One of the topics you read a lot about lately in magazines is making healthy choices in the foods we eat and in the way we prepare our favorite meals. Gone are the days when popular recipes promote dipping foods in butter or deep-frying them. Yet, we still like that buttery flavor, do we not? And cooking with oils remains a very common approach. Product manufacturers have acknowledged both this and our health-conscious desires, advertising multiple cooking oils and butter products which all claim to be the best.
But with all these options, how do you know which ones to use, and which ones to throw out? In this article are some tips on cooking with oils for people desirous of healthy diets.
Butter
The popularity of butter over the years has remained constant. Very few individuals don't like the taste, and investigations have revealed that "real butter" (made from natural ingredients) provides sources of the vitamins A, E, K, and D.
Butter has numerous uses in the kitchen, and can be used with baking, cooking, spread on sandwiches, and much more.
Margarine
Margarine has not been around as long as butter, and is becoming more healthy as the development of the product continues. When it was first presented as a replacement for high fat butter, it contained too much trans fat. Trans fat raises bad cholesterol levels.
Margarine does taste very good when used as a cooking oil, and it has less fat than butter and most oils. It is also significantly cheaper than cooking with oils or butter, comes in a range of products, is spreadable, and is a source of Vitamin E.
Canola oil
Canola oil is low in saturated fat, has a better fatty acid composition than other oils, and has many doctors claiming it helps to reduce the chance of heart disease.
Canola oil is quite popular with those who prefer cooking with oils (liquid ones). It performs well for sauteing, frying (on low temperatures), and as a marinade. Canola oil also doesn't have a potent taste, so that makes it a nice choice for spicy dishes or for foods where you specifically don't want the oil to interfere the taste of your meal.
Olive oil
Olive oil has been around for centuries, and is used world-wide Olive oil has a long shelf life, and a distinct flavor. Researchers say that this oil is full of ingredients that are good for your heart, helps to reduce cholesterol levels, and even decrease the risk of cancer. It is full of monounsaturated fat (the "good" sort of fat), as well as in antioxidants.
Olive oil should be heated ideally on low to medium heat, as with high heat it quickly burns. It is healthiest, however, when it remains uncooked, and used in food items like salad dressing or dipping sauce.
There are many different flavors and kinds of cooking oils available these days in grocery stores, but these are the most popular four. Having a healthy diet program means cooking healthy food, which is really where your knowledge of cooking oils is important.
Author Resource:
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