CharlieStanford

I have not cooked it in my own kitchen. I've eaten it at some fairly good restaurants and I always found it to be a yawner unfortunately. Now I'm wondering f it's because they burn the oil. Do they? What good comes from heating to the smoke point? I've never had a stir fry that contained a component whose Maillard temp wasn't at least 50 degrees below the smoke point of the oils I'm guessing were being used.

It is definitely not good instruction regardless of the pan or the smoke point of the oil. The oil just needs to be hot enough to show 'legs' like a glass of good red wine. If one waits until there is even a wisp of smoke and the protein is substantially smaller than the pan then the oil around the edges is almost certainly going to burn. Of course, pan size needs to be matched to the job at hand but that isn't always possible in all times and all places.

Tin bubbles at 449*F, Maillard reaction occurs at temps substantially lower than that. I don't feel that I learned how to brown a protein properly until I bought my first tin-lined copper pan. I don't see the need to even get close to the smoking point of the majority of oils out there. I'd lose tin before the oil started smoking on more than a few oils.

Grapeseed, as others have mentioned.

I really enjoy having the old Time-Life series The Good Cook which was edited by Richard Olney.