Baking Lube: What Kind of Oil Do You Use?

[cobblestone_cheesecake]

I'm a die hard fan of using light olive oil. I put that sh*# on everything (hot sauce commercial reference, ha ha). I have this alien ability to detect oils in baked goods and I find that the light olive oil makes its presence the least known. This was true for me until I poured it into a cookie recipe for chocolate fudgies, which are a hybrid brownie/cookie. I have come to the conclusion that chocolate and olive oil do not mix. Those fudgies had a flavor that would make your scrunch up your face really hard and those of us who are trying to turn back the clock do not want to be doing face scrunching unless absolutely necessary. Those fudgies earned a unanimous "Bleck!" from the whole household here. Imagine eating a plate of spaghetti and a bar of chocolate at the same time. Yea. Eeeesh. I have yet to find my light olive oil unyielding in its ability to meld with the flavors of other non-chocolate baked goods. How about you? What type of oil do you prefer? Anybody else have a particularly strong sense of taste in regards to oils?

 

[ACSAPA]

I just use whatever vegetable oil is on sale. I don't have the sensitive palate that you do but I find the flavor of olive oil pretty strong and I think it would make baked goods taste weird. Sometimes I use melted butter as the oil.

 

[Josie]

Only healthy oils here.. I have them all, so whatever will compliment the end product.

 

[cherza]

I use vegetable or canola oil for baking. I've just started using olive oil for cooking also. My mom introduced me to olive oil. Olive oil is more expensive than vegetable oil. Olive oil is more healthier and it taste good. My baked foods turn out good with both oils.

 

[cmckinney01]

I'm a die hard fan of using light olive oil. I put that sh*# on everything (hot sauce commercial reference, ha ha). I have this alien ability to detect oils in baked goods and I find that the light olive oil makes its presence the least known. This was true for me until I poured it into a cookie recipe for chocolate fudgies, which are a hybrid brownie/cookie. I have come to the conclusion that chocolate and olive oil do not mix. Those fudgies had a flavor that would make your scrunch up your face really hard and those of us who are trying to turn back the clock do not want to be doing face scrunching unless absolutely necessary. Those fudgies earned a unanimous "Bleck!" from the whole household here. Imagine eating a plate of spaghetti and a bar of chocolate at the same time. Yea. Eeeesh. I have yet to find my light olive oil unyielding in its ability to meld with the flavors of other non-chocolate baked goods. How about you? What type of oil do you prefer? Anybody else have a particularly strong sense of taste in regards to oils?

I do try to use olive oil as much as possible when I cook. However, I too have found that using olive oil in baking doesn't work very well. When I bake, I use vegetable oil. When I cook, I use olive oil. I wish I could use olive oil when baking but it just does not work.

 

[jtucci21]

Vegetable and canola oils are considered relatively "flavorless" oils, so they work great for baking. I use olive oil for some of my cooking, but the oil starts to go rancid when you heat it to too high of a temperature. Since I do a lot of sautéing and searing, I use coconut oil and corn oil the most. Ghee works very well and has an awesome butter taste! Much higher smoke point too so it doesn't burn as easily.

 

[Lacey]

I use coconut oil in a lot of baked goods. It gives it a really good flavor. I try to stay away from a lot of the heavier vegetable oils but I too will use butter on occasion in replace of oil.

 

[LivetoErr]

I use a vegetable oil that has the omega's added it it. It ends up being less fat and less calories than any olive oil I can find here.

I've always been curious about coconut oil. I shy away from it though, because it's on my list of foods to eat sparingly due to my high triglyceride count.

 

[Peggio]

I use coconut oil in most baked goods but vegetable oil is fine too. Whenever I feel that butter will enhance the end result I will use that, especially in muffins and biscuits. Often I will substitute homemade applesauce for the oil in cakes or muffins to decrease the fat content and I have never noticed any difference in the final product. I'm pretty flexible, whatever I have available is what I use based on what effect I am trying to get in the finished product.

 

[MoonshineSally]

While reading through the previous answers, I found a great hint about the apple sauce in muffins! Thank you Peggie!

