In the recipe of my last post I briefly mentioned using a high heat oil for cooking… and here’s why. I got this info on a great website by two naturopathic doctors. You can find more in-depth details here.

But here’s the quick version:

Olive oil- Has a low smoke point, good for low heat cooking or use it cold. Get a high quality "expeller-pressed" or "cold pressed" olive oil because it means they didn't use high heat to extract the oil- (because high heat toxifies the oil and kills all the good nutrients)

Each oil has a different “smoke point” at which the oil will start to smoke and become toxic.

If the oil has a high smoke point, it is good for high heat cooking. If it has a low smoke point you want to avoid cooking with it at high heats… those would best be used at low heat or used cold.

Refined oils are the ones you want to use for high heat cooking. But there are two different processes of refinement, the natural kind and the chemical kind. You want to make sure the oil says “naturally refined” which means it was refined with natural agents and at lower temperatures.

Some good oils you can find refined are coconut, safflower, grapeseed, or a high quality organic canola oil. 

naturally refined for high heat cooking

Buy Organic Oils- Why? Well, when it comes to oils it is always best to go with an organic oil because oils are concentrated, so environmental toxins and pesticides used in non organic production will also be more concentrated in the oil. You’ll be spending a little more, but the health benefits of avoiding high levels of toxins outweighs the alternative. Also you avoid the genetic mutation (GMOs) found in soy, canola, and corn oils when choosing organic. This is one product to consider getting organic.

Hope this helps… happy cooking!