canola oil?

[laruemtt]

my sister sent me something about canola oil, which i've been using for years, saying it might be very dangerous. anybody have any further info on canola oil?

http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/blcanola.htm

http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/canola.htm

[sabbat hunter]

1. check out snopes

http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/canola.asp


it is all a urban legend.

[laruemtt]

2. thanks, sabbat hunter. so many rumors -

so little time................

[TreasonousBastard]

3. Urban legend is right...

it seems this character who started this whole thing is just another crank. Just about every food has one who never gives up preaching the horrors. (Diabetic groups have been fighting the Aspartame legends, started the same way by one guy, for years.) Rapeseeed oil seemsd to have been used for a long time in Asian cooking wiothout any demonstrated ill effects.

The "mustard gas" part is the kicker-- if there was anything to this he wouldn't need to throw that in for the last scare.

For the skinny on this stuff, with all the technical stuff:

http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-B00001-01c20A1.html

Now, having said that, I don't think anyone suggests that Canola is really a panacea or ideal substitute for heavy oil users. Probably shouldn't be the only oil around, either. My personal preference is olive oil for most uses, with some bottles of peanut oil and safflower, corn, or canola lying around. I don't use soy, but probably eat a lot of it in Chinese takeout. Soy seems to be the base for most hydrogentated oils-- another reason to avoid Crisco, although the hydrogenation, not the soy itself, is the real problem.

About that smoke thing-- all oils smoke, and if you're cooking things hot enough to smoke the oil, you're probably generating a lot of nasty things, like nitrosamines, in the food. Not that they will necessarily kill you, but a few carcinogens do pop up here and there. I think the risk is small enough not to ruin my enjoyment of a good stir-fry or blackened catfish.

Oive oil does smoke at a lower temperature than most other oils, so that and its flavor does limit its use a bit. But, if someone doesn't need the higher temps and is OK with the taste in all things (even fish) it can be the only oil used. Too bad it's the most expensive one, but the highest priced extra virgin light oils aren't needed for cooking. I haven't tried the cheapo pumice olive oils (what they try to scounge out after the last pressing) but I don't know of any reason why it shouldn't work as a cooking oil.

[laruemtt]

5. thanks. i figure for the amount we use,

only on spinach salads, i'm not going to worry about it, but probably start mixing up the types of oil a little more - EXCEPT olive oil - taste is too strong!

[TreasonousBastard]

6. OY! Too bad you don't like olive oil, it's...

really popular for salads.

But, for the small amounts you use, just about anything that you like the taste of should be perfectly fine.

(Macadamia nut oil, anyone?)

[sabbat hunter]

8. olive oil

is probably the best oil for you.

there are milder tasting olive oils. instead of getting the extra virgin oil, look for one that says light olive oil.

[jojogunn]

4. there may be a GMO concern

check out the replayed interviews last Wednesday and the week before on KPFA:

http://www.kpfa.org/archives/index.php?show=13

[Warpy]

7. OK, Shirley is full of crap, but there is one danger with canola oil

and that is because it can be a trigger for people with GERD.

I know if I inadvertently get something in a restaurant sauteed in canola, I'm in severe pain within a few minutes.

For people without GERD, it's a polyunsaturated oil with a fairly high smoke point, and that makes it one of the more healthful oils out there for general cooking.

However, if you invite me to dine, switch to olive or safflower.