Smoke Point of an Oil

Smoke point is the temperature to which oil can be heated before it smokes and discolours - indications of decomposition. If you are cooking with oil and it begins to smoke, it has reached its smoke point. At the smoke point, the oil begins to emit unpleasant odours and impart unsavoury flavours to your meal. Watch out for the smoke point signs as it means you are getting close to the flash point, which is when the oil can erupt into flames.

Knowing the smoke point warns you about the flash point and fire points. At the flash point, there are tiny wisps of flame; at the fire point a fire is blazing. The best oils for cooking and frying are those that have a high smoking point - that is, they can be heated to high temperatures before burning.

A number of factors will decrease the smoke point of any fat…

• Combination of vegetable oils in products.
• Presence of foreign properties (batter or crumbs).
• Temperature to which oil is heated.
• Presence of salt Number of times oil is used Length of time oil is heated. Storage of oil (exposure to oxygen, light, temperature) .
• Unrefined oils (oils obtained from cold extraction methods only) usually have lower smoke points than refined oils (oils obtained through high heat extraction).
• Generally, oil that has very little colour, aroma, or taste is probably refined oil. Although it may not be necessary to know the actual temperature of the smoke points of various oils, it is important to know which oils and fats may be safely used for different cooking methods.