- Famous Chefs
- Food Trends for
- Meatball Recipes
- Vietnamese Food
- Greek Food
- Chicken Recipes
- Vegetable Dishes
- Potato Recipes
- Cookbooks
- Slowcooker Recipes
- Soup Recipes
- Salad Recipes
- Cabbage Recipes
- Egg Recipes
- Pasta Recipes
- Burger Recipes
- Healthy Desserts
- Thai Food
- Pizza
- Bread Recipes
- Bean Recipes
- Beef Recipes
- Egg Rolls
- Pork Recipes
- Holiday Recipes
- Turkey Recipes
- Tomato Recipes
- Editors Choice
- Drinks
- Cake Recipes
- Hot Dogs
- Cooking Oils
- Cookware
- Cooking Wines
- Cooking Aprons
- Couponing
- Meal Plans
- Cooking Videos
- Sandwiches
- More Recipes
- Info
(HealthCastle.com) All manufacturers claim their own cooking oil is the best! Canola oil, olive oil, sunflower oil, butter, margarine, and virgin coconut oil all have their supporters. I'm often asked to compare cooking oils. Every time I speak about nutrition in public, the question about cooking oil for home use is brought up.
Confused about which oils are heart-healthy and which aren't? Health Hub asked for advice from James D. Perko, CEC, AAC, Executive Chef, for Cleveland Clinic's Wellness Institute and Center for Lifestyle Medicine, and dietitians Katherine Patton, MEd, RD, CSSD, LD, and Julia Zumpano, RD, from the Miller Family Heart & Vascular Institute's Preventive Cardiology Program.
You have many options when it comes to selecting fats and oils for cooking. But it's not just a matter of choosing oils that are healthy, but also whether they stay healthy after having been cooked with. When you're cooking at a high heat, you want to use oils that are stable and don't oxidize or go rancid easily.
| Type of oil or fat | Saturated | Monounsaturated | Polyunsaturated | Smoke point [note 1] | Uses | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Almond | 8% | 66% | 26% | 221 °C (430 °F) | Baking, sauces, flavoring | |
| Avocado oil | 12% | 74% | 14% | 271 °C (520 °F) | Frying, sautéing, dipping oil, salad oil | |
| Butter | 66% | 30% | 4% | 150 °C (302 °F) | Cooking, baking, condiment, sauces, flavoring | |
| Ghee, clarified butter | 65% | 32% | 3% | 190–250 °C (374–482 °F) | Deep frying, cooking, sautéing, condiment, flavoring | |
| Canola oil | 6% | 62% | 32% | 204 °C (399 °F) | Frying, baking, salad dressings | |
| Coconut oil, (virgin) | 92% | 6% | 2% | 177 °C (351 °F) | Cooking, tropical cuisine, beauty products | |
| Rice bran oil | 20% | 47% | 33% | 254 °C (489 °F) | Cooking, frying, deep frying, salads, dressings. Very clean flavoured & palatable. | |
| Corn oil | 13% | 25% | 62% | 236 °C (457 °F) | Frying, baking, salad dressings, margarine, shortening | |
| Cottonseed oil | 24% | 26% | 50% | 216 °C (421 °F) | Margarine, shortening, salad dressings, commercially fried products | |
| Flaxseed oil (Linseed oil)[29] | 11% | 21% | 68% | 107 °C (225 °F)[30] | Salad dressings, nutritional supplement | |
| Grape seed oil | 12% | 17% | 71% | 204 °C (399 °F) | Cooking, salad dressings, margarine | |
| Hemp oil | 9% | 12% | 79% | 165 °C (329 °F) | Cooking, salad dressings | |
| Lard | 41% | 47% | 2% | 138–201 °C (280–394 °F) | Baking, frying | |
| Margarine, hard | 80% | 14% | 6% | 150 °C (302 °F)[note 2] | Cooking, baking, condiment | |
| Mustard oil | 13% | 60% | 21% | 254 °C (489 °F) | Cooking, frying, deep frying, salads, dressings. Very clean flavoured & palatable. | |
| Margarine, soft | 20% | 47% | 33% | 150–160 °C (302–320 °F) | Cooking, baking, condiment | |
| Macadamia oil | 12.5% | 84% | 3.5% | 210 °C (410 °F) | Cooking, frying, deep frying, salads, dressings. A slightly nutty odour. | |
| Diacylglycerol (DAG) oil | 3.05% | 37.95% | 59% | 215 °C (419 °F) | Frying, baking, salad oil | |
| Olive oil (extra virgin) | 14% | 73% | 11% | 190 °C (374 °F) | Cooking, salad oils, margarine | |
| Olive oil (virgin) | 14% | 73% | 11% | 215 °C (419 °F) | Cooking, salad oils, margarine | |
| Olive oil (refined) | 14% | 73% | 11% | 225 °C (437 °F) | Sautee, stir frying, deep frying, cooking, salad oils, margarine | |
| Olive oil (extra light) | 14% | 73% | 11% | 242 °C (468 °F) | Sautee, stir frying, frying, deep frying, cooking, salad oils, margarine | |
| Palm oil | 52% | 38% | 10% | 230 °C (446 °F) | Cooking, flavoring, vegetable oil, shortening | |
| Peanut oil / groundnut oil | 18% | 49% | 33% | 231 °C (448 °F) | Frying, cooking, salad oils, margarine | |
| Pumpkin seed oil | 8% | 36% | 57% | 121 °C (250 °F) | salad oils | |
| Safflower oil | 10% | 13% | 77% | 265 °C (509 °F) | Cooking, salad dressings, margarine | |
| Sesame oil (Unrefined) | 14% | 43% | 43% | 177 °C (351 °F) | Cooking | |
| Sesame oil (semi-refined) | 14% | 43% | 43% | 232 °C (450 °F) | Cooking, deep frying | |
| Soybean oil | 15% | 24% | 61% | 241 °C (466 °F) | Cooking, salad dressings, vegetable oil, margarine, shortening | |
| Sunflower oil (linoleic, refined) | 11% | 20% | 69% | 246 °C (475 °F) | Cooking, salad dressings, margarine, shortening | |
| Sunflower oil (high oleic, refined)[31] | 9% | 82% | 9% | 225 °C (437 °F) | Cooking | |
| Tea seed oil[32] | 22% | 60% | 18% | 252 °C (486 °F) | Cooking, salad dressings, stir frying, frying, margarine | |
| Walnut oil (Semi-refined) | 9% | 23% | 63% | 204 °C (399 °F)[33] | Salad dressings, added to cold dishes to enhance flavor |
