The Complete Guide To Cooking With Fat & Oils – With Smoke Point Chart

It’s pretty standard that in every dinner I make, I use more than one cooking fat or oil, sometimes up to four fats and oils in one meal. When we’re talking about healthy fats, variety is best. This article takes an in-depth look at my favorite fats and oils to have in the pantry, how to “rank” them, how to use them, smoke points, which to avoid, and more. (PS – the article photo is a snapshot of my collection of all our fats and oils, minus those stored in the fridge.)

Top 10 Fats & Oils

In this list, I’ve included my favorite brands for each fat and oil, and you can click the name of each to buy now. I also buy a lot of my fats and oils at Thrive Market to save a few bucks; click here to join.

1. Dr. Bronner’s Organic Virgin Coconut Oil (unrefined)—my #1 fat! I can’t even tell you how much I use this stuff. I might be lost without it. That’s why I also buy the 30 oz jar. Nutiva is another brand I like.

2. Primal Kitchen Avocado Oil—a lot of other avocado oils have a strong taste that I don’t prefer. Primal Kitchens is light and versatile. Also, read below why avocado oil is a superfood.

3. Lucini Italia Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)—This is just one brand of many good brands out there, We Olive is another as are many Italian olive oils, but choose wisely and use this resource to do so.

4. Fourth and Heart Ghee Butters—The best part, these are lactose free! So if you can’t do butter, you CAN do ghee. I always have a few of this brand’s flavors on hand: vanilla, white truffle salt and original.

5. Garlic-infused EVOO—I buy either Lucini or Garlic Gold Oil (organic and offered on Thrive). This is my top choice for homemade salad dressings, mixed with some Primal Kitchen Mayo, mmm.

6. Infused EVOOs—While garlic is a staple I always have on hand, occasionally I’ll get Lucini’s Lemon-Infused EVOO or other specialties. You could also add food-grade essential oils (i.e. lemon) to you EVOO to do the trick instead.

7. Kerrygold Butter—I have to say, not my first pick when it comes to cooking fat, but still a necessary staple to have in the house.

8. Epic Cage-Free Duck Fat—this is a new, welcomed addition to my cabinet. Great flavor and great for high-heat cooking.

9. Bacon Fat—we save the fat from bacon we make and I use in the rotation, usually when I’m making Brussels sprouts.

10. Organic Cold-Pressed Sesame Oil—I rarely use this, probably once a month at most, but occasionally I love the flavor for Asian-inspired dishes. Usually it’s for non-heat purposes (i.e. dressing) or veryyy low-heat cooking.

Runner-ups: Epic Grassfed Beef Tallow, Epic Pork Lard, Macadamia Oil, Refined Coconut Oil. These are fine to have for specific purposes; I just haven’t made them a regular part of my routine yet!

The ‘Type’ of Fat and Heat Matters

When you’re deciding which fat to use for cooking at certain temperatures, yes, taste and the flavor profile you’re going for matter, but there are two more important factors to consider:

First: Fatty acid composition is the No. 1 factor—the more saturated your fat is, the more stable it’s going to be when exposed to heat and less likely to breakdown and be oxidized, or damaged. Oxidized or damaged fats are what we want to avoid, these are not healthy for us to consume. You can see the best and most resilient fats below in the smoke point chart.

Second: Knowing the smoke point of each fat is important so you know which fats are appropriate for which heats. You want to avoid going over the smoke point for a given fat—this is what can cause it to become damaged and oxidized.

Scroll down to check the smoke points for the most common fats and oils. But remember, just because a fat or oil has a high smoke point, that doesn’t mean it should necessarily be used for heat at all—the fatty acid composition will matter most, and I indicate which fats and oils should not be used for cooking with heat.

Smoke Points

Note: The fats/oils in green are going to be the most stable and best bets for cooking at various heats, especially high heats, due to their high saturated fat content.

Fat or Oil Name	Smoke Point – Degrees in Fahrenheit (1, 2)
Avocado Oil	520
Bacon Fat	375
Beef Tallow/Fat	400
Butter	302
Coconut Oil (unrefined)	350
Coconut Oil (refined)	400-450
Duck Fat	375
Flaxseed Oil*	225
Ghee	480
Grapeseed Oil***	420
Lard	375
Macadamia Nut Oil*	390
Olive Oil (extra virgin)	375-405**
Olive Oil (virgin)	410
Palm Oil	455
Peanut Oil***	320-450
Rice Bran Oil***	415
Sesame Oil (unrefined)*	350
Walnut Oil*	400

*Unstable fats; not recommended for cooking in most cases

**If you have a known high-quality EVOO that’s low acidity it’ll have a higher smoke point of 405 degrees. Most other EVOOs will be 375.

