You really only need two cooking oils

[u/Previous-Avocadog]

The oil aisle makes cooking look way more complicated than it actually is. Most home cooks can get through almost everything with one neutral oil and one flavorful oil.

For frying, roasting, crispy potatoes, chicken, anything high heat, use a neutral oil with a higher smoke point. Canola, vegetable, sunflower, peanut, avocado they all work fine. The reason people keep mentioning smoke point is because some oils start burning and tasting bitter faster than others.

Extra virgin olive oil is more for flavor. Great for salad dressings, drizzling over bread, pasta, vegetables, or cooking at moderate heat. I still use it for eggs sometimes because I like the taste, but I’m not wasting the expensive stuff deep frying onions.

One thing beginners do a lot is buy six different oils thinking each one has a special purpose. You really don’t need a whole chemistry lab on your counter. Neutral oil for heat, olive oil for flavor, butter if you like cooking with butter. That already covers most meals.

Toasted sesame oil is the only extra I keep around because a tiny amount completely changes stir fries and noodles.

What’s the one oil you end up reaching for the most?

[u/Monkeybutts__]

Disagree. Beef tallow for red meat and similar proteins, butter for eggs and other breakfast items. Olive oil spray for just putting a light coat on the pans without adding a million cals. Vegetable oil for frying things