This week, when you are cooking for family and friends, don’t reach for your high-quality, expensive extra-virgin olive oil when frying and sauteing.  Recently, a trend towards using olive oil for frying and other high-heat uses, has brought additional expense for the kitchen. Canola oil costs about 10 cents per tablespoon, whereas olive oils can run up to one dollar a tablespoon.  
 
Food scientist Harold McGee explains that heating olive-oil gets rid of the flavor.  He heated four olive oils and 11 seed oils to 350 degrees, and found that good oils did not retain their taste when heated.  So this Thanksgiving, save your high-quality extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling on afterwards.  
 
Read more about his experiments with cooking oils here. 

More about: Cooking, Food, Harold, Harold McGee's Olive Oil Experiment, McGee, Oil, Olive