The 3 healthy fats that I definitely use when cooking

Well, first of all when we talk about fats , more often than ever we are jumping right into the “oh fat will make me fat” belief. This is far from the truth. Good fat sources secrete a hormone CCK which has very little effect on the storing hormone insulin and are a great sources of increasing overall satiety.

This blog post I wanted to specially emphasise on the different oils we think are “healthy” as opposed to the real “healthy ones” that we do not incorporate into our meals.

We all have an idea of good sources of fats in general – like avocados, eggs, paneer, hard cheese , olives etc. But more often I notice that people ignore the fats they use while cooking.

Before diving into the the fats for cooking , let’s discuss the science backed info around it. Not all the fats are same . Period! Each fat has a different way it is processed and produced( corn/ canola/ sunflower/ safflower etc) . These oils go through a highly intense processing method and are highly inflammatory( our packaged foods/ restaurant food are made in these oils).

If you eat anything inflammatory , it will cause inflammation in the body .These oils also contain unhealthy Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratio not making the best fat options for consumption .

So the next question is what makes a better choice and option? The more saturated a fat is, the more heat stable it is – which means you can cook with it at higher temperatures without the oil being oxidised.

Here are my 3 favourites

Ghee( organic) – Ghee is formed from the clarification of butter . This means all the milk proteins and sugar are removed from the simple process of heating the butter and scooping the sugars and protein out . There are many out there – look for organic/ grass fed versions for a better omega 3 to omega 6 ratio, which helps to decrease inflammation.

Avocado oil – The benefits of eating avocados are innumerable , but so is for the avocado oil . The best part about this nutrient dense oil is that like ghee it has a high smoking point and apart from cooking in it , can be used in salads and dressings too.

I saute my veggies in it always!

Coconut oil – The use of this oil has always been a topic of discussion. Yes, this oil has a high level of saturated fats, but it is no way going to harm you for the amount of oil we use for cooking . The higher level of saturated fat actually makes it an excellent source of cooking oil because it will not degrade and increase free – radical damage in your body when exposed to heat . They contain beneficial MCT’s which help is brain health and boosts energy

Pro tip – use 1 tablespoon for preparing curries( thai curry). Its an acquired taste (slight coconut flavor) , which I really love . Experiment with this oil.

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Stay healthy,

Swati