GOOD COOKING OILS
Sunflower Seed Oil (246°C)
Sunflower seed oil is a light yellow color and has a mild flavor.
Health: 69% Omega-6 oils
Soybean Oil (241°C)
Soybean oil is inexpensive and has several healthy attributes including high levels of polyunsaturated (including omega-3 fatty acid) and monounsaturated fats and it is fairly low in saturated fat.
Corn Oil (236°C)
It has a light golden color and is almost tasteless and odorless so it is also a good choice for baking.
Health: 25% Omega-6 oils
Canola Oil (238°C)
It has the lowest level of saturated fat of any edible oil and has one of the highest levels of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat.
Because it is mildly flavored and inexpensively priced, canola oil is an excellent choice for cooking or baking, or as an ingredient for salad dressings.
Health Benefit: 10% Omega-3 oils
Peanut Oil (231°C)
Refined peanut oil has a high smoke point so it is an excellent choice for sautéing and frying. It does not absorb or transfer flavors from food during the cooking process.
It is also high in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, which makes it a healthy oil to use for cooking or as a base for dressings.
Health: 22% Omega-6.
Note - some are sensitive to irritants in this oil.
Vegetable Oil
Vegetable oil usually consists of a highly refined blend of various oils such as soybean, corn, and sunflower or it may consist of only one type of oil.
The label may or may not list the types of oil contained within the blend, so the consumer will often never know exactly what they are purchasing.
Olive Oil
It is one of the most versatile oils for cooking and it enhances the taste of many foods. It is an excellent alternative to butter or margarine as a condiment or for use in food preparation.
- Extra-virgin olive oil (190°C) comes from the first pressing of the olives, contains no more than 0.8% acidity, and is judged to have a superior taste. There can be no refined oil in extra-virgin olive oil.
- Virgin olive oil (215°C) has an acidity less than 2%, and judged to have a good taste. There can be no refined oil in virgin olive oil.
- Pure olive oil. (225°C) Oils labeled as Pure olive oil or Olive oil are usually a blend of refined olive oil and one of the above two categories of virgin olive oil.
- Olive oil is a blend of virgin oil and refined oil, containing no more than 1.5% acidity. It commonly lacks a strong flavor.
- Olive-pomace oil is a blend of refined pomace olive oil and possibly some virgin oil. It is fit for consumption, but it may not be called olive oil. Olive-pomace oil is rarely found in a grocery store; it is often used for certain kinds of cooking in restaurants.
- Lampante oil is olive oil not used for consumption; lampante comes from olive oil's ancient use as fuel in oil-burning lamps. Lampante oil is mostly used in the industrial market.
Label wording
Olive oil vendors choose the wording on their labels very carefully.
- "Cold Pressed" Extra Virgin Olive Oil is generally considered the best grade of olive oil. As the name suggests, it is obtained without heating the pressed mass. Heating frees more of the oil but lowers the quality of the resulting oil. Cold Pressed Extra Virgin olive oil is best suited to specialist uses such as salad dressings. Olive oil has a low smoke point (200°F for fancy flavorful grades, and 400°F for the cheap refined grades) and so is not well suited for cooking at high temperatures. Blended oils containing olive oil are available and combine to make a higher smoke point.
- "First cold press" means that the oil in bottles with this label is the first oil that came from the first press of the olives. The word cold is important because if heat is used, the olive oil's chemistry is changed.
"From hand-picked olives" may indicate that the oil is of better quality, since producers harvesting olives by mechanical methods are inclined to leave olives to over-ripen in order to increase yield.
"100% Pure Olive Oil" is often the lowest quality available in a retail store: better grades would have "virgin" on the label. - "Made from refined olive oils" suggests that the essence was captured, but in fact means that the taste and acidity were chemically produced.
- "Light olive oil" actually means refined olive oil, not a lower fat content.
In addition to the basic grades, olive oil differs from one country or region to another because of the types of olives that are grown, the environmental factors of the area, the harvesting methods, the time of the harvest, and the pressing techniques. These factors all contribute to the individual characteristics of the olive oil. Some of the characteristics found in olive oils produced in some of the major olive growing areas are:
Spain: golden-yellow, fruity, aromatic, almondy. This type of oil is ideal for salads, sauces and frying. This oil adds flavor to sautéed fish dishes.
- Italy: deep green, peppery, herbal, grassy. These oils are blended to stand up to ripe tomatoes, roasted vegetables, meat and chewy pasta dishes.
- Greece: green, strong, aromatic. This style of oil works well with stews, soups and steamed vegetables. Drizzle over soups and stews to enhance the flavor.
- France: pale, sweet, mild, light
- Portugal: golden, strong, fully ripe
- California: mild, light, fruity. This oil is good for frying and sautéing.
When used for cooking, the healthy aspects of olive oil do not change as the oil is heated.
Olive oil is good source of the antioxidant, vitamin E. It contains 1.6 mg. of vitamin E per tablespoon, which is 8% of the recommended daily allowance.
Health: 76% Omega-9, many heart benefits; countless studies extoll this
Non-hydrogenated Soft Margarine
BAD COOKING OIL
The following "bad" oils contain high percentage of trans fat or saturated fats. Some, such as coconut oil, even contain more saturated fats than animal products!
Vegetable Shortening, Hard margarine, Butter, Palm Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, Coconut Oil
