Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Choosing the Right Oil

Whether you're a health nut or a food allergy sufferer (dairy and soy), or both like me, you're always looking for the best of the best when it comes to what you put in your food as you prepare your meals.

Since I have both dairy and soy allergy butter and veritable oil are out, so what are our choices?

To replace butter in a recipe I like Organic Coconut Oil. You can find it in the organic section of your local food store or at your local health food store. It's a healthy replacement with many nutritional benefits, and for those concerned about the flavor don't worry, it won't leave you food tasting like coconut.

For salads, marinates, or simply an ingredient in your favorite meal, I go with Organic Unrefined Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Olive Oil is very healthy with many nutritional benefits (we hear this all the time), but what gets failed to be mentioned is not all olive oils are created equal. All of the refined olive oils sold in the food stores by the gallons have very little if any nutritional value left in them, and if you buy your oil in a plastic container then you can be sure there are some not so desirable chemicals leached from the bottle in every serving.

*I do not use the unrefined olive oil for frying or sauteing do to the fact that unrefined oil has a much lower smoke point.

For cooking over medium heat I go with Organic Canola Oil. It's rated for temperatures of 350F to 400F and works well in any recipe.

Finally for an oil used at high temperatures (frying, sauteing, etc.), I like Organic Avocado Oil. It has a very high smoke point (higher than most oils), tastes great, and is very healthy. Make sure you read the label though, because the rated temperatures vary by manufacturer do to the refining process used.

Now get cooking!

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