What oil is best for frying. What oil to fry in: advice from chefs from different countries

Do you often have time to think about little things? For example, the oil in which food is fried is such a small thing, is there really nothing more to think about? The main thing is that the oil is tasteless, odorless, cholesterol-free and cheaper - I’m sure many people think so. And they buy exactly this kind of oil - refined, deodorized, that is, without any respect, extracted (note - I do not write “squeezed out”, because this is not entirely true) oil, which has been purified from impurities by chemical, and rather impartial, means.

Meanwhile, the choice of oil is the most important point, both from a culinary and medical point of view. The choice of oil for frying is actually not limited to corn and sunflower: let's figure out which oil is best for frying, based on experience and knowledge of the chemical composition of various oils.

So, if we talk about different oils from a culinary point of view, we are concerned about several specific things:

• The smoke point, that is, the temperature after which the oil begins to smoke and its chemical composition begins to change under the influence of heat. Refined oils have the highest smoke point, while Extra Virgin Olive oil has the lowest smoke point. At the same time, let's not forget that usually - not counting deep frying - the product cools the oil to a temperature below the smoke point, so you can fry with Extra Virgin, you just need to do it wisely, without overheating the oil too much before adding the products.
• The tastes and aromas that oil imparts to products. The principle “less is better” does not always apply here.
• The ability of an oil to form a golden brown crust is not the same for every oil.

From a health point of view, the following points are critical:

• Saturated fat content. It is saturated fats, which are not completely broken down in the body, that lead to the formation of fatty deposits and cause a narrowing of the lumen of the arteries. Saturated fats, of course, are not lethal, but it is highly advisable to control their consumption.
• Impurity content. The fat content of vegetable oil is 100% or so, and the amount of impurities is minimal, which other types of oil cannot boast of.
• Smoke point. One of the most important aspects, because after the oil begins to smoke, irreversible chemical processes occur in it, which lead to the formation of carcinogens.

Now let's look at the different types of oils in relation to how they behave during frying and what effect they have on your body.

Butter

Butter is about 80% fat, the rest being various impurities such as milk protein and water. It is rich in vitamin A, but also in saturated fat, which makes up about 50% of the total oil. When butter is heated, the same impurities in it quickly begin to burn, and the butter begins to darken and emit a nutty aroma. Frying with butter is very convenient if you want to quickly get a golden brown crust, and if you do not allow the butter to overheat, foods fried in it acquire a pleasant taste. At the same time, let’s not forget that everything said above applies to real butter: alas, some manufacturers add low-quality vegetable fats to it, which is immediately obvious if you dissolve a piece of such butter in a frying pan.

When to fry in butter:

• when the roasting temperature is not too high.

Melted butter

Ghee, or ghee, is the same as butter, only purified from impurities. This oil can be stored for quite a long time and is actively used in Indian cuisine and other cuisines of Southeast Asia, as well as in traditional medicine. Like regular butter, ghee contains a large amount of saturated fat, but unlike its relative, it has a high smoke point - about 250 degrees, which allows it to be used for deep-frying. In general, keeping a small jar of ghee in the fridge for occasional frying can be a good idea - like butter, it works great for frying or sautéing vegetables, but won't burn if you accidentally overheat the pan.

When to fry in ghee:

• when you need to quickly get a golden brown crust;
• when you need to slowly simmer food in oil;
• when you need to give a product a pleasant nutty aroma;

Refined vegetable oil

The cheapest oil that is available in every store. It has a relatively high smoke point, has no saturated fats, is practically devoid of its own taste and aroma and, it would seem, is ideal for frying. But there is one caveat. This is not advertised too much, but as one of the stages of extraction of vegetable oils, which are then purified, a chemical method is often used - the seeds are treated with chemicals in order to extract the maximum oil from them. Cleaning and deodorizing oil is also not a mechanical, but a chemical process, so the oil that is squeezed from the seeds and the one that stands on the supermarket shelf do not have much in common. In general, this oil can be used for any frying, but if possible, I would advise not to get carried away with it.

