Cooking With Oil

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  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
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    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    I'm not. I don't deep fry at home.

    If I go out to a restaurant and order french fries, sure, those are deep fried. But I don't cook deep fried foods at home.

    Sometimes I'll "oven fry" stuff -- coat it with flour and bread crumbs, and bake it in the oven to crisp up. Uses far less oil and still gives that satisfying crunch, and with seasoning it can be almost as good.

    (Exception: Potato latkes at Chanukah. But those are holiday foods so I just enjoy them and log them, 'cause it's only once a year.)
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
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    segacs wrote: »
    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    I'm not. I don't deep fry at home.

    If I go out to a restaurant and order french fries, sure, those are deep fried. But I don't cook deep fried foods at home.

    Sometimes I'll "oven fry" stuff -- coat it with flour and bread crumbs, and bake it in the oven to crisp up. Uses far less oil and still gives that satisfying crunch, and with seasoning it can be almost as good.

    (Exception: Potato latkes at Chanukah. But those are holiday foods so I just enjoy them and log them, 'cause it's only once a year.)

    You're the OP?
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
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    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    How do you deep fry in 4 Tbs of oil? Deep frying means submerged in fat. Not many things will submerge in 4 Tbs of oil.

    4Tbs sounds like pan fried. I don't know why anyone would count all the fat if there is clearly fat left in the pan.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    Who deep fries in only 4 tablespoons of oil? That's why I assumed it couldn't be deep frying, it's simply not enough for it.

  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
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    I think I just don't know anything about cooking because I went along with everyone when they said he must be deep frying.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
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    arditarose wrote: »
    You're the OP?

    The question was "how are you guys" deep frying in oil? I assume the question was being asked of the respondents, not of the OP.
    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    Who deep fries in only 4 tablespoons of oil? That's why I assumed it couldn't be deep frying, it's simply not enough for it.

    Probably, yeah. In which case, if there's lots of oil left over in the pan afterwards, probably the OP could cut back on the amount used in the first place.
  • nilbogger
    nilbogger Posts: 870 Member
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    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    Who deep fries in only 4 tablespoons of oil? That's why I assumed it couldn't be deep frying, it's simply not enough for it.

    Small pan? Thin foods? Or perhaps it's more of a shallow fry that still requires four tablespoons of oil. Foor tablespoons would probably make a relatively thin layer over the bottom of a 12-inch pan. At any rate, there are certainly instances that would necessitate using around that much oil. I don't get why people are saying a teaspoon to a tablespoon will suffice in any and all cooking situations.
  • williams969
    williams969 Posts: 2,528 Member
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    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    I don't deep fry, and I never have. I just don't have the culinary skillz (i.e. fear of burning down the house, lol) ;)
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    edited January 2015
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    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    I don't deep fry, and I never have. I just don't have the culinary skillz (i.e. fear of burning down the house, lol) ;)

    No culinary skills here either. I've used my oven maybe twice in 6 years. I don't know what it does really.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    nilbogger wrote: »
    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    Who deep fries in only 4 tablespoons of oil? That's why I assumed it couldn't be deep frying, it's simply not enough for it.

    Small pan? Thin foods? Or perhaps it's more of a shallow fry that still requires four tablespoons of oil. Foor tablespoons would probably make a relatively thin layer over the bottom of a 12-inch pan. At any rate, there are certainly instances that would necessitate using around that much oil. I don't get why people are saying a teaspoon to a tablespoon will suffice in any and all cooking situations.

    Well, nothing my family eats would. We'll wait until the OP comes back and see what he's frying in 4 tbsp of oil.

    Since you're seeing a use for that much oil, what would you do?

  • dopeysmelly
    dopeysmelly Posts: 1,390 Member
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    nilbogger wrote: »
    I assume OP is talking about deep frying. How are you guys deep frying stuff in a teaspoon of oil?

    I don't deep fry, and I never have. I just don't have the culinary skillz (i.e. fear of burning down the house, lol) ;)

    Me too. And it gets really messy.

    It is surprising how little oil you can use when cooking in a pan. I cut back a lot (some recipes from tablespoon(s) to teaspoon(s). No one noticed the difference.

    If you use less to start with, it's easier mentally to log the whole portion of what you add to the pan rather than worrying about bits left over.
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
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    tdrusk wrote: »
    How should I measure my oil when I am cooking with it? I don't think it is fair to count 4tbsp of oil when I know some it is being burned away. Is there a percentage I can count?

    finecooking.com/item/48328/the-science-of-frying
    Some oil may be absorbed by your food but otherwise it should be left behind. I don't think oil will actually burn up when you cook. You could just measure/weigh what is left behind and only record what is missing as the oil you are consuming.
    You could switch to using less oil or a different cooking method that doesn't use oil.
  • tonyrocks922
    tonyrocks922 Posts: 172 Member
    edited January 2015
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    There are a lot of weird assumptions being made here.

    - There is no way to know if OP is using too much or too little oil since he doesn't say what he's cooking and how he's cooking it.

    - It is almost certain OP is not deep frying with only 4 tbsp of oil. He is probably sauteing, pan frying or maybe shallow frying. Comments that the food probably doesn't absorb much oil are not helpful since that only really applies to deep frying.

    OP: If you are sauteing, the oil is not "burning off" it is being absorbed into the food and you should log all of it. If you are pan frying you might be using too much oil and should try cooking with less and seeing how it comes out. If you are shallow frying you can consider weighing the oil before and after.
  • maxit
    maxit Posts: 880 Member
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    I just log what I put in the pan, regardless of whether there is liquid (oil plus juices from food) left.