To use or not to reuse oil

For decades, there have been debates all over the world whether reusing oil is good or not. Previously people were more concerned to find out like which oil is used, how long the oil was heated, was it used for deep frying, what type of food was cooked in it and other queries. Side by side, there are other concerned factors as well like cost, low smoking point and dominant flavour - and people are more concerned in deciding whether it is sensible to opt for canota, peanut, vegetable or any other oil as frying oil in the kitchen. Anyhow use of vegetable oil for frying is a common practice across the county.

According to the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) First Amendment Regulations, 2017 which will come into force from July 1, 2018, the repeated use of the same oil for frying leads to changes in the physiochemical, nutritional and sensory properties of edible oil. There is no denying the fact that once cooking oil degrades, it affects the texture, taste and overall flavour experience of the food

The current regulations consist of only general provisions to avoid the reheating and reusing of cooking oil, which has to be avoided at any cost. Categorically it mentions that vegetable oil having developed TPC in excess of 25 per cent should not be used. With the amendment itself a quality experience is certainly going to be provided to the consumers at large and maintain international-level quality standards in best interests of the consumers.

 In reality, in case of reusing vegetable oil, free radicals attach themselves to healthy cells and lead to diseases. These free radicals can be carcinogenic and lead to increase in bad cholesterol levels, blocking the arteries. Thus it is always advised to avoid eating roadside oily snacks. As far as choosing edible oil is concerned, Omega 3 fatty acid is only found in mustard, rapeseed, flaxseed oil and soybean oil. So if a person consumes only olive oil, he/she is devoid of the benefits of Omega 3 with his/her edible oil intake.

Thus not only it is about avoiding to reuse oil but also choosing the perfect edible oil for family. Oil quality is another issue which can be understood by the presence of Total Polar Materials (TPM) which is the most predominant indicator and scientific measurement for oil quality.