Oil Selection
Two oils, and why you shouldn't be afraid to use them
You don't need a shelf full of different oils. You need two: extra virgin olive oil and avocado oil. Between them, you're covered for everything from a low-heat sauté to a screaming hot sear. And just as important as knowing which oil to use is not being afraid to actually use it.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: The Everyday Oil
EVOO is your workhorse. Use it for sautéing, roasting vegetables, making marinades, drizzling on finished dishes — it handles all of it. Yes, it's more expensive than vegetable oil or canola oil. But oil is something you use every single day, and from a health perspective, extra virgin olive oil is a significantly better product. It's rich in healthy fats and has actual flavor, which means it's doing double duty — cooking your food and adding to the taste. The price difference over a month is a few dollars. The quality difference is massive.
Avocado Oil: The High-Heat Specialist
When you need serious heat — searing a steak in cast iron, getting a wok screaming hot, anything where the oil needs to handle high temperatures — avocado oil is the move. It has a higher smoke point than olive oil, which means it won't start smoking and breaking down when you push the heat. It also has a neutral flavor, so it won't compete with whatever you're cooking. You'll use less of it than olive oil, but when you need it, nothing else does the job as well.
Stop Being Afraid of Oil
This is the bigger issue. Most people — especially people trying to eat healthy — use too little oil. They're afraid of the calories, so they put a tiny amount in the pan and wonder why their food sticks, comes out dry, or tastes bland. Here's the reality: a tablespoon of olive oil is about 120 calories. On a 500-calorie healthy meal, that's a small fraction that makes the entire dish taste dramatically better. And that well-seasoned, properly oiled meal keeps you satisfied and eating well, instead of hating your food, giving up, and ordering a 1,000-calorie fast food meal. A little oil is not the enemy. Bland food that makes you quit cooking — that's the enemy.
Sprays and Bottles
Aerosol spray cans like PAM are fine for one purpose: keeping food from sticking to a pan. That's it. They're not a substitute for actually cooking with oil — they don't add flavor and they don't provide enough fat for proper browning. If you want to control the amount of oil you use without going overboard, invest in a spray bottle designed for oil. Fill it with olive oil or avocado oil and you can mist your pans, your proteins, and your vegetables with real oil in controlled amounts. Better product, better flavor, same convenience.
Quick Tips
- ●EVOO for everyday cooking. Avocado oil for high-heat searing. That's the whole system.
- ●A tablespoon of good oil on a healthy meal is not the thing making you unhealthy.
- ●If your food tastes dry or bland, you're probably using too little oil — not too much.
- ●Get a spray bottle for oil to control amounts without sacrificing flavor.
- ●Aerosol sprays prevent sticking but don't replace real oil for cooking and flavor.