When to fry in refined vegetable oil:

• when you need to avoid the appearance of foreign tastes;
• when you deep fry or cook at high temperatures.

Olive oil

For some reason, we often contrast olive oil with some abstract “vegetable oil”. I fundamentally disagree with this, but okay, so be it. In this category I included all olive oils, except for Extra Virgin oil, which we will talk about a little later. This includes olive oil, which has been mechanically refined to remove impurities so it can be used for frying, and pomace oil, which is oil that is chemically extracted from the pomace after mechanical extraction of the Extra Virgin oil has been completed. In our country, such oil is not in particular demand, since it costs significantly more than refined corn or sunflower oil, but it is superior to them in terms of taste and is less harmful to health.

When to fry in olive oil:

• when you need to slowly simmer food in oil;
• when the roasting temperature may be high.

Extra virgin olive oil

It is usually believed that it is impossible to fry with Extra Virgin oil - it has a low smoke point, a rather powerful taste and aroma of its own, and, importantly, a high price. However, I sometimes use extra virgin olive oil when I want to simmer vegetables over low heat to release maximum flavor.

When to fry with extra virgin olive oil:

• when you need to slowly simmer food in oil;
• when you need to give a product a pleasant aroma of olive oil;
• when the roasting temperature is not high.

Salo

12:04 23.04.2014

The answer to the question: “Which oil is best for frying?” sounds something like “For what purpose are you going to do this?” Strange? If a person considers frying as the only acceptable method of cooking, regularly and with pleasure eats fried food, he should ask on a culinary forum. They will tell you what does not stick to which pan, what gives the best taste to dishes and other valuable gourmet information.

But doctors all over the world agree that fried food should not play a major role in the diet, but only appear in episodes. And the less often it appears on the table, the lower the risk of atherosclerosis, heart, liver, gastrointestinal and kidney diseases.

Which oil is better for frying for a healthy eating person?

This whole business with low-fat cooking sprays and white ceramic pan coatings has nothing to do with the dangers of fats. In fact, dietary lipids are extremely beneficial for:

Health of the nervous system, including the central nervous system;

Reproductive health. The point is not in the statement “fat is a hormonal organ,” but in the fact that with a low-fat diet, the secretion of sex hormones decreases, which, for obvious reasons, does not improve a person’s quality of life;

Heart and vascular health. Healthy omega-three fatty acids are a recognized product for the prevention of atherosclerosis and normalization of “bad” cholesterol levels;

Such an elusive and individual factor as “pleasure from the diet.” Despite what the low-fat promoters may say, food tastes better when it's with butter.

It’s only when heated, that is, during the frying process, that the properties of the oils change. And fried olive or sunflower oil is no longer such a wonderful product for healthy lifestyle and weight loss. Radical supporters of “clean” nutrition do not fry food “at all.” They use a grill, a steamer, simmer vegetables in water and add high-quality cold butter to the finished dish.

In general, the rule is simple - the more unsaturated fatty acids in the oil, the greater the chance of it not surviving heat treatment. Don't believe me? Try heating some flaxseed oil (almost the richest source of unsaturated fatty acids) oil in a frying pan, and when you see black smoke, you will understand what we are talking about.
Periodically, publications appear proving that unsaturated oils, when heated, turn from beneficial to extremely harmful; some studies even prove the carcinogenic effect of such oils.

What do Western ZOZhevtsy fry on?

Do you know why coconut oil has such a good reputation and is sold so well on all sorts of health food sites? Not at all because of the taste of “Bounty”, or rather, not at all because of it. Among vegetable oils, this product contains the highest amount of saturated fat (about 91%) and is the least destroyed during cooking.
True, frying with coconut requires manual dexterity and a very good frying pan/pancake maker. Take a pot with a fairly thick bottom and reduce the heat so that the oil does not start to smoke. The challenge is to quickly turn what you're frying. Constantly and quickly until it is cooked. And do not heat the oil until it smokes. By the way, lazy Americans came up with an electric pancake maker with a set temperature, in which even pancakes made from protein powder are fried normally.

