.
Because of this, I’ve separated out low-heat finishing oils (think: “finishing”) from high-heat (frying) oils in the chart. It is a tiny difference, but it makes a difference in taste and nutrition.
The performance of your oil depend heavily based off storage. Heat and light diminish freshness. The majority of us store our oil right beside the stove on the counter. Those spots are warm. This exposes your oil to sunlight and temperature changes, which cause it to oxidize faster and go rancid. Bad oil will have an aroma… if it smells like crayons or old paint, throw it out now.
To increase shelf life, refrigerate delicate oils. When cold, they may cloud up. Once at room temp., they’ll clear again. Simple practice that keeps you from wasting and preserves quality.
Another place people gets confused: substitutions. If they only have one bottle of extra virgin olive oil but have light olive oil, they can use the light olive oil to cook instead. That’s because there’s still some richness in the lighter version, but it also has a higher smoke point than expected. Deep-frying? Try using canola or vegetable oils. They’re both neutral-flavored and good to go.
In fact, visual guide offers useful swaps to help get you back on track without having to worry about your pantry being empty. You won’t have to guess when you are making it up as you go.
The bottom line: Treat it with respect, as any good ingredient should, and know what you’re using it for. For high-heat jobs? Stable is best. To add flavor? Go light. When cold? Freshly pressed. Match the fat to the job, and both your kitchen air quality and the integrity of whatever you’re cooking will be protected.
The next time you grab for that bottle, read that label first. Your lungs will thank you, and so will your palate. That little moment turns everyday cooking from a chore into a craft.