How many calories does pan frying add?

Frying replaces the water in a starchy food with oil so it depends on what you are frying. Meats will be minimally effected by frying unless they are breaded, in which case you can add up to 3x the calories to the breading if you fry. Potatoes are about 1cal/g when baked but about 3cal/g when deep fried. Pan frying will probably be a bit better but I would say 2 to 2.5 cal/g would be a decent estimate.

I fry corn tortillas regularly because I'm GF and they're just awful without frying. I am really just guessing at how much oil is absorbed. I really wish I knew how to get a better number.

sllm1 wrote: »

I fry corn tortillas regularly because I'm GF and they're just awful without frying. I am really just guessing at how much oil is absorbed. I really wish I knew how to get a better number.

Don't know if this is any help but I don't add oil to the pan. I spray them lightly with Pam. The food log has a calorie count for Pam per second of spray. I find it takes very little and they are delicious. No more hard taco shells for me. Plus they are lower in calories so the little bit of added oil per spraying is well worth it.

Being from the South, when you say fry my mind always go to deep frying such as chicken, chicken fried steak etc.
I sauté meats and veggies all the time using olive oil. I enter the amount of oil I use and I don't find it effects in any measurable amount.

I know it matters to others but I don't bother measuring the oil I use to pan fry meat (or anything else). Failing to log those cals that stick to the food doesn't seem to affect my weight whatsoever. I'm just lucky that way, I guess.

I have had to change my methods. I use a ceramic pan and a touch of water.

jamieparadis20 wrote: »

I've heard that coconut oil is the best because something unique about its composition makes it so your body doesn't store it as fat but instead burns it like carbs!

You are thinking MCT, that's not going to help anyway since you just stop burning carbs and other fats. You don't get free calories or more expensive calories, you just get calories. Alcohol is another example of something you won't store as fat but you'll get fat off of it if you drink a lot and don't reduce calories elsewhere to compensate.

I prefer pan frying with roasted hazelnut oil- it has more good fats/less bad fat than olive oil, and has a high smoke point, and adds a rich flavor to stirfry especially (I like green beans, sweet potato, mushroom, onion, and tempeh, stirfry in hazelnut oil with a teaspoon of brown sugar and a splash of balsamic vinegar + salt/pepper/spices)

I guess it depends on whether what you fry has any water and how much of the water (or even oil) burns off at high temperatures.

You might get a closer approximation by doing the following (assuming the oil is clean and doesn't contain added debris).

Weight the oil you're using.
When you're done frying and removing your food, get a wad of paper towels and weight it.
Blot off the oil from the pan using the towels.
Weight the paper towels again.
Deduct the difference from the original amount of oil you added to the pan.

You will still be slightly over-estimating the oil your food has absorbed because some oil gets burned during the cooking process.
You will still be slightly under-estimating the oil your food has absorbed because your food may have contributed some water or other detritus that you are weighing in the end.

How all that will balance out for you, I don't know

I just use pam

I'm eating a very low carb/high fat diet and I'm having a hard time eating enough fat so I guess frying is the way to go. I just want to know if I'm making my goal or not, helpful suggestions. In particular the "weigh it before and after you fry it' makes the most sense in my brain. Thanks for the suggestion Speziface! I've done a lot of research on what kind of oil to fry in and I've been using grapeseed oil for several years now. It cooks at a high temp without changing into a bad fat and has a lot of other benefits also. If anyone knows anything about the ketogenic please respond. Some research says you need to eat 5% carbs and 60% fat but other research just says you have to eat under 50 grams of carbs..

I weigh the oil before and after frying, once the pan has cooled down.

RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »

I weigh the oil before and after frying, once the pan has cooled down.

I would do this if frying with a significant amount of oil. If I'm just lightly sauteing something, I count all the oil and figure if I'm over it just goes into my calorie 'slush fund,' as I like to call it!