FOOD NEWS
Why Bobby Flay Rarely Cooks With Olive Oil
By Arianna Endicott
When it comes to choosing an oil for cooking, celebrity chef Bobby Flay likes a more neutral oil and has one go-to that he prefers over any other kind. Flay admits that his opinion regarding which oil to choose is a bit controversial among his fellow chefs, but he knows what he likes and what works best for his dishes.
As Flay told Bon Appétit, he doesn't like the low smoke point of olive oil and opts for canola oil — which he uses "ninety-eight percent of the time" when cooking — because it has a higher smoke point. While Flay may not use olive oil for cooking his food, he does note that when he wants a little bit of that olive oil flavor, he'll drizzle it over the completed dish as a finish.
Canola oil allows the flavors in each dish to do the work themselves, and its own flavor is too mild to alter the food you cook with it. Although both oils have several health benefits, the higher smoke point of canola oil makes it ideal for frying numerous foods, whereas the low smoke point of olive oil makes it a poor choice for deep frying.