How many times can cooking oil be reused?

Today, I read an interesting article in New Straits Times entitled "How many times can cooking oil be reused?" According to the article, one should avoid reusing oil more than twice or the oil has turned black, smell rancid or has turned thick and sticky [Ref. 1, see excerpt below for full article ].

Should we follow the article guidance? Personally, I will not follow.

I will share why this is a nutrition misconception and why cooking oil should not be reused at all. Reusing cooking oil poses a great danger to people's health.

Here are the reasons [Ref. 2]
1.  Most cooking oils contain small amounts of malondialdehyde - a possibly carcinogenic substance that affects enzymatic activity, speeds up the process of aging, and is cytotoxic. The malondialdehyde level in oil will increase 10 times or more when the oil is used repeatedly.

2. The oil used for deep-frying is kept at higher-than-boiling temperatures for extended periods of time. This causes unsaturated fatty acids (unstable in nature) in plant oils to oxidize continuously, resulting in the formation of harmful, or even carcinogenic, substances.

3. Oil that is used repeatedly will have a lowered smoke point, and toxic substances are produces more easily in such oil.

I learned this knowledge through Dr Chen Jau Fei, renowned Nutritional Immunologist. She is giving a health talk on 26th November. Please details here. Please contact me if you would like to get the ticket.

See other posts related to cooking oil
1. How do you choose cooking oil?

Regards,
Pei Lin LEE
Health Speaker/Consultant

References
1. The Straits Times,. "How many times can cooking oil be reused?"  12 Nov. 2016
2. J.F. Chen, "Nutrition. Immunity. Longevity"

How do you choose cooking oil?

Do we know what is the best oil to use for our daily diet? I have been confused which is the best oil to buy when I am doing shopping at the supermarket. There are so many types of oil in the market. I usually spend a long time reading at the ingredients of the oil to decide which cooking oil is the best. 

After doing research on cooking oil, I learn that there are two important points that you should know when choosing healthy cooking oil.

1) Omega 6 : Omega 3 ratio

Cooking oil is the primary source of omega-6 fatty acids in modern society. This is due to the large amount of oil in the modern diet, and also because of the general misconception that vegetable oils are healthy and can thus be consumed in any amount. As a result, the ratio of omega-6:omega-3 ratio consumed can often be as high as 30:1.

2) Smoke Point

A smoke point is the temperature at which cooking oil starts to smoke. Each type of cooking oil has a smoke point. Once the temperature of the oil's smoke point is reached, the oil starts to break down and smoke, producing toxic, or even carcinogenic, substances.

Tips for Selecting Healthy Cooking Oils

Cooking Oil	Smoke Point (°C)	Omega-6:Omega-3
Macadamia Oil	210	1:1
Perilla Seed Oil	202-250	1:4
Kiwi Fruit Seed Oil	160	1:4
Soybean Oil	160	7.1:1
Olive Oil	160	12.8:1
Tea Seed Oil	252	31.8:1
Sunflower Oil	107	39.4:1
Corn Oil	160	46.1:1
Sesame Oil	177	137:1
Peanut Oil	160	32:0

Based on the above findings, Macademia oil is a better option for high heat baking, stir frying, deep frying and high heat cooking. 

I start to use E Excel Macademia oil whenever using my oven for high heat baking and stir frying. It is formulated using 95.5% macadamia oil and 4.5% perilla seed oil, which has a smoke point of 210oC and has much higher Omega 3 than Omega 6.

Mild in flavor, it is ideal for stir-frying, deep-frying, grilling, roasting and baking. 

Pei Lin

83323173

redginberry@gmail.com

Recipe: Banana cake using Macadamia cooking oil

Recipe

A) 1/3 cup Macadamia cooking oil

     1/3 cup sugar

     1 large egg

     1/4 tsp vanilla

B) 1 cup flour

     1/2 tsp  baking soda

     1/2 tsp baking powder

     1/4 tsp salt

     2 pieces mashed banana

     1/3 cup walnut

Heat oven to 170 C

1) Beat A

2) Mix in B

3) Stir in Banana and Walnut 

4) Pour in Pan and Bake 170 C for 30 minutes

The Banana cake is not oily. Macadamia oil is a healthier choice as it has high omega 3.  Omega 6 fatty acid are an essential nutrient, but excessive amount will increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis, inflammation and auto immune diseases. The ideal ratio of omega 6 : omega 3 is between 1:1 and 4 :1

See here on how to choose cooking oil

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Pei Lin