“Number two” among saturated fats is ghee or ghee, or nothing more than good old ghee that you scooped out of the porridge carefully prepared by your grandmother as a child. Due to its “already melted” origin, ghee almost does not burn at normal heating temperatures, and is suitable for preparing almost all vegetable dishes.
Number three is olive oil. It is rich in olein, and is not as destroyed when heated as regular sunflower.
Well, thoughts about the fact that refined oil is healthier for frying than “oil with a smell” belong more likely to the heading “note to the housewife”, and not to the achievements of nutrition. Even if the oil does not smell anything at all during the cooking process, this, unfortunately, does not mean at all that it will be exclusively beneficial for your health.

What oil is better to fry in and how to do it

There should be the words “if you really need it.” Fried food is inherently harmful. More or less “nothing” only dishes like stir-fry, where micropieces of meat and vegetables come into contact with oil for a split second.

Simple tricks to make fried food healthier:

Coat the pan with olive oil using a cotton swab and quickly fry your vegetables. If these are vegetables, 30 seconds on each side is enough for the taste to become “fried”. Then throw them into a baking dish and finish cooking in the oven. By the way, non-aesthetes can try to immediately lay out the notorious potatoes in slices on parchment and bake them at 200 degrees. Well, spray with oil from a spray bottle, about 2 minutes before turning off the oven;

If “it” is poultry or fish, use the same method, but bring the dish to readiness by turning on the grill or convector. Manipulations allow you to “kill two birds with one stone” - you will not heat food in oil for too long, which will reduce the risk of its destruction, and you will reduce the calorie content of the finished dish, since the oil will not be actively absorbed during “cooking”.

Manipulations allow you to “kill two birds with one stone” - you will not heat food in oil for too long, which will reduce the risk of its destruction, and you will reduce the calorie content of the finished dish, since the oil will not be actively absorbed during “cooking”.
In general, fried food in no way fits into a healthy diet, and like other “exception dishes” it should occupy an honorable “top” place in your nutrition pyramid, along with candy cookies. Conventionally, you can eat 2-3 free meals per week, regardless of the goals you set for yourself (lose weight, stay healthy, improve health, etc.). These two or three servings, by the way, include sweets and fried foods “on an equal basis.” So, what specific choice you make is up to you. The only thing is that nutritionists still advise to refrain from cookies such as “brushwood” and other sweet and fried foods. The combination of macronutrients in these has been proven to cause overeating in almost anyone.

Fitness trainer Elena Selivanova

One of the most popular and healthy oils nowadays is olive oil. It is used in cosmetology and alternative medicine.

Considering the unique composition of the oil and its versatility, many cooks ask questions: can potatoes or cutlets be cooked in olive oil, and do its taste and medicinal properties disappear after heat treatment?

Taste and benefits

This vegetable is obtained from fruits European olive(lat. Olea europaea). In countries such as Spain and, it is national and is considered a calling card.

A unique slightly bitter taste and delicate aroma distinguish olive oil from all other types of vegetable fats.

The benefits of the “liquid gold” of the Mediterranean lie in its composition:

• monounsaturated fatty acids (mostly) - 73%;
• saturated fatty acids (mostly palmitic) - 13.8%;
• polyunsaturated fatty acid (Omega-6 linoleic) - 9.7%;
• polyunsaturated fatty acid (Omega-3 α-linolenic acid) - 0.76%;
• - more than 70% of the daily norm;
• - about 75% of the daily norm;
• vitamins;
• the antioxidant oleocanthal has an anti-inflammatory effect;
• The antioxidant oleuropein prevents low density oxidation.

• Due to the work, the entire human body strengthens and improves the condition of the integument.
• improves the functioning of the digestive system: , pancreas, .

