Being on a keto diet, you end up eating a lot more fat (which is kind of the whole point). In the process, we tend to eat more of foods containing nuts and vegetable-based oils.
However, these types of foods contain higher amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids or PUFAs. The dietary imbalance of PUFAs, like omega-6 fatty acids, may increase inflammation in the body, which may increase the risk of various diseases.
That’s why it’s important to consider the following factors when choosing the best keto cooking oil.
Top Considerations…
PUFAs from whole nuts and seeds (not nut and seed flours) can improve your heart health. Basically, the less processed the better. The main culprit in the Western diet is the industrial vegetable or seed oils.
Some examples are canola and soybean oil. Check out your salad dressing aisle at the grocery store and see just how many contain one of these oils.
High heat and chemicals help extract these oils. This process causes the fats to become oxidized, which causes inflammatory effects in your body.
Some of the big exceptions are oils like olive oil
With all of this in mind, our keto cooking oil choices are going to be those that are higher in saturated fat content. That means that they are less likely to become oxidized.
Another benefit? Kickstarting ketosis.
Some of the keto cooking oil on our list contains Medium Chain Triglycerides (MCTs). MCTs can easily convert to free ketones within the body due to their medium molecular chain length.
Ketones are a potent energy source and signal your body to enter ketosis, where fat converts to energy. The best keto cooking oil contains a high concentration of MCTs. Check out our post on Best MCT Oils for details!
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Top 5 List of the Best Keto Cooking Oil
#1 MCT Oil
These MCTs are all saturated fats, meaning they are less prone to becoming oxidized during cooking and consumption.
That’s why they are added to hot Bulletproof coffee or Bulletproof tea. We’ve written a detailed write-up on the benefits and various brands of MCT oils here.
The smoke point is mid-range 320-350 degrees Fahrenheit and can definitely be used for cooking, however, Avocado Oil is the best choice for frying (listed later on).
MCT oils are great for adding to your daily fat intake because it easily converts to ketones. This is why MCT oil is king when it comes to keto dieting.
The easiest way to use MCT oils is adding them to salad dressings, coffees or shakes. MCT oil is also flavor and odorless, so you can easily substitute into many recipes that call for generic oil like cake
#2 Coconut Oil
What’s so great about coconut oil? There are seemingly unlimited benefits of coconut (and I won’t get into those here). What’s important for keto is that coconut oil naturally contains MCTs. In fact, MCT oil is extracted from coconuts!
While there are a lot of MCTs in coconut oil, they have various constitutions that make pure MCT oil more potent at converting to ketones. Coconut’s lauric acid has a slightly longer chained structure, which makes it more difficult to break down.
Coconut Oil has a smoke point of around 350 degrees Fahrenheit and is great for baking and sauteeing. Smoke point: 350 degrees F. Use for sautéeing and baking.
#3 Avocado Oil
This is the best keto frying oil as it has a high smoke point at around 520 degrees Fahrenheit!! Many people use it for grilling, roasting, baking, etc.
Additionally, it only has about a 12% PUFA constitution, which is definitely on the lower end spectrum of vegetable oils. In addition, avocado oil has been shown to have a myriad of health benefits!
Tip:
- You’ll find that some Paleo- and Keto-friendly dressings
on the market that use avocado oil.
- There are also many keto friendly mayo brands that use exclusively avocado oil for their base (no combination). Check out our post on the best keto mayos for more info!
#4 Olive Oil
Plus olive oil is in tons of recipes and can make some wonderful dressings. It’s not often that entire culinary fields devoted to an oil, but olive oil is that major exception. Especially since the burning point for Extra Virgin olive oil is pretty high at 410 degrees Fahrenheit.
You’ll find that the bigger brand names are making products that incorporate olive oil in them. Just make sure that olive oil is the main ingredient.
It is common for brands to market products made with olive oil even though it is a blend with another oil like soybean oil. This happens with many store-bought mayonnaise.
#5 Ghee
Also, from a cooking standpoint, ghee has a higher smoke point at 485 degrees Fahrenheit, allowing you to use it in the higher heat without oxidizing the fat.
Ghee also has a very rich flavor that can complement things like coffee or even eggs. It’s a staple in Indian cuisine for that reason.
Overall, even though ghee isn’t an oil, it exhibits great qualities such as high smoke point (so it would also be a great keto frying oil) and MCT content. It gets an exception in our book and we love cooking with it! And that’s why it’s on our best oils for keto list!
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