How Should You Choose Cooking Oils for Different Uses?

Oil choice shouldn't come down to taste alone — smoke point matters just as much: the temperature at which an oil starts to smoke and break down when heated. An oil with a low smoke point used over high heat leaves a bitter taste and gives off a burnt smell. That's why the same oil isn't always right for every cooking method.

The general rule: high-heat cooking and frying call for oils with a high smoke point, while low-heat cooking and raw uses call for oils with more character and a lower smoke point. Methods that fall in between, like sautéing, usually call for a middle-ground choice.

Which oil should you use for deep frying?

Refined vegetable oils like sunflower and corn oil, with a smoke point around 200°C, suit deep frying; they hold up well under sustained high heat and their neutral taste doesn't mask the food being fried. That neutrality is also why the same oil works for both sweet and savoury frying.

Extra virgin olive oil, with a lower smoke point, isn't the right choice for long deep-frying sessions. Even used briefly over moderate heat, it doesn't hold up as well to repeated reheating and reuse as the more refined oils do.

What oil suits sautéing and pan-roasting?

Riviera olive oil or a butter-oil blend is a common choice for medium-high sautéing; butter alone can start burning at a fairly low temperature because of the milk proteins it contains. That burning shows up as dark specks in the pan and a slightly bitter smell.

That's why the heat is usually kept at medium when sautéing with butter. Adding a splash of oil is also a practical way to raise butter's burning point and reduce that risk.

Which oil belongs in salads and cold dressings?

Cold salads and dressings call for aromatic oils that never see heat, like extra virgin olive oil, hazelnut oil or sesame oil; since they're never heated, they keep their aroma and give the dish real character. These oils are usually added at the last step, right before serving.

Using them over high heat both wastes the aroma and can make the oil turn rancid. Once heat drives off those aroma compounds, they don't come back, which is why these oils are best kept for raw use rather than cooking.

How does butter differ from the other oils?

Butter has a lower smoke point than vegetable oils, and the milk proteins in it darken quickly under high heat, which is why butter-based frying is usually done over low to medium heat. Darkened butter doesn't just look worse, it affects the dish's flavour too.

Sadeyağ, butter with the milk proteins removed, lacks those proteins and can withstand higher heat, which is why it's chosen for high-heat cooking. That's also why it shows up so often in traditional pilaf and roasting recipes.