• The herbal reduces the likelihood of -, poor blood clotting, instability.
• Prevention. Oleic acid in this vegetable fat changes the expression of cancer-causing proteins, reducing the likelihood of the disease.
• Prevention of Alzheimer's disease. With this disease, senile plaques form in the structure of the brain, the dissolution of which is facilitated by the use of “liquid”.
• Benefit for and. The fatty acids included in the composition contribute to the formation of the apparatus and the fetus. In addition, linoleic acid helps reduce the risk of disease.
• The use of vegetable fat in cosmetology. Products containing olive oil prevent, strengthen, and protect it from exposure to ultraviolet rays. Also used for and to prevent stretch marks during the period.
• Herbal compresses relieve and relieve cramps.

Did you know? In ancient Rome, ships were built to transport “liquid gold”. It was used as a currency, and poems and ballads were dedicated to it.

Kinds

According to the nomenclature of olive oils, depending on the content of fatty acids and the method of production, they are divided into such types:

• Extra virgin (unrefined, without chemical purification, top quality);
• Virgin (unrefined, without chemical purification);
• Olive oil (a mixture of refined and high quality).

Extra virgin

Extra virgin is oil of the highest quality. It is obtained by pressing, without the use of chemical cleaning agents. This product contains the most useful substances. The mechanical production process consists of washing, drying, centrifuging and filtering vegetable fat. Cold pressing is carried out at a temperature of 27 °C.
The acidity of the product is 0.8%. It is excellent and is used as a dressing for cold dishes.

Did you know? The average life expectancy of Greek residents is 81 years, and a large part of this is due to their love of olive oil. One resident of the country consumes on average 20 liters of vegetable fat annually.

Virgin

Virgin olive oil - natural unrefined product, made mechanically. For its production, olives are not of the same high quality as for the Extra series. This vegetable fat has a less intense taste and smell, and its production quality standards are not as strict.

The acidity of Virgin olive oil is less than 2%. It is used for preparing hot dishes and as a dressing.

Refined vegetable fats, after purification and processing, lose their aroma, taste and virtually all beneficial properties, but at the same time the smoke point increases. This fact helps to improve the performance of frying and cooking highly processed dishes.

Olive oil contains mixture of refined and unrefined oils and has a weak taste and smell. This olive oil is great for frying.

What oil is suitable for frying?

The Extra virgin product contains a lot of beneficial properties. It makes sense to use it as a dressing for cold dishes.

When answering the question whether it is possible to fry with unrefined olive oil, it should be noted that the maximum heating temperature for virgin oil is 160–180 °C. With this level of heat treatment, you can prepare instant dishes, semi-finished products, etc. Frying foods with a high content, such as, at a temperature of 140 ° C is quite acceptable using this type of vegetable fat.

For frying in olive oil at temperatures up to 240 °C, it is best to use refined oil.

The combined Olive oil product retains its properties when fried and has good taste.
However, the best option used for preparing various dishes in a frying pan is completely refined Olive Oil Refined, which does not contain many useful substances, but is ideal for heat treatment, immunity and metabolic deterioration.
When frying, olive oil loses some of its beneficial properties, but does not cause harm, since its level of fatty acids is optimal.

Some manufacturers produce a mixture of sunflower and olive oils. The content of the latter in it is no more than 10%, and the purchase of such a product is completely doesn't justify itself by its quality.

Important! A mixture of sunflower and olive oils is largely a marketing ploy, and its benefits to the body are minimal.

How about coconut?

Without a doubt, the leader in preserving beneficial properties during frying is coconut oil.
It contains 92% saturated fats that do not break down when exposed to high temperatures, and no more than 2% polyunsaturated fatty acids that are subject to breakdown. The smoke point of this product reaches 230 °C.

It fits perfectly for baking, frying and stewing foods at temperatures up to 350 °C.

The unique composition of coconut vegetable fat accelerates metabolism, reduces the level of low density, is human.

Despite the fact that olive oil loses its healing qualities when heated, it does not negatively affect the human body and is one of the most healthy vegetable fats used to make various dishes.

