By Suzana There is an extensive variety of plants from which vegetable oil is extracted. However, the main and most common are safflower, corn, sesame, sunflower, cotton, soy, olive and canola. To determine which one is the best for cooking, you should be considered the behaviour of the oils when they are heated and the potentially harmful compounds they produce in that process.
A process of obtaining oils
Several methods are used to extract the oil from the raw material. They can be physical or chemical processes. Physicists are the most recommended since in their process they do not involve hexanes or any additional ingredient that could cause the oil to lose its purity or quality nor does it subject the oils to high temperatures that could change its composition. Cold pressing and extraction by ejection are among the most recommended processes. The smoke point is the temperature at which fat or edible oil begins to decompose. The decomposition process becomes visible with the presence of smoke when overheated. What happens chemically is that triglycerides are separated into fatty acids and glycerol when heated. Glycerol is transformed into a substance known as Acrolein.
Type of fats
There are three types of fats found in edible vegetable oils such as monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and saturated. Each of these intervenes in your state of health in some way.The oils most recommended for their health benefits are monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids. According to the various medical Heart journals, these can help lower cholesterol levels, improve the response of the cardiovascular system, avoid some chronic degenerative diseases and generally improve the health status of the consumer.
Organic Oils
Organic foods are those that are grown under strict environmental controls and food safety. Within the specifications of these products it should not contain pesticides, genetically modified organisms, synthetic fertilizers, antibiotics, additives, growth hormones, wastewater, suggesting that they are better quality products, and there is even evidence that it could contain a higher number of nutrients and antioxidants due to the care that is taken in the production. According to the conclusions, organic vegetable oils have many more antioxidants than any other vegetable oil, and something has been used for thousands of years for various applications including purification ceremonies and symbolic rites that call for purity and abundance.
Conclusion: controversy
Despite all the benefits highlighted, there is controversy about whether it is better to use it at the end of the preparation of the dishes or to cook with it but let’s say that it is already according to the client’s taste. It is essential to keep in mind that agribusiness makes its own when business and profits are involved and when you buy extra virgin oil, it may be contaminated or diluted with other lower and cheaper oils.