Olive oil is a high-flavor and rich-in-nutrition oil. It makes food tasty and healthy. But is there a solution if you have to cook without olive oil? For example, is it possible to use vegetable oil in the place of olive oil?
Can you use vegetable oil instead of olive oil?
Vegetable oil can be used instead of olive oil. The main difference between vegetable oil and olive oil is vegetable oil’s lack of flavor compared to olive oil. If you intend to use vegetable oil rather than olive oil, expect to suffer some loss of flavor in comparison.
The main difference between vegetable and olive oils in the preparation of meals
Olives are fruits, going by their basic features. Olives belong to the Drupe family, which all have a firm seed inside a fleshy outside.
Cherry, plums, mangoes, and peaches are all part of the Drupe fruit family.
As with many oils from other sour fruits, olive oil is mildly spicy and slightly bitter. Vegetable oil isn’t usually spicy, but it is also a little bitter, so vegetable oil is somewhat similar to olive oil.
Therefore, it is absolutely possible to use vegetable oil in recipes that call for olive oil.
What distinguishes olive oil from vegetable oil?
You can tell the difference between olive oil and vegetable oil by looking at certain distinguishing characteristics. These differences will help you decide which oil to use.
Vegetable oil: every vegetable oil is extracted from the seeds. Therefore, all vegetable oil products require thorough cleaning.
Cleaning vegetable oil involves heating and using chemical processes to remove muck and other impurities. Unfortunately, this process reduces the nutrients and flavor of the seeds. The particular process used determines how much of the natural flavor is removed.
Vegetable oil can be made from many ingredients, including soybeans, cottonseed, canola, safflower, corn, and cottonseed.
The more ingredients a vegetable oil has, the higher the number of processes it must go through because of the increased number of ingredients.
By the end of such processing, vegetable oil has usually lost all its flavor and tastes neutral.
Olive oil: is only made from olives and does not require any processing. Olive oil has more flavor than vegetable oils.
The health values of vegetable vs. olive oils
Vegetable oils have a lower health value due to the processing they must undergo. Chemical processing removes nutrients and causes the oil to lose its essential nutrients.
Olive oil contains more nutrients than vegetable oils because olive oil doesn’t undergo chemical processing.
Extra virgin olive oil is a common addition to balanced diets for certain patients. However, olive oil’s health benefits make it more expensive than vegetable oil.
Both vegetable and olive oils contain unsaturated fats, but there are differences in their features.
Olive oil: has monosaturated fats, which include oleic, linoleic, and palmitic acids. These fats can help you recover from heart disease. They are also anti-inflammatory.
Olive oil has more nutrients and health benefits than monosaturated fats. Extra virgin olive oil contains even more nutrients because nutrients are not broken down.
Extra virgin olive oil is high in antioxidants as well as anti-inflammatory components. Carotenoids, tocopherols, and polyphenols are all found in this oil.
Vegetable oil: contains Omega6 polyunsaturated oils. These polyunsaturated oils can be harmful to the heart’s health and increase inflammation in the body.
Despite sufficient micronutrients, essential compounds, and antioxidants in vegetable oil ingredients, almost all of these elements are destroyed by the oil’s cleansing processes.
Both olive oil and vegetable oils are green fruit-derived. There are other similarities, too. They can work together because of these similarities. Let’s find out which features match one another.
How come vegetable oil can be a substitute for olive oil?
Both olive oil and vegetable oils are green fruit-derived. There are other similarities, too. They can work together because of these similarities.
Below are some ways in which the two types of oil match each other.
“Smoke point” refers to the temperature at which oil begins to heat but does not start to separate. The oil’s fat is broken down and converted to glycerol and free fatty acids during cooking.
Luckily, both vegetable and olive oils have the same smoke point.
I’ve already pointed out that vegetable oil undergoes a lot of processing, which reduces its nutrients. Nevertheless, there are some other health benefits that vegetable oils retain even after they have been refined.
For example, vegetable oil contains unique ingredients that can help improve brain health. In this instance–brain health–numerous studies have shown that vegetable oil is better than olive oil.
The processes of cooking with vegetable oil vs. cooking with olive oil compared
Both oils work both similarly and differently in the cooking process. For a start, although the smoke points of both oils are similar, there are a few important differences.
Vegetable oil has a smoke point at 460°F, while olive oil has a lower smoke point at 410°F. As such, it is easier to fry items such as fried chicken, French fries, and fried vegetables with vegetable oil.
Frying with vegetable oil prevents the oil from separating and allows the ingredients to be thoroughly fried.
Vegetable oil is also preferable when grilling. Vegetable oil’s higher burning point keeps meat or chicken warm but not burnt. It spreads heat more evenly than olive oil.
Tip: because of its higher smoke point, vegetable oil is better for frying.
Olive oil is indeed ideal whenever there is something to cook that doesn’t need high temperatures. Taking curry as an example, olive oil is a better option because curries don’t need to reach high temperatures. Curries taste best when they are left simmering for a long time.
Another example of a meal item that does well when simmered at a lower heat is gravy. Using olive oil to cook curries increases the flavor and health of the dish. Therefore, cooking gravies with olive oil is highly recommended.
Frequently Asked Questions About Vegetable and Olive Oil
What is “extra virgin” oil?
Extra virgin olive oil is produced by naturally crushing olives. Its production must not use either chemicals or heat. This restriction protects the oil’s flavors, natural antioxidants, and other essential chemicals beneficial to health. Also, extra virgin oil must meet sensory (smell and taste) and chemical standards
Is vegetable oil healthy or not?
Although current dietary guidelines recommend vegetable oil, these guidelines do not apply to all the many varieties of vegetable oil. In general, avoid using heavily-processed vegetable oils, especially if you plan to cook with them.
Afterword: Can you use vegetable oil instead of olive oil?
Olive oil is the more popular of the two oils. It is more nutritious, richer in vitamins, antioxidants, and anti-inflammatory components than vegetable oil.
Nutrients are also present in vegetable oil but in smaller amounts due to the high-processing vegetable oils go through.
Despite the preceding, it is definitely possible to use vegetable oil in place of olive oil. However, there will be differences in the flavor and amount of nutrients in meals.