In general, only people with a truly unbending will can avoid eating fried foods, and in general, such a decision can always be considered correct. But how to minimize the harm of fried food if there is no way to refuse it? The answer is to know the best oil to use. When choosing oil for frying, you need to take into account the most important property: tolerance to heat treatment. The less the oil oxidizes and goes rancid when heated, the better it is for cooking. In addition, the so-called smoke point of the product is also important. That is, the temperature at which oxidized substances become volatile and visible to the naked eye. Therefore, if you are cooking a vegetable side dish or mussels over medium or low heat, then you can use almost any oil. But if we are talking about specific frying of meat, poultry, potatoes, then the oil should have a maximum smoke point.

Coconut oil

Coconut oil, underrated in our latitudes, is a real find for lovers of cutlets and other fried delights. It consists of 92% fatty acids, which allows it to not go rancid for a long time and remain resistant to heat. The smoke point of coconut oil is 240 degrees, which is enough for even the most aggressive cooking. Choose cold-pressed coconut oil, it will keep you feeling full for a long time and will stay fresh for several months.

Butter

The fact that you cannot fry in butter is outdated information, although cooking meat in it is not recommended at all. The smoke point of butter is only 150 degrees, but it is perfect for preparing the already mentioned vegetable side dishes and other dishes that do not require a hot frying pan. The nuance is that it contains a certain percentage of sugars and proteins, which tend to quickly burn and turn black when heated. To avoid this, use pure ghee.

Olive oil

The plot is similar to butter: everyone is used to thinking that it is impossible to fry with olive oil, but in fact it is possible! Even the great and mighty Jamie Oliver prescribed that all housewives use extra virgin olive oil for both frying and deep-frying. It is a fact that when heated this oil will lose vitamins. But in general, this does not in any way affect its enormous resistance to oxidation. The smoke point of olive oil is 240 degrees, which allows you to arrange a real fried feast at home.

Lard and animal fats

The quality and composition of lard directly depends on the food that the animal ate during its lifetime. If his diet consisted of grain feed, then a lot of polyunsaturated acids are formed in the lard and cannot be used for frying. But if the animal walked freely through the meadows, ate grass and was happy, then its lard is full of saturated fats that are resistant to oxidation. The ideal option for frying is lard, that is, oil rendered from lard.

Palm oil

This cheap and controversial oil is quite suitable for frying. It consists mainly of saturated fats, and its smoke point is 230 degrees, that is, almost like coconut. The best option for frying is unrefined red palm oil. The only problem with its use may be that it is not always possible to accurately determine the quality of the oil, since it is produced on an industrial scale.

Rapeseed oil

Finding decent rapeseed oil is not so easy, and its reputation is about as bad as palm oil. But that doesn't make it worse. Of course, rapeseed oil does not contain any special vitamins, but it has a smoke point of 230 degrees. Despite possible doubts, rapeseed oil will be better than absolutely any vegetable oil, which makes up 90% of the supermarket range.

Most housewives have long realized that frying, stewing and baking with natural oils is much more profitable and tastier. But which one should you choose for each type of cooking? There are many varieties of vegetable oils that are used as food. However, not all oils can be used for frying.

Recent studies by European scientists have shown that under no circumstances should you fry with linseed oil. The fact is that during the frying process, the fatty acids contained in flaxseed oil are converted into trans fatty acids, which are very dangerous to health.

These substances can provoke the development of cancer and digestive disorders.

It is best to fry in sunflower, corn, mustard or olive oil. Some nutritionists recommend frying in oil with the highest boiling point. From a medical point of view, of course, and not from a culinary point of view. This includes palm oil, but it is more common to fry it with olive oil, corn oil or soybean oil (but special ones for frying). Their boiling points are: sunflower - 120-140, olive - 160, corn, soybean - 180.

