What Type of Oil is Healthiest?

When choosing a cooking oil, knowing which one is healthiest for your purpose can be very beneficial for a well-balanced diet. The fats in cooking oils are essential for our bodies; however, eating the incorrect type of fat or too many fats without proper diet and exercise can be extremely unhealthy.

Fats are necessary because our bodies cannot create them on their own (You can read about that here). Since our body can’t create fats, it prefers some fats specifically for their nutritional values and some fats because they are either lower in caloric energy or are smaller and are easier to add more stuff to.

So when choosing which fat or cooking oil consider these factors in which oil is the best for which temperature or flavor profile you wish to cook with (You can read about that here).

So once you know which oils work for which temperature and/or flavor profile you wish to work with, the biggest considerations to note are 1: Is the majority of this oil made of healthy fats? And 2: Does this oil contain any fats with nutritional benefits?

For Question 1, making sure that the majority of your cooking oil is made out of unsaturated or MCT (Medium-Chain Triglycerides) fats like olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, and many others. Vegetable oil is an unsaturated fat, but should also be avoided when necessary and you can read about that here.

When choosing fats high in unsaturated fats, look specifically for poly and monounsaturated fats and stay away from anything with trans fats. And when looking to cook what an MCT, coconut oil is typically your best bet; however, ghee can be used as a healthier substitute for butter.

For Question 2, choosing a cooking oil that has added nutritional benefits such as extra virgin olive oil is extremely healthy. Unfortunately, the compounds and fats in extra virgin olive oil that are healthy are very sensitive to heat and the air over a long period of time if not refrigerated.

So if choosing extra virgin olive oil is right for you, check out some of our infused extra virgin olive oils that specially made to have the most intense flavor possible!