The table lists 13 varieties of edible oils by smoke point, recommended heat, typical package size, and typical price for that package.
Heating an oil above its smoke point—the temperature at which the oil begins to smoke—can produce toxic fumes. To avoid this, different oils are recommended for use with different levels of heat:
Oil | Refined? | Smoke point (°C) | Recommended heat | Package size (mL) | Price per package ($) |
Coconut | no | 190 | high | 250 | 8.00 |
Corn | yes | 210 | high | 1,000 | 6.50 |
Flaxseed | no | 49 | no | 473 | 18.00 |
Grape-seed | yes | 215 | high | 500 | 10.50 |
Olive, extra-virgin | no | 163 | medium | 200 | 13.00 |
Olive, light | yes | 225 | high | 750 | 12.00 |
Peanut | yes | 232 | high | 475 | 9.00 |
Pumpkin | no | 100 | low | 250 | 14.50 |
Safflower | no | 100 | low | 250 | 20.00 |
Sesame | no | 163 | medium | 500 | 14.00 |
Sunflower | no | 100 | low | 500 | 6.00 |
Sunflower | yes | 227 | high | 1,000 | 7.00 |
Walnut | no | 49 | no | 500 | 9.50 |
Yes | No | |
The range of smoke points for the refined oils is greater than that for the unrefined oils.
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The median price per package for the high-heat oils is less than that for the medium-heat oils.
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The median package size for refined oils is greater than that for unrefined oils.
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