Can You Reuse Cooking Oil? Simple Ways To Clean It At Home

Cooking oil has become a valuable ingredient it is more like a super helper for our kitchen. Oil adds richness and depth of flavor to our food. It can also help to give food a crisp texture by creating a crisp exterior or layer on food when frying. A thin layer of oil prevents food from sticking to your pan, making food stir, fry, flip, or even clean the utensil easily. 

Virgin oil is the best option for cooking because of its antioxidants and high levels of monounsaturated fats, which are considered for good heart health. Some oils including olive oil can be used for non-heating applications like bread dips or salad dressings. 

Is Cooking Oil Safe To Reuse?

You can reuse cooking oil sometimes but only for a while. Here are the reasons below:-

1 When you heat oil too many times it can break down and become unhealthy and it might also start to taste bad. 

2 Reusing cooking oil can decrease the nutritional value of the oil.

3 Reheating of cooking oil results in releasing harmful toxic substances along with free radicals in the body leading to several chronic diseases and causing inflammation.

4 Some oils like rice bran which is an edible vegetable oil with high smoke points can be used multiple times than others because it has a good taste and is packed with nutrients such as good fats and antioxidants.

5 Oils such as Vanaspati or Margarine have low smoke points can degrade easily and are considered worst oils for deep frying purposes. 

6 Heating oil at high temperatures during frying may result in breaking down its molecular structure which results in harmful compounds and repeating heating may result in trans fats.

7 Resusing or reheating cooking oil when stored for a longer time should be discarded to avoid health risks. 

How To Clean Cooking Oil At Home?

You can not clean cooking oil in a way that makes it brand new again but you can remove food particles and improve its quality for reuse. Here is a simple way to do it at home:-

1 Hot oil is dangerous wait until it is safe to touch.

2 To remove the food particles, Pour the oil through a fine-mesh strainer or cheesecloth laced over a clean container.

3 Cool the oil and transfer it to heat-resistant. Beat the egg whites until frothy and mix them into the cooled oil. Heat the mixture gently while stirring continuously until the egg whites solidify and trap impurities. 

4 Cut raw potatoes into thin slices. Heat the used oil and add potato slices to it. Fry the potato slices until they turn brown gold. Remove the potato slices using a slotted spoon. The potato slices absorb impurities and will help clarify the oil.

5 Apply the white vinegar to the oil stain, let it sit, and scrub with a brush. 

While cooking oil is a super helper in the kitchen, reusing it comes with risks. It can break down and become unhealthy, releasing harmful substances. For best results, use fresh oil most of the time.