How should olive oil be used for cooking?

[GadgetGuy]

EVOO is flavoring your food. Just the ticket to add to your vinagrette or drizzle on your pizza dough. It is a poor choice for cooking. Canola is a better option. Recipe authors who recommend EVOO for cooking are simply wrong. It has a low smoke point, is expensive as you say and loses most of its flavor in the heat of cooking. You have it right.

Thanks!!

 

[medtran49]

EVOO is flavoring your food. Just the ticket to add to your vinagrette or drizzle on your pizza dough. It is a poor choice for cooking. Canola is a better option. Recipe authors who recommend EVOO for cooking are simply wrong. It has a low smoke point, is expensive as you say and loses most of its flavor in the heat of cooking. You have it right.

Studies done in the last few years have debunked EVOO as being bad for cooking. In fact, the smoke point can be over 400 F depending on quality and freshness, with the low end smoke point being around 350 F for lower quality and less freshness. And, as it's less refined, there are more of the good things left like antioxidants, monounsaturated fats, etc., that remain even AFTER cooking.

While I wouldn't deep fry with EVOO or olive oil, mainly due to the expense and waste, since we very, very rarely deep fry anymore, we use it to pan/shallow fry and to cook with all the time unless it's something we don't want to have the taste of olive oil.

An article that condenses a couple of studies, but there are lots of others to find.

https://health.usnews.com/wellness/...d-stop-worrying-about-olive-oils-smoke-points

 

[blades]

Studies done in the last few years have debunked EVOO as being bad for cooking. In fact, the smoke point can be over 400 F depending on quality and freshness, with the low end smoke point being around 350 F for lower quality and less freshness. And, as it's less refined, there are more of the good things left like antioxidants, monounsaturated fats, etc., that remain even AFTER cooking.

While I wouldn't deep fry with EVOO or olive oil, mainly due to the expense and waste, since we very, very rarely deep fry anymore, we use it to pan/shallow fry and to cook with all the time unless it's something we don't want to have the taste of olive oil.

An article that condenses a couple of studies, but there are lots of others to find.

https://health.usnews.com/wellness/food/articles/why-you-should-stop-worrying-about-olive-oils-smoke-point

I stand by what I wrote. Sorry. There is no sensible reason to cook with olive oil. I don't think it will hurt anything but other oils are better for the purpose for the same reasons I wrote earlier. I know of one TV cooking personally that specifies EVOO for cooking everything. I think she is wrong. That she cooks on TV doesn't make her a food scientist.

As to the article you linked, I agree that worrying about smoke point is on the silly side but olive oil has a lower one nevertheless. 400 degrees will likely burn the food before smoking the oil. The more harmful lipids are in animal fats (bacon grease, lard etc.) Olive oil doesn't have a monopoly on unsaturated fats. Most vegetable oils meet that standard. My cardiologist insists that oil ls oil and all oils contribute to the formation of cholesterol. There really is much less to no olive oil flavor after using it as a cooking oil. I'm not fighting the use of olive oil in cooking. I do believe that it makes no sense for these reasons. You are welcome to use it to your heart's content. You will be in a popular group of cooks.

 

[Morning Glory]

Interestingly I made a note of something mentioned by a chef on TV the other day - which is, that if you want 'crispy fried eggs', then olive oil really works. I do intend to try it.

I've roasted potatoes in olive oil with great success.

 

[caseydog]

Interestingly I made a note of something mentioned by a chef on TV the other day - which is, that if you want 'crispy fried eggs', then olive oil really works. I do intend to try it.

I've roasted potatoes in olive oil with great success.

I toss my potatoes (red) in olive oil and chopped rosemary for oven roasting. Very tasty.

CD

 

[PabloLerntKochen]

The kitchen isn't a lab. You can't justify rules like to not use olive oil just because some scientists found something bad. In regions of Europe some use EVOO for everything and that for thousands of years.

I wouldn’t use EVOO for my cooking as well, but I've never had the high smoke point EVOO's and these people mastered they way of the EVOO.
BTW, I'm not sure but it seems like being a home cooking issue, as most chefs have to listen to the numbers and EVOO is just to expensive for cooking. There might be some places being the odd ones, but most use canola, sunflower, sesame or a mix with butter for frying.

 

[caseydog]

or a mix with butter for frying.

I mix cooking oil and butter a lot. It gives a nice butter flavor, but the butter is harder to burn.

CD

 

[JAS_OH1]

I dont deep fry with olive oil but I love the flavor mixed with butter and seasoning to lightly sautee vegetables.

 

[karadekoolaid]

The Spanish cook almost everything in Olive oil. and why not? That's the most common oil available to them, since they're the world's largest producer. hey, if it works for you, why not?
I dislike canola oil, mostly ignore what scientists and doctors say about cooking (because that's not their area of expertise) and try to use oils which provide good flavour, if possible. I cook with EVOO because there's no such thing as "plain" olive oil over here. Chile produces olive oil, and it's ALL EVOO. Mexicans cook with lard. In India, they use a very mild version of sesame oil, and also use mustard oil ( which is frowned upon in the US).
I never cook Indian, or any Asian food with olive oil, mind you. Just doesn't fit in my mind.

 

[JAS_OH1]

The Spanish cook almost everything in Olive oil. and why not? That's the most common oil available to them, since they're the world's largest producer. hey, if it works for you, why not?
I dislike canola oil, mostly ignore what scientists and doctors say about cooking (because that's not their area of expertise) and try to use oils which provide good flavour, if possible. I cook with EVOO because there's no such thing as "plain" olive oil over here. Chile produces olive oil, and it's ALL EVOO. Mexicans cook with lard. In India, they use a very mild version of sesame oil, and also use mustard oil ( which is frowned upon in the US).
I never cook Indian, or any Asian food with olive oil, mind you. Just doesn't fit in my mind.

Agree with all of the above. And as you and others have also noticed, canola oil can have an odd "fishy" taste.

Never tried mustard oil but I would. Love sesame oil

 

[badjak]

Mustard oil has a strong strong taste.
I cook with olive oil if I don't cook SE Asian.
Sunflower for that and for deep frying.
Although I very often sort of render the fat out of fatty pieces of meat and cook in that (I just put in a cold pan, over low heat, till the fat comes out)
For curries containing coconut, I cook some of the coconut cream or milk first till it breaks. No extra fat needed

Lard apparently isn't bad for you anymore....

 

[Yorky]

I never use EVOO.

I use Extra Light Olive Oil for cooking occasionally. If I have it I always use it for frying beef and onions for chilli-con-carne. I don't know why but I always have done.

 

[Yorky]

Lard apparently isn't bad for you anymore....

I really don't care if Lard is bad for you or not. It makes excellent roast potatoes.

Lard 2 s.jpg

• Yorky
• 8 Apr 2023

 

[badjak]

I really don't care if Lard is bad for you or not. It makes excellent roast potatoes.

Lard 2 s.jpg

• Yorky
• 8 Apr 2023

I agree fully!
Duck fat is even better though....

I said it a bit tongue in cheek as it looks like every food item goes through stages where it is bad for you. Then good for you etc
Like eggs, margarine/butter, coffee, sugar/artificial sweeteners etc etc
So I stopped listening