1. When frying, we use oils with a high combustion temperature and low fat content., for example oils such as avocado oil, sunflower oil, corn butter, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, sunflower oil
2 . When stewing, we use any low-fat oils., such as rapeseed oil, avocado oil , safflower oil, corn oil, olive oil, walnut oil, peanut butter
3 . We add any oils to salads, both refined and unrefined, but low in fat

Butter

Let's start the conversation with fat, which can replace sandwich margarines - spreads. Nutritionists believe that there is no better solid fat for humans than butter. Milk fat, they say, is an extremely healthy product, indispensable in the diet of most people, including those who suffer from cardiovascular diseases. Milk fat is especially useful for children whose digestive, immune and endocrine systems have not yet become stronger, as well as for people with diseases of the liver and biliary tract. Any Frenchman will tell you that it is tastiest to fry in plain butter. This is one of the main "secrets" of French cuisine.

Unlike spreads, butter contains many biologically active substances useful for humans: vitamins (A, beta-carotene - provitamin A, E, D), micro- and macroelements, phospholipids, lecithin, sterols, etc. And since during the production of butter Milk fat is not exposed to high temperatures; these substances are in an active state.

Butter contains cholesterol, which many people fear. However, in a daily serving of oil (25-30 g) there is only about 50 mg. And in small quantities, it is vitally necessary for the body to maintain the structure of cell membranes, the synthesis of steroid hormones, and immune cells that protect the body from pathogenic microbes.

It is better to consume butter in its natural form, spreading it on bread, cookies, pastries, adding to cereals and other ready-made dishes. Nutritionists do not recommend cooking, let alone frying, with butter, since even short-term high-temperature heating significantly reduces its biological value. The oil has emollient properties and has a calming effect on irritated mucous membranes. Therefore, medicine in the form of warm milk, honey and butter is an excellent remedy for sore throat.

Now butter is 90% fake. Pay attention to the labels. If the butter has some name - “Kremlin”, “Smolensk”, “Vologda”, etc. - It’s better not to buy this. “Kremlevskoye,” for example, is a bad margarine.
Among the trusted manufacturers, these are Prostokvashino, Vesely Milkman, Summer Day, Anchor, and Domik v Village oils. The standard designation for butter is GOST 37-91. The date of manufacture and expiration date must be clearly printed and easy to read. When heated to a temperature of 100 degrees, the oil loses all its beneficial properties. It turns into unhealthy fat. But if you melt the butter without heating it too much and pour it over the dish, it will not only be tasty, but also healthy.

Melted butter

Ghee cow butter is not only a universal fatty product for culinary products, which is good for frying cheesecakes and scrambled eggs, baking pies and other delicacies. It also has medicinal properties: it stimulates digestive processes, in particular improves the functioning of the small intestine, has a beneficial effect on the liver, and nourishes the brain.

In Russia, melted butter has always been a popular fatty product and was produced in significant quantities. Nowadays it is rarely found in stores, but it is not difficult to prepare it yourself.

How to prepare ghee. Place the butter in a saucepan (preferably stainless steel) and melt over low heat. When the butter is melted, reduce the heat to low, ensuring that only a few bubbles rise from the butter. These bubbles form foam, which must be periodically skimmed off with a spoon until the oil becomes transparent and vegetable-like in color, and a dark brown sediment forms at the bottom of the pan. Pour the finished oil through a strainer into a clean glass container, cool and seal. High-quality ghee should be yellow in color, have the smell and taste of milk fat and have a fine grainy consistency.

The process of preparing ghee takes about two hours. The amount of product obtained depends on the fat content of the melted cow butter. From 1 kg of butter with 72.5% fat content, about 600 g of ghee is usually obtained, and from butter with 82.5% fat content - about 800 g. The resulting butter can be stored for up to a year in a dark place at a temperature of 2 to 6 ° WITH.

Pork fat

A good alternative to synthetic fats is lard. Our ancestors fried and stewed on it; rendered pork fat was added to the dough for pies and other baked goods.

Modern scientists have proven that moderate heating of pork fat is not harmful - when melted, its biological properties and digestibility only improve. You can not only fry it, but also simply eat it. Moderately salted lard, with black bread and garlic, is not only tasty, but also healthy.

