Why does my olive oil smoke/burn when I fry with it?
I see many chefs/people in food channels who use olive oil to fry stuff (like salmon). However, when I add olive oil for frying it quickly burns releasing dark smoke. Is there a specific type of olive oil that they use for frying that doesn't burn? or am I just possibly doing something wrong?
Best Answer
You're heating the oil past its smoke point.
There is no trick or technique that will prevent oil from smoking and oxidizing ("burning") at temperatures above the smoke point. It is literally being slowly destroyed at that temperature.
I honestly don't know why TV chefs are so attached to the idea of cooking with olive oil when most serious attempts to compare it to other oils (for frying purposes) strongly indicate that it loses all or almost all of its unique taste by the end. Some cite dubious health benefits, but the low smoke point of virgin/extra virgin olive oil may also make it worse for you health-wise due to exactly what you've witnessed - smoke and oxidation.
EVOO is great as a dressing but it's a terrible choice as a cooking oil. If you absolutely must imitate these confused TV chefs, you can either fry at very low temperatures (as in, just barely a sizzle), which will take considerably more time, or used a refined (not virgin) olive oil which has a much higher smoke point. These would typically be the "cheap" olive oils you find in large plastic or metal containers.
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Quick Answer about "Why does my olive oil smoke/burn when I fry with it?"
Probably you are using a refined olive oil or a cheap one that has a low smoke pointDoes frying olive oil smoke?
But not only does extra virgin olive oil have a high enough smoke point for cooking, smoke point isn't even the most important factor to consider when choosing a cooking oil. Extra virgin olive oil has a smoke point between 350 and 410 degrees Fahrenheit.Does olive oil burn frying?
Some sources put the smoke point of olive oil somewhere around 374\u2013405\xb0F (190\u2013207\xb0C) (17). This makes it a safe choice for most cooking methods, including most pan frying. Extra virgin olive oil's smoke point is somewhere around 374\u2013405\xb0F (190\u2013207\xb0C). This makes it a good choice for most cooking methods.How do I stop extra virgin olive oil from burning?
You can take the pan off the heat. Or you can add some food." In other words, adding a big batch of beans quickly reduced the temperature well below its smoke point. "We just lowered the temperature of that frying pan by 50 degrees," he noted.What does it mean when olive oil smokes?
"The smoke point of an oil or fat is the temperature at which, under defined conditions, sufficient volatile compounds emerge from the oil and a bluish smoke becomes clearly visible," explains Leandro Ravetti, the study's co-author and agriculture engineer and technical director of Modern Olives laboratory in Australia ...Is olive oil safe at high heat? Does it taste bad?
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Answer 2
You want to use 'extra light' olive oil, not 'extra virgin'.
It's more refined, and has a significantly higher smoke point. It's closer to 240°C, while many other oils used for frying, such as peanut oil, smoke well below that temperature.
Don't just go for the cheap bottle of olive oil and assume that the price indicates that it's 'extra light' ... there are a number of companies that will blend olive oil with some other oil to reduce the price, but it doesn't necessarily increase the smoke point.
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