***Generally not a fat/oil I recommend buying or using.

Wait, What About EVOO?

It’s a great question and there’s been much debate! I once held the belief that EVOO was bad to cook with and very delicate so I anally avoided exposing it to heat. But after more research over the years my opinion has changed: EVOO is generally safe to use for cooking and not as delicate as we thought! The better quality the olive oil, the safer and more resilient it’ll be to heat.

Most evidence indicates that, generally, EVOO can be used for cooking temperatures up to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. The type of olive oil matters; some will have higher or lower smoke points. Personally, I still avoid using EVOO for high-heat cooking such as searing, for fear of oxidization—that’s what you want to avoid most of all when it comes to using fats and oils for cooking.

For a more detailed article on this matter read this great post.

Olive oil is also a tricky business and there are some frauds out there (i.e. some olive oils contain cheaper oils used as fillers). To ensure you’re getting a great bottle of pure olive oil, this is by far the best resource on the picking and choosing olive oils.

Avocado Oil – A Superfood?

Also, I must sing the praises of avocado oil. First off, unlike an actual avocado, avocado oil is not a FODMAP and should not trigger any gut reactions so feel free to use it on any special diet.

Avocado oil is a very versatile, resilient fat to use for cooking despite lower saturated fat content—it’s an exception to the rule. Its fatty acid composition is kind of like olive oil, but it fares even better in heat than EVOO as far as smoke point is concerned. It’s 70% monounsaturated fat, 16% saturated fat and 14% polyunsaturated fat.

Avocado oil is great for:

Enhancing nutrient absorption of the food you eat (3, 4).
Boosting an improving our mitochondrial function—mitochondria are our energy powerhouse; athletes want healthy mighty mitochondria in abundance (5).
Reducing blood pressure.
An antioxidant source.
Managing metabolic disorders (6).
Cardiovascular function (4).
Healthy lipid profile.
Liver health and function (5).
Alleviating skin issues like psoriasis (7).

Fat & Oil Food Pairings

Earlier I mentioned that you want to choose your cooking fat/oil based on the flavor profile you’re looking for. Here are some suggestions based on what we love:

Coconut oil—baking, GF pancakes, eggs, breakfast scrambles (great to have the MCT oils in coconut oil first thing in the AM for fat burning!), sautéed cruciferous veggies, island-inspired dishes, mixed with spaghetti squash, oven-roasted sweet potato rounds.
Avocado oil—a great go-to oil for cooking nearly anything if you don’t want a strong flavor (Primal), salmon with the skin on, searing, stir-fries.
Duck fat—oven-roasted carrots and other root veggies, roasted butternut squash, roasted sweet potatoes or sweet potato fries.
EVOO—seafood, zoodles, meatballs, sautéed pepper and onions, dips (I make a dip for artichokes with simply EVOO, balsamic and Primal Mayo).
Garlic-infused olive oil—Italian-inspired meals, salad dressing (mix with Primal Mayo), drizzled on spaghetti squash.
Vanilla ghee—melted in grain-free porridges, roasted kabocha squash, sautéed purple carrots.
Regular ghee—if you want a rich buttery flavor it’s great for searing fish or meats, veggie sautés, melted in GF grains.
Butter—breakfast scrambles; eggs; spread on sourdough, GF toast or pancakes; melted into cauliflower mash; melted on sweet potatoes or baby potatoes.
Bacon fat—Brussels sprouts and other rich veggies.
Sesame oil—sautéed mustard greens (low heat only!), drizzled on GF noodle stir-fries or veggies, salad dressing, added to Asian-inspired meals.

Remember, Avoid Using These

This is just a refresher from what we have on the Good Fat Bad Fat article.

Canola oil
Corn oil
Cottonseed Oil
Safflower oil
Soybean oil
Sunflower oil
Vegetable shortening
Margarine
Hydrogenated oils
Vegetable oils
Fake butter sprays and most fat sprays
“Light” olive oil (highly processed)
Fat-free/low-fat butters, cooking products

Got fat & oil questions still? Feel free to ask in the comments!

References

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