TIP OF THE DAY: Don’t Use Olive Oil When Grilling
 When grilling, trade the olive oil for a high smoke point oil. Photo courtesy DeMedici.com. |
Do you use olive oil when grilling? Perhaps you shouldn’t. Olive oil has a lower smoke point than other oils, so it will burn faster. Each fat (including butter, lard, oil and shortening) has a particular smoke point, which is the temperature at which the fat begins to break down. At this point, both the flavor and the nutritional value of the fat begin to degrade; and the fat will eventually smoke and burn if kept on the heat. The higher the cooking heat, the higher smoke point your fat must be. That’s why grapeseed oil (485°F), soybean oil (490°F) and safflower oil (510°F) are so popular for deep fat frying, the highest heat of stovetop cooking. While extra virgin olive oil has a smoke point of 440°F, few people would use this pricey oil for grilling. Much of the regular olive oil has a smoke point of just 320°F. Here are some comparative smoke points: 440°F: |
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450°F: 468°F: 485+: |
 Use a high smoke point oil for grilling, regardless of what you’re grilling. Photo by Slavomir Ulicny | SXC. |
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MORE ABOUT THE SMOKE POINT Why your fats smoke and burn, or not: What’s the smoke point? Different oils have different uses in smoke points. Here are the comparative smoke points of most oils.
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