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Any insights on types of oils to use in both cooked and raw recipes??

shgadwashgadwa Raw Newbie

Some people say that oils such as canola is absolutely terrible for your health. Other people (like spectrum who sells organic cold pressed canola oil) says that if the oil is cold pressed, it is good for you. As long as it does not have chemicals and is not heated. What do any of you think?? If I could use conola, I would as it is cheaper than olive oil. Also, safflower oil is $4.95 a quart but that is the enriched kind and I am a little skeptical about buying a product that has vitamins in it even if it is raw and this is. Because I have no idea where the vitamins came from. Like most manufactures used activated sewage sludge as a source for B12 others used Beef livers. Now, luckily, a lot of the normal vitamin companies use synthetic sources which still might be just as bad and might even be sewage sludge. You have to ask a lot of questions before they give you the truth.

Comments

  • germin8germin8 Raw Master

    I bought organic Rapunzel sunflower oil from the Common Market in MD. I don’t know how I will use it… but thought it was a deal of a price compared to 1st cold pressed olive oil. It is not enriched either.

    Just guessing here: I would agree… if the oil is cold-pressed it would be okay. Why not… it’s raw – right?

    As for the flavor… I can’t say I know what they taste like ‘raw’.

  • I use Bariani Olive Oil http://www.barianioliveoil.com/ I took a class with Chad Sarno, raw chef extraordinaire, and that’s what he uses. It is sooooo yummy! If you can’t find that, I’d try to make sure the label on whatever you did get at least said organic & cold pressed or raw. I am leery of anything but raw organic olive, flax, hemp, or coconut oils.

  • locustgirllocustgirl Raw Newbie

    the main trouble with canola and other seed oils it that they are polyunsaturated. this means they have many open bonds and oxygenate (go rancid) very quickly and are only good for you if you eat them immediately or if there is very special care taken to bottle and store. most (if not all) on the store shelves is likely to be rancid. rancid oil causes free radical damage to the cells. saturated fats have closed bonds so they don’t go rancid and, if processed serenely, won’t go rancid for a couple of years. monosaturated oils (like olive oil) only have one open bond which means they are still pretty stable and have a long shelf life, but they are best taken unheated. best fats to use for cooking are ones that can handle high heat like coconut and palm. so to sum things up, the best choices altogether are cold pressed olive, palm, coconut, ghee, and avocado (fruit not seed). if you’re not veg or vegan this would also include animal fats. when choosing oils it pays off to get the good stuff. spectrum oils in general are not high quality. healthy fats are essential to so many functions of our body, it’s worth it to pay extra in my opinion.

  • germin8germin8 Raw Master

    thanks locustgirl. that’s great information!

  • JDJD

    Cold pressed olive oil is healthiest if uncooked! Once it is heated it loses it’s healthy properties because it changes structure and it does not go back to its original form once it has cooled. Cooked olive oil is basically unhealthy. Raw Organic Coconut oil is the best. When heated it retains the same make up as when it is not heated therefore it is healthy not matter what you do. Use it as a lotion, heat it, just eat it…love coconut oil.

  • You folks are so knowledgeable! Do any of you have any information about cold pressed macadamia nut oil? I’ve heard raves about it as far as taste, but is it healthy? I’ve read that it highly monounsaturated. Is that true?

  • shgadwashgadwa Raw Newbie

    Yes, Yes. Do not heat oils. I know. But still some do (like me rarely in cooking) and I was wanting to know what some good oils are for both cooking and using raw. as some do better heated, others are better (have better flavor) if raw. I guess then olive oil is the best but still safflower and canola is SO much cheaper.

  • ZoeZoe Raw Newbie

    Sorry to be a party pooper but cold pressed doesn’t necessarily mean it is raw. Even extra virgin olive oil first cold pressing is not raw unless it says on the label that it is unfiltered. This is because oil is heated during filtration. I found this out after writing and calling several oil producers when I first went raw. Since then, I look out for Unfiltered on the label. If you are in the UK you can get organic unfiltered olive oil at Tescos, their own brand comes unfltered (amazing but true!), and a brand called Belazu.

  • i use unfiltered olive oil too (i get one from trader joe’s, it’s not organic though). the bariani that fuzzy wuzzy suggested is unfiltered as well, but more expensive than the TJ’s kind. i should probably switch to that one.

    shgadwa, if you’re going to cook with oil, i would use coconut oil always. butter (what? is she suggesting butter?) would be second best. the reason is that coconut oil is stable at the highest temperature. i wouldn’t fuss over cost on this issue. if you’re using so much oil that it’s a big expense, you may want to look into why you are using so much oil!

    i hope that doesn’t sound harsh, it is not intended that way. everyone has their own process and i would never want to rush your path to rawness!

  • michele ss, i didn’t care for the taste of macadamia oil, but it is highly nutritious. not sure if it’s truly raw or not, as shelled macadamias are often heat processed. personally, i don’t fuss over stuff like that.

    actually, it has a very high smoke point as well, so that would be another good one to cook with. but more expensive still, which is not what sgadwa was looking for.

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