When it comes to cooking, oils are not created equal so choose cooking oils carefully. Some oils that you may be cooking with are actually unsafe and unstable at high temperatures, typically reached during cooking. Also, some contain healthier fats than others.
Many of the solid cooking oil forms such as butter, shortening, lard, hard stick margarine along with palm and coconut oils can have a lot of saturated fat. That’s why the American Heart Association, advises that you choose oils with less than 4 grams of saturated fat per tablespoon, and no partially hydrogenated oils or trans fats.
Also, if you routinely cook with olive oil you may want to think twice. Olive oil is among the oils with a rather low smoke point. The smoke point is the point when oil not only starts burning and smoking, but many of the nutrients in the oil degrade and the oil releases harmful compounds called free radicals. Olive oil is one such oil where this is the case. In fact, olive oil has a relatively lower smoke point compared to other oils, so it’s best for low and medium-heat cooking.
Then there are the ‘vegetable oils,’ which are sourced from plant based sources such as canola, corn, soybean, safflower, palm and sunflowers. These oils are refined and processed, which means they not only lack flavor, but also nutrients.
Now the most optimally healthy oil choices would include avocado, grapeseed, rice bran and sesame oils. These are considered the specialty oils. While they can be a bit pricier than other oils and and even at times more difficult to find it may be worth the inconvenience. These oils won’t succumb to nutrient degredation and have high smoke points, which means they are excellent cooking oil options. Plus, they are all low in saturated fats.
Ultimatly, choose cooking oils carefully. Look for oils low in saturated fats with high smoke points. Also, look for oils that are nutrient dense. These may not be the ones at your local grocer. So you may have to either explore some online options or visit a nearby health food store to find them. You should also be prepared to pay more. Though in the end it will be all worth making the healthier choice.
What’s your favorite cooking oil and why?
