How to reduce the cost of cooking oil

The cost of cooking oil has skyrocketed during the pandemic and been driven further by the invasion of Ukraine. This post will explain how to reduce the cost of cooking oil.

In the past couple of years cooking oil has doubled or tripled in price. As demand for biodiesel made from vegetable oil increases, pandemic driven supply chain issues and the invasion of Ukraine also increase prices.

There are 3 different approaches to how to reduce the cost of cooking oil.

One is in the purchase and storage of cooking oil;  the second is the treatment and preservation of cooking oil and the third is utilizing best frying practices.

Purchase and Storage of Cooking Oil

• High oleic oils and blends have higher stability than average oils and therefore have a longer shelf life and fry life. They are also more expensive.

• High oleic oils reduce polymerization which means less heat is required to maintain the correct frying temperature in the frying process.

Treatment and Preservation of Cooking Oil

• The #1 method for reducing the cost of cooking oil is to filter your oil regularly.

There are a variety of machines that can filter your oil. Some take the oil out of the fryer, filter and replace it. Others place the filter machine in the fryer and move the oil through and filter it while it is right in the fryer.

Testing When to Change the Fryer Oil

• Knowing when to change the fryer oil is critical. Changing too soon wastes money and changing too late adversely affects the quality of the food. The solution is testing the oil.

Numerous products exist from chemicals to paper strips to digital devices.

• Active filtering uses a chemical filter which polishes the oil by removing protein, blood and other impurities. This method is used for fryers which cook meat, fish and chicken.

Best frying practices to extend the life of cooking oil

Best Frying practices are the easiest and least expensive way to extend the life of your cooking oil.

• Don’t fill fry baskets, salt or season food over the fryer. Particles contaminate the oil.
• Don’t fry above 360 degrees. Oils deteriorate quickly at that temperature.
• Reduce fryer temperatures when not in use
• Cover fryers when not in use to prevent contamination
• Clean fryers regularly using manufacturers recommended process and products

What you should do to lower the cost of cooking oil

Employing all of these practices will dramatically lengthen the life of your cooking oil and reduce your cooking oil costs by at least 50%. The most important solutions are filtering and polishing your oil and following the best practices for frying and cleaning your fryer.