Cooking with Fats & Oils - Healthy Tips

Many people have become familiar with the foods to eat that improve health (organic fruits and vegetables, lean grass-fed meats, etc.), but how we cook the food can be just as important. With so much conflicting information about cooking oils and which fats are "good" and which are "bad," it can be quite difficult to know which ones to use and which ones to avoid. A commenter on this blog recently brought up this issue, so I thought it would be a good time to clarify this here, since oil is used in many forms of cooking, no matter what type of food you are preparing.

Image via Wikipedia1.  Canola oil
(I am listing these in order of popularity, not in order of what are actually the best for you.) Canola oil is a very popular oil, with some mainstream health "experts" claiming that it has the ability to lower the risk of heart disease.  The oil is low in saturated fat, high in monounsaturated fat, and offers fairly good fatty acid composition when compared to some other oils.

Canola oil is commonly used in sauting, salad dressings, as a marinade and even in low temperature stir frying.  It has a bland flavor, due to its extensive processing to prevent rancidity.  This also makes it popular because, unlike other oils, this one won't interfere with the taste of your meal. Properly stored, it can remain shelf-stable for several years.

The problem is, canola (formerly called rapeseed oil) is a highly processed oil, meaning that your body is not really equipped to dispose of it properly. Although it was touted for a long time as a "healthy" oil, recent discoveries have shown it is not necessarily so, and many people in the alternative health community (including myself) have become wary enough of its possible long-term disease potential to stop using it. (For more information on refined/processed oils, visit http://www.jonbarron.org/natural-health/nl110307/good-bad-healthy-fats-oils and scroll towards the bottom, to the section entitled "Refining.")

Image by @kevinv033 via Flickr2.  Olive oil
Olive oil offers a very distinct flavor with plenty of heart healthy ingedients.  The oil is rich in monounsaturated fat, helps to lower cholesterol levels and reduce risk of cancer.  It's also rich in antioxidants and has a very long storage life (a year or sometimes more, if stored properly - in a cool place, away from light).

Even though it can be used in cooking, it's the healthiest when uncooked, such as with a salad or dipping sauce.  When you use it with cooking, you should heat it on low to medium temperatures, making sure to avoid high heat, which can change its structure, destroying some of the healthy benefits.

3.  Butter
Butter is one food that has been around for many, many years.  Butter tastes good, and offers sources of Vitamin A and other fat soluble vitamins such as E, K, and even D.  Butter is also made from natural ingredients and is typically not very chemically or artificially processed. However, as the chemicals an animal consumes are concentrated in its fat (including the butter made from its milk), it is important to buy organic when it comes to butter.

You can use butter with cooking, baking, or as a spread.  It is more stable than most vegetable oils, so it can be used for sauteing, but do try not to let it get too hot, as this will destroy some of the vitamins. You can also use it in creamy sauces, marinades, baked dishes, or even bread. Butter should be kept refrigerated most of the time. Refrigerated (or even frozen) it can keep very well for quite some time, but should be wrapped well to prevent it from taking on outside odors.

4.  Margarine
Margarine was first introduced as an alternative to high fat butter.  When it was first created, it was touted as the best thing since sliced bread. We have since learned that margarine is made almost entirely of processed trans fat, a substance that we now know raises bad cholesterol (along with a host of other health problems), and is one of the unhealthiest substances you can eat. Recently margarine has been dropping in popularity, and we would never recommend using it for any purpose.

Other Bad Cooking Oils:
Corn, Safflower, Sunflower, Cottonseed, Peanut, and Soybean are other fairly popular cooking oils that we don't recommend. All of these are highly processed, and thus are not body-friendly (see Canola above). Also many of them have a very unhealthy Omega-6/Omega-3 balance..

Image via WikipediaOther Good Cooking Oils:
Coconut, Walnut, Avocado, and Rice-Bran oils are some good ones you can try for cooking (besides Olive Oil and Butter, mentioned above). Coconut oil is very stable, keeps very well, and has quite a few health benefits. (Plus it tastes yummy, which is why I love it!)  Go for the extra-virgin, and store in a cool dark place tightly covered. Fresh coconut oil should have a mild coconutty taste. If it doesn't have any taste, it is no longer fresh and probably shouldn't be used. Avocado and rice-bran oils are good choices for high-heat cooking as they are very stable.

When it comes to cooking with oils, there are several healthy choices at your disposal.  There are many more than what is mentioned here, although the ones above are the most popular, and we have listed some of the best ones. Eating healthy involves cooking healthy food - which is where your cooking oil really can be important.


(For more on the good, the bad, and the ugly of fats and oils, check out this comprehensive article: http://www.jonbarron.org/natural-health/nl110307/good-bad-healthy-fats-oils.)