Logging vegetable/cooking oil

SteampunkSongbird

This leaves me a bit confused. I always log it, I just wonder if I'm over-logging with it, because I'm not actually eating that much of it on the rare occasions I do use it.

Today is a prime example: I'm making a bit of frying steak for dinner. I put one tablespoon of the oil into the frying pan, which is 124 calories. Now, when I finish with the steak, there will be oil left, there always is (not including the fatty, juicy gunk that comes out of the steak.) Should I really be logging the whole tbsp at 124 calories? Is it better to play it safe and just log it?

apparations

Always log it. I use olive oil or butter, and I log it every time. If you are measuring out one tbsp of oil, it's probably pretty close to accurate calorie wise. If you don't think you ate that much then maybe go 1/2 a tablespoon. I usually log 2 tsp of olive oil or 1 tbsp of butter, but I just eyeball it. I see many food diaries with no cooking oil ever and I'm like.. how??

Kalikel

It's all estimates. We do the best we can. If you want to log half, do that. I would count the whole thing, but you should do what you think is best!!

I stopped using oils and just throw the meat in the pan. I move it around for a minute so it doesn't stick to one spot, but pretty soon the juices are flowing and the meat is cooking just fine, with no oil. When it's done, there is plenty of of greasy gook in there.

astrose00

I use only enough oil to sear the meat. I eat only lean meats so it's hard to get any oils from the meet to aid in the cooking. I put in a teaspoon of oil in a smoking hot cast iron pan and tilt to coat the bottom of the pan. If there is any excess I drain it off. That way I know I have had less than a teaspoon. I put the meat in the pan and sear both sides. Then, while the pan is still very hot, I throw in about a half cup of hot water and let it steam cook the meat the rest of the way. The water eventually dissolves and you are left with the original oil in the pan and really juicy delicious meat. I cut chicken breast in to strips, season and put in a gallon baggy in the fridge. I measure out 4 to 8 oz for dinner and cook that way. You can even add onions, scallions, peppers to the pan before you add the water and you are left with a fajita like dish. I would never cook meat any other way. I'm sure the cast iron pan has a lot to do with the results but I assume the same can be done in other pans.

But to answer you original question, I would log the whole thing. But try draining the excess from the pan before you put the meat in and you can get away with logging less.

SteampunkSongbird

I would quite like to stop using oil altogether but frying steak and pancakes are the only things I use it for, and never more than one tbsp; my frying pan isn't great and without any oil at all, food sticks. I'm a very plain eater and don't really like dressings or many sauces on my food, so I don't mind using a bit of oil now and then just for frying. Thanks for the input guys.

Maybe I could just start using a teaspoon of oil instead of a tablespoon, since it always winds up being too much anyway.