About the oil:

"Olive Oil" is only that (what the name says) when you buy one with the title "extra vergine". Only that must legally be of 100% olive oil. Everything else, even the "pure olive oil" is just some plant oil of unknown source and with unknown ingredients. Please educate yourselves about the legal requirements and how your FDA is fooling you! (My government is not better, so don't take this as arrogance!)

And don't get me started on these so-called "light" products...

But to answer the OP question:

I like to use nut oils in baking cakes or pastries, for example hazelnut oil or walnut oil. For my breads I amusing EVO (Olive Oil for short, but the 100% one).

 

[LindaKay]

I always use vegetable oil when I bake, but I use olive oil when I cook.

 

[OhioTom76]

I've made Olive Oil Cake before and was rather pleased with it. It had some orange essence in it as well. It was very moist, and the fruity flavor of the olive oil went well with the orange sent. It may not be appropriate in all baking applications but it certainly does work in some.

When I am not using olive oil, I generally just use canola oil. It's so inexpensive and has a neutral flavor. Plus I like that it's not as viscous as some extra virgin olive oils can be. I actually sometimes prefer canola oil in certain things, such as dressings. I mixed up some Good Seasons Italian Dressing mix with red wine vinegar and extra virgin olive oil, and to be honest I liked it better with plain old white vinegar and canola oil.

Coconut oil would probably be good with the chocolate, but it's rather expensive. I've even heard of people making chocolate cake with Avocado as the fat.

 

[Kelly P]

I like to use a mix of oils. I normally use coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, and once in a great while if i find it soy oil. I have been wanting to try sunflower, but i'm not sure how it will change the taste in dishes. Has anybody used and or liked sunflower oil?

 

[Sandman]

I prefer to cook with olive oil for most dishes, mince, beef strips, sausage etc. but when make stuff like pumpkin fritters or eggs or something I prefer to use sunflower oil because it crispies things up better than olive oil, interesting tid bit:
Did you know that olive is a good moisturizer for tattoos. If I'm out of oil I usually substitute with butter, for my food that is and not my tattoos.

 

[basmae]

I sometimes use sunflower oil, but for the most part I prefer to use olive oil.

 

[Manny]

Canola oil is my go-to. Olive oil is great in breads and savoury recipes, but can be overpowering in desserts. I have a collection of fancier aromatic oils that I sometimes break out for special occasions. Lavender oil is fantastic in fruity baked goods.

 

[sgreenwood]

I too like to use coconut oil. It is a very healthy oil and also is high heat tolerant.

 

[janineaa]

Vegetable oil is a very common ingredient called for in baking recipes. It appears on ingredient lists for everything from pancakes to layer cakes, and can make for a very moist and tender cake. Many recipes don’t specify what kind of vegetable oil to use when baking, however. The answer is that I actually use any kind of vegetable oil. They are all liquid fats with about the same consistency, and will all give you a similar texture in your finished product. The difference between them, when it comes to baking, is the flavor. It's best to choose the one with the most neutral flavor.

 

[Crystal]

Only healthy oils here.. I have them all, so whatever will compliment the end product.

I agree! I use canola oil or pure olive oil for baking. The flavor of virgin olive oil is too strong, and that flavor will translate into your baked goods in a negative way. It's also more expensive, and should be reserved for vehicles in which it's taste will truly be appreciated, such as salads and breads. I love the taste of extra virgin olive oil, especially dipped in bread. I really want to start using Coconut Oil, but I haven't been brave enough to try it yet. I've been using coconut flour lately, so that's a start!

 

[MizBarbara]

http://breathing.com/articles/canola-oil.htm
I would have any one not familiar with the GMO s in cooking oil read what they are. For instance, canola, is made from rape seed which is a very dangerous seed and listed as poisonous. Other generically oils are corn oil,soy oil. One report said that they are close to being motor oils.
Peanut oil is safe but if one is not familiar with using it, it does have a high heat problem. I like it for some cooking, like frying. Olive oil is ok also. Have you noticed how butter is used in all recipes now?