What cooking oil do you use?

[patrickamory]

What cooking oil do you use? I don't mean specialized oils or fats for certain purposes - butter for Northern European, olive oil for Mediterranean, ghee for Indian, manteca for Mexican, rendered pork fat or lard for Thai and some Chinese.

 

I mean - what is your generic cooking oil - for when any of the above adds more character than you want from your fat?

 

Many people recommend peanut oil but I can't stand it - it reminds me too much of peanut butter, one of the few foods I simply will not eat.

 

I have been using "vegetable oil" (i.e., soybean oil) in recent years, and now I read that being highly processed, and probably from GM soybeans, it may not be good for me.

 

I'd be happy to use coconut oil for many applications, but it's extremely expensive. Works very well nonetheless in Southern Indian and many Southeast Asian dishes. I'm not sure it would be appropriate for most mainland Chinese dishes, however.

 

And when it comes to deep frying, and you need a quart or more of oil - what are you going to use?

[mm84321]

Grapeseed oil. 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I don't cook with oils other than olive oil or butter.  Very rarely lard.  I use spray on grape seed oil for a non-stick coating (for example in plastic bags for retarding bread dough), or use spray on canola for a pan coating where high heat is necessary.

[gfron1]

Ever since Ideas in Food introduced the world to Rice Bran oil I've been hooked.

[Joe Blowe]

High oleic safflower oil, when I want a neutral cooking oil or when I'm making mayo.

 

But, I find ghee works with almost anything. 

[gfweb]

Peanut oil mostly...and butter.  OO for some stuff.

[btbyrd]

I usually use "light" olive oil when cooking or making mayonnaise. For deep frying I usually use canola or corn oil. I'd like to use lard or tallow more often, but it's expensive and harder to manage than vegetable oil.

[Norm Matthews]

I use mostly butter or olive oil or both in combination for sauteing.  I use peanut oil for deep frying, but I have no problems using canola oil either. I think it is a shame it was the target of those urban legends. 

[Katie Meadow]

For asian stir fry or asian-style pancakes I use peanut oil. When a recipe calls for an essentially flavorless vegetable oil I use either grape seed or corn oil, although I do think corn oil has a slight corny taste; in some things I guess I like that. I don't deep-fry anything, so quantity isn't an issue. I would say olive oil is my go-to for most everything else, or butter, although I have cut way way back on butter. I never use safflower, sunflower or canola. I find canola to have a fishy taste, which I know sounds weird.

[dcarch]

Corn oil and peanut oil.

 

Some olive oil.

 

 

dcarch

[MAL7DC]

I always use olive oil.

 

Coconut oil is a healthy alternative, however it adds a coconut flavor that is bold. 

[paulraphael]

Olive oil when I want it to taste like olive oil, or very refined safflower oil when I want something that's neutral or can handle high heat.

 

I do a lot of sous-vide cooking of proteins, which means browning food as quickly as possible in a hot pan. I find olive oil unsuitable for this. I don't get scorched oil, because I can get food in fast enough to cool it, but the pan frequently goes up in flames from oil vapors carried up in the splatter. This never happens when I use more refined oils.

 

There are many high heat oils that just as good as safflower. I made my choice based on the quality and price of products where I shop. 

 

Besides heat tolerance, I often don't want an oil with an assertive flavor. Olive oil has one, and so doesn't go with everything.

 

I don't usually cook in butter when searing. I'll use a neutral oil, and then if finishing in the pan, turn the heat down and add butter. Baste with it while it browns. Much better butter flavor than you can get from clarified butter.

[Franci]

I do what is in my tradition, mainly extra virgin olive oil. I buy from a deli close by an oil from my hometown.

I truly dislike peanuts (and peanut butter) but the refined peanut oil (I subscribe on amazon) doesn't taste of peanut as the asian brands and I mainly use for deep frying. I also have some expeller pressed coconut oil that is cheaper, less expensive and odorless. Then in cooking meats I often use tallow, lard, ghee, butter.

But my staple is extra virgin because for me it's not an oil for salad only. Maybe my palate is different, it's an acquire taste and I never find overwhelming unless is a particular spicy oil.

Edited May 26, 2014 by Franci (log)

[huiray]

For general purpose/frying/stir-frying/sautéeing/cooking:

1) Vegetable oil.

2) Corn oil.

3) Canola oil.

4) Olive oil.  (frequently California Olive Ranch stuff)

5) Peanut oil.

In that order, more or less.

 

Deep frying w/ 1), 2) or 3) depending on which one is currently the one in the gallon jug on the side of the stove.

[janeer]

Malzola corn oil for American and Chinese food, lard for Mexican and some old NewEngland things, olive oil for everything else. Not counting what I cook in butter.

Edited May 26, 2014 by janeer (log)

[Martin Fisher]

I use butter, coconut oil, olive oil, lard and the like mostly......depends upon what I'n cooking. I avoid polyunsaturated fat as much as possible, and canola oil...it's the work of the Devil!!!!!!!!!!!!

[huiray]

http://forums.egullet.org/topic/138705-time-to-give-canola-oil-some-love/

[liuzhou]

I too use mainly rice bran oil. I do find it truly neutral in taste, unlike peanut oil which I can always taste. I do use peanut oil, but usually only in stir fried dishes. An egg fried in peanut oil is, in my view, disgusting.

 

On the rare occasions my local shop is out of rice bran oil, I'll probably go for sunflower oil.

 

I also use a lot of duck fat (I eat a lot of duck and render the fat. It lives in a big bowl in the fridge and lasts forever. Fried or roast potatoes in duck fat are to die for. Home rendered lard, too, mainly for stir frying green vegetables Chinese style.

 

I always have olive oil, but never use for Chinese food (of course).

Edited May 26, 2014 by liuzhou (log)

[fvandrog]

I am a recent convert to colza oil for generic things. Otherwise, there's of course the large variety of 'specialty' oils and fats, with goose-fat being my favorite.

[Mjx]

Olive oil is my go-to, since it's what I grew up with, and seems 'normal'. I also use a fair amount of grape-seed oil, since I'm with liuzhou in finding olive oil very wrong for Chinese dishes (also, for several other cuisines/dishes). I keep rendered duck fat in a little cup of it in the fridge, but tend to save it for special things, since I never have that much of it.

[Shalmanese]

Duck fat. I render down the carcass of 2 ducks every time I'm getting low.

[liuzhou]

Colza oil is just rape seed oil / Canola under another name. Not that I have anything in particular against Canola.

[GlorifiedRice]

Olive Oil for salads

Crisco Oil for deep frying

Coconut Oil for saute

Melted Butter for cakes

[Plantes Vertes]

Over here 'vegetable oil' is rapeseed oil I believe. That's what I use apart from olive oil.

[liuzhou]

"Vegetable oil" may be largely rape seed oil, but in the end you don't know what it is. They will shove in the cheapest stuff they can find that week.

 

If they aren't telling  you which vegetable, get suspicious.