Unlike other animal fats, which consist mainly of saturated fatty acids, pork fat contains many beneficial unsaturated fatty acids, including arachidonic acid, which is rarely found in our diet. The ratio of saturated, mono- and polyunsaturated acids in it is approximately 4:5:1, which is quite close to the optimal - 4:6:1.

Modern scientists believe that pork fat is one of the most complete among vegetable and animal fats. In terms of biological activity, it is 5 times superior to butter.

Short-term heating of fat when frying foods increases the digestibility of refractory fats - beef and lamb, does not change the digestibility of lard and reduces the biological value of vegetable oils and butter. In this regard, ghee and lard should be used for frying. With prolonged heat treatment, not only the destruction of biologically active substances contained in fats occurs, but also the formation of toxic products of fatty acid oxidation. With repeated heat treatment, oils become carcinogenic.
So, the quality of beef and lamb fat improves when heated, vegetable oils deteriorate, and when pork fat is heated, nothing happens to it.

Vegetable oil

You can cook food not only with milk and pork fat, but also with vegetable oil, which has a high smoke point. This is what experts call the temperature at which oil heated in a frying pan begins to smoke. It is impossible to cook food in oil with a low smoke point: it produces many products of high-temperature oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids that are harmful to humans.

Ideal for cooking are olive, grape and high-oleic sunflower oils - all of them consist mainly of oleic acid, which is fairly heat-resistant.

In principle, it is possible to fry in unrefined vegetable oil: sunflower, corn, etc., but only at a moderate temperature (150-170°C), which should not be exceeded. The fact is that they contain a lot of polyunsaturated fatty acids, which, when heated above 180°C, begin to intensively oxidize with the formation of peroxides, ketones, aldehydes and other chemical compounds, which not only give the product an unpleasant taste and smell, but are also toxic substances, adversely affecting human health.

Palm oil can be a good alternative to hydrogenated cooking fats. In our country it is currently used mainly in the food industry, but it is also quite suitable for home use. You can fry, bake, and season salads with it.

Like lard, palm oil is composed primarily of the heat-stable fatty acids saturated palmitic and monounsaturated oleic, so it can withstand temperatures that would cause most other oils to smoke and break down.

In addition to high thermal stability, palm oil has other advantages. To begin with, benzene and other organic solvents are not used in its production, so it is environmentally friendly. Further. Products fried in palm oil have a beautiful golden color. In addition, palm fat has the ability to retain tiny air bubbles on its surface, giving the finished product a delicate taste and friability. Therefore, they not only fry with palm oil, but also add it to the dough for cookies, cakes, muffins and other confectionery products.

Despite its excellent consumer properties, palm oil until recently was considered by many, and some continue to be considered, almost the worst vegetable oil due to its high content of palmitic acid. There is really a lot of this atherogenic fatty acid in palm oil - about 50%. However, in the world of fats, not everything is so simple. Biochemist scientists have proven that the nature of their effect on the human body depends on the location of saturated fatty acids in triglyceride molecules (in fat molecules). In palm oil, a significant part of palmitic acids is in the second, so to speak, position that is not harmful to human health. It is interesting to note that the same position in the fat molecule is occupied by part of the palmitic acids found in cow's milk.

Experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) have been studying the safety of palm oil for human health for several years. His research showed that people who switched to consuming palm oil had a significantly reduced risk of developing cardiovascular disease compared to those who continued to consume hydrogenated fats with 20% trans isomers.

And the everyday experience of the peoples of tropical countries, who traditionally consume palm oil as food, indicates that it does not have a negative impact on health. The people of these countries suffer from hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases, which are associated with saturated fats and cholesterol, less often than Europeans or Americans, who until recently did not consume palm oil. Taking all this into account, WHO experts consider palm oil as one of the most promising oil and fat products that can replace hydrogenated fats.

Replacing hydrogenated fats in your diet with natural ones is just the first step in the right direction. In order to completely cleanse the body of trans isomers, you need to do the second thing - abandon finished products made using synthetic margarine. This is not difficult to do if you carefully read the labels on the products you buy.