I wanted to write to you this morning because I was blessed with a little extra time today from my clients. Yay!
I was thinking of this topic yesterday as I was preparing some food. In general we want to limit adding in any and all oils in our diet because they are dense fats, and if we eat foods like avocados, sprouted seeds and nuts, acai, coconut, etc. we are getting natural oils in the whole foods.
Oils such as olive oil and grapeseed oil are fragile and we need to treat and store them with care to preserve their healthy properties and ensure they don’t start to oxidize and become rancid (aka rotten), thereby forming aging free radicals and destroying precious antioxidants.
Since oils are light sensitive, we should buy oils in dark containers (NOT like the picture above!) and store them fully out of the light, like in a cool, dark cabinet or the like. We should buy oils in tinted class or stainless steel containers- which are non-reactive. Do not buy cheaper oils that are stored in plastic, as toxic compounds like polyvinyl chlorides (PVCs) can leach into the oil.
But I want to point out that oil is also air-sensitive! Exposure to air will also cause oils to oxidize. That means, when we are cooking or using some oil, we should pour out and use what we need, then immediately recap the bottle. We don’t want to let the bottle sit out for any amount of time, for instance say 10 minutes to use in something else from an already open bottle! A really good habit to help prevent oxidation is simply capping all oils immediately.
Once you have found your favorite oil, why not try it out with my quinoa stuffed peppers!
Have a great weekend and see you soon!
Love, Kimberly
Wow thank you for such a great blog on oils. YThis was very informative and taught me, Something again that I did not know. I knew oils can go bad if left sitting to long. But I had no idea that they can do so easliy. I love olive oil Peanut oil and even flax seed oils, so I will be more careful from now on. Again thank you
My naturopath told me to add 10 drops of vitamin E oil to any bottle of oil when you *first* open it. It extends the life of the oil & helps keep it from going rancid.
I like your terra-cotta dog!
thanks for sharing this info about oils..
good to know!! love your posts
Great summation on oil and its oxidation. What is your take on purchasing Olive Oil from the market? The oils on the shelf are exposed to light so with this logic, do you think this has an effect on the quality of Olive Oil before we even open the bottle?
Olive oils should be treated like fine wines. Keep the in cool dark places away form direct sunlight, keep dry and air tight. Unlike wine, olive oil does not get better with age. Changing your olive oil every few months is best fro freshness. There are some really great olive oil tours you can take in California.