Which Oil is Best to Use When Cooking?

Making The Most of an Oil's Properties to Get Maximum Benefit

Sep 27, 2009

There are many different cooking oils available, and aside from cost and quality there are other important things to consider when deciding which oil to use when cooking.

There is a great variety of cooking oils on the market and whilst quality and cost are important when deciding which oil to use (see Are Expensive Oils and Vinegars Worth Paying For? ), once an oil has been purchased, both its flavour and how it reacts to heat are important considerations when deciding what to use the oil for.

Whatever the flavour, each oil has a temperature at which it starts to break down, referred to as the smoke point, and this varies from oil to oil. When the oil starts to degrade and break down further, it releases acrolein which is a part of the bluish smoke that irritates the throat and nose. Each oil has a different temperature at which this happens so oils with, for example a high smoke point, will be more suitable for deep fat frying.

Oils Suitable for Deep Frying

Oils with a high smoke point are more suitable for deep frying as they can be heated to a high temperature before they start to burn. Flavour is also something to consider as the oil will impart its flavour to the food being fried. The ideal temperature for deep frying is between 175 and 190 °C (345–375 °F) which makes the following oils suitable:

Of these oils, canola and peanut have the least marked flavour which is why they are particularly suitable for this purpose.

Flavourless Oils Suitable for Shallow Frying

Any of the oils suitable for deep frying are, of course, suitable for shallow frying, and of these canola and peanut are the two with the least flavour. Both are in fact relatively tasteless and so will not impart a strong taste to the foods being fried.

Oils With Flavour Suitable for Shallow Frying

Other oils which are suitable for shallow frying, but which themselves have a flavour, include:

Of these, care does need to be taken not to let the smoke point be reached which generally occurs around 160°C (320°F) otherwise the oil will degrade and lose flavour.

Oils Suitable for Vinaigrettes and Dressings

Any oil can be used cold in dressings or vinaigrettes and mixing a stronger flavoured oil with a flavourless oil is a good way to produce a dressing wich is not only more economical but which is not too overpowering. Oils which are not really suitable for cooking include:

A solution to obtaining flavour when shallow frying is to mix oils. Adding sesame or hazlenut oil to canola when shallow frying will give a flavour and reduce the liklihood of burning quickly.

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