I’m here with another Better Choices post. To catch up, this is why I am doing this series. So far, we have talked grains, dairy, dyes, GMOs, sweeteners and chocolate and additives / preservatives. Today, we are talking about oils. I will be honest, I wanted to write this post because it would force me to do some research and learn about this topic a bit more. This is definitely an area I am still learning about. As I have always said, one change at a time and this is one we are starting to focus on.
So what sparked a change? For me it was when I started learning about GMOs. The most popular everyday oils at the grocery store in my opinion are canola and vegetable oil, both of which likely contain GMOs. Canola is one of the top GMO foods on the market today and vegetable oil is typically made from soy, corn, canola, or cottonseed, all of which are again top GMO foods.
So what are some of the things to look for when considering an oil? First and foremost is refined vs. unrefined. This is the big question for us when choosing lots of various food products. Refined basically means processed. Processed usually means use of chemicals and to be very simple - changing the product from its original state. A more technical way of putting this is when oils are heated to very high temperatures during processing, the oils are oxidized. Oxidation also creates free radicals that can damage the cells of our bodies. The processing increases the shelf-life of the oils and removes most of the natural flavoring, making them more attractive for the industrial food industry, but less attractive to the consumer. Source
Smoking points are also important to think about when selecting an oil. You need to think about what you will use the oil for. When an oil reaches its smoking point, the oil breaks down and begins to create free radicals, which again damage the cells of the body. Source The smoking point of oils will vary by brand, but here is one source sharing smoking points of popular oils. As a rule of thumb approximately 350 degrees equals a medium heat. And typically the higher smoking point oils are going to be refined.
Have you seen cold pressed on oil labels? Cold pressed means that the extraction process of the oil from the olive took place at 27 degrees or lower. This means you are getting all the beneficial nutrients and antioxidants that may have been stripped out when oil is processed at a higher temperature. Source
My oil staples leading up to now were a canola / vegetable blend and extra virgin olive oil. So when I knew I wanted to stop doing the canola and vegetable oil, I had to figure out what to replace it with. Well coconut oil, is one of the main ‘health’ oils out there right now and gaining popularity. Check out some of the health benefits here. I actually had some coconut oil already at my house, because I have used this for making my own beauty products. However, the thought of starting to cook with the coconut oil actually intimidated me a bit.
Coconut oil is a white solid, but once it reaches 75-77 degrees it turns to a cloudy liquid. The interesting thing is it can go back and forth from a solid to a liquid (or even a semi state in between) over and over and still be fine. For this reason, it can be stored on the counter just like other oils.
There are refined and unrefined varieties of coconut oil available. A couple of main reasons people prefer to use refined coconut oil over its unrefined counterpart is the refined version is said to have a less coconut oil flavor and is known to be have a higher smoking point. I have used the unrefined and refined versions and do think the unrefined has a stronger flavor, but it is not overwhelming to me. Decide what is important to you.
A word about olive oil. Almost every recipe and cooking show I watch, they use olive oil. Is this an oil you use? My Whole Foods doesn’t even carry plain old olive oil, only extra virgin. I even checked Target and they only had one small bottle. I am not sure if this is one you use, but olive oil is also refined. It is more filtered / processed than your typical extra virgin, which is why it is lighter in color and a milder flavor. Again, decide what is important to you.
If you are interested in making some better choices in regards to oils, check out some tips below.
Better Bonus Tips:
- I don’t bake much, but I have read it is best to have other ingredients at room temperature if using coconut oil.
- Liquify coconut oil before measuring.
- Check out this site for some other tips on using coconut oil.
- Stay away from hydrogenated / partially hydrogenated - basically trans fats. Here is a great chart laying out different oils and the good / bad of each.
- One final reference for good vs. bad oils.
- Try steam frying instead of using oils. This is a goal for me to do better at. I saved this video a long time ago and honestly kind of forgot about it.
So what am I doing?
Right now, I am using a unrefined coconut oil and then a cold pressed extra virgin olive oil as my two main oils. I also use grassfed unsalted butter occasionally in place of oils. Where I am stuck and still a bit undecided is what oil to use when cooking over medium heat. I don’t do frying very often, but do use oil when roasting veggies at 400 degrees. I am still deciding what is the best option for me. I have some peanut oil that I am finishing up, but this is a refined oil. Benefit is it is not a GMO oil and is still high in the good monounsaturated fats. I have seen an unrefined peanut oil at my grocery store, so might consider getting that but not sure what the smoking point is. I also might consider trying an avocado oil, which has one of the highest smoking points. I need to learn a bit more about this one and my gut is saying it is probably expensive. Final option is to use a refined coconut oil, because it is still a better option that some of the other oils available. Most die hard real food eaters use tarrow for frying, but that is not on my radar as an option right now. And as I mentioned above, I am going to be better about using water or broth for steam frying, instead of oils.
So if you are left feeling helpless, keep reading for one last tip you can do right now to make better oil choices.
I was always a person that had a cooking oil spray next to my oven. I used this occasionally for cooking dishes, but mostly for things like eggs that I didn’t want a lot of oil, but need to help the food along. Also, I like cooking oil spray for when I am baking breaded dishes. Spraying some oil on top of the dish helps the crumbly topping brown.
Here is a picture of common ingredients found in non stick cooking sprays.
No thanks! So what I decided to do was purchase a sprayer and add my own oil. Shouldn’t oil be all that is in oil spray?
The particular sprayer I use, just needs pumped before the oil will come out. Easy as that. Give it a try!
On a final note, this will be the last Better Choices post for a while. These posts definitely take more time to do because of the research. I really do enjoy them though. It forces me to continue to learn. Plus, I am able to share information with you all, based on my personal research, in a condensed version because it can be overwhelming. That has always been my goal and I hope you find them helpful! My hope is that it inspires you to want to make better choices in the kitchen, one day at at time. I hope you feel the last 8 months has done that, as I have been spending more time focusing on these topics then I had in previous years.
With that all said, our baby boy is planned to make his debut arrival next month. That needs to be my focus and priority. I will still be posting some recipes up until closer to his arrival though, so stay tuned.
See you the next few weeks for some oil based recipes!
~Ashley
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