Best Oils to Heat Up Your Meals

Eating a Thistle meal is as simple as pulling it from the fridge, opening up the package, and enjoying it! Some of our meals, and in particular our dinner meals, are even better heated up. When a meal calls to be heated up, you’ll find the instructions for how to do so on the label. There are many ways to heat up your food including various methods and oils to be sure your food doesn’t stick to the skillet.

We view the consumption of oils in the same way we view the consumption of juice: it has nutrients and can taste delicious, but the calories you get are relatively empty compared to those from the whole foods. That said, the use of healthy oils, consumed in moderation, is not only a great way to add flavor and a nice mouthfeel to meals, it’s also helpful in increasing the absorption of nutrients, and can lead to better overall health. For example, Ikaria, Greece, is dubbed a blue zone, a place where people live longer and are healthier than most other places in the world. In Ikaria, locals consume olive oil on a daily basis in most of their meals, combined with seasonal fruits and vegetables, whole grains and beans.

All cooking oils are composed of three different types of fatty acids: monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and saturated fats.

Many studies have positively correlated essential fatty acids with reduction of heart disease, infant development, cancer prevention, optimal brain and vision functioning, arthritis, hypertension, diabetes and more. If you’re going to start your cooking with oil, pamper yourself and truly relish it with high quality oils because the body can't make these fatty acids and must get them from food. Here are our favorites:

Avocado Oil

• Fatty Acids: 70% monounsaturated, 20% saturated, 10% polyunsaturated
• Antioxidants: Vitamin E
• Flavor Profile: Rich & buttery
• Application: High resistance to heat suitable for sautéing, grilling, and roasting, as well as salad dressings. Use this oil when reheating our stir-fries, rice bowls, and any meal where you’d like a nice sear from high heat.
  

Grapeseed oil

• Fatty Acids: 17% monounsaturated, 22% saturated, 71% polyunsaturated
• Antioxidants: Vitamin E & Proanthocyanidin
• Flavor Profile: Mild & neutral
• Application: The mild flavor means this oil can be combined with other, stronger flavors and allows other ingredients, like specialty oils and herbs, to shine through. This oil also has a high resistance to heat and can be used to reheat our stir-fries, rice bowls, and any meal that includes a more distinct flavor like sesame.
  

Toasted Sesame Oil

• Fatty Acids: 40% monounsaturated, 14% saturated, 46% polyunsaturated
• Antioxidants: Vitamin E, Sesamol & Sesaminol
• Flavor Profile: Bold & nutty
• Application: Toasted sesame oil has a moderate resistance to heat and should be used in combination with another high heat resistant oil for reheating any of our Asian, Indian and Middle Eastern inspired meals.
  

Sunflower Oil

• Fatty Acids: 20% monounsaturated, 11% saturated, 69% polyunsaturated
• Antioxidants: Vitamin E, Sesamol & Sesaminol
• Flavor Profile: Light & neutral
• Application: Sunflower oil is a great all-purpose cooking oil with a neutral flavor and high resistance to heat. Any of our meals would fare well reheating with this oil.
  

Because of their low resistance to heat, some of our favorite oils are best used off the skillet:

Coconut Oil

• Fatty Acids: 8% monounsaturated, 92% saturated, 0% polyunsaturated
• Antioxidants: Vitamin E & Polyphenols
• Flavor Profile: Nutty & tropical
• Application: Unrefined coconut oil has the lowest heat resistance and won’t fare well on a hot skillet, grill, or sauté pan. However, we love using this ingredient in its unrefined state to coat our granolas and to make our baked goods decadent.
  

Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

• Fatty Acids: 73% monounsaturated, 14% saturated, 13% polyunsaturated
• Antioxidants: Vitamin E & K
• Flavor Profile: Robust & fruity
• Application: With a low resistance to heat, it’s best to use this oil in a dressing or for dipping as it won’t fare well for cooking. This is why we include this oil in our vinaigrettes and dressings.

Oil-Free Cooking

For some people, eating with very little or no oil is a necessity. Not to despair! There are a lot of great ways to heat meals up without the use of oils.

Steaming is a surprisingly efficient way to bring meals with roasted vegetables, rice, quinoa, and pasta back to life. Soups, stews, and saucy dishes can easily be reheated in a pot starting at a lower heat to avoid burning the bottom. For stir-fries and rice bowls, don’t be afraid to add some liquid like broth or even water over a low to medium heat.

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