How moms deal with their fear of frying

MANILA, Philippines - The fear of frying isn’t uncommon among moms.

This doesn’t mean that one should just surrender. Like most moms who personally prepare meals for their family, there are a lot of things that could go wrong when frying especially when not done right.

Riz Silva de Leon, 45, enjoys cooking dinner for her family.

“Frying is quite easy when mastered, but there’s always the risk. More often than not, food is sometimes undercooked or worse burned,” says De Leon.

Choose the right cooking oil. When it comes to frying, it’s best to use cooking oil that has a high temperature tolerance. Oil’s heat tolerance is relative to when it starts to smoke. Here, oil has reached its maximum usable temperature and affects the frying process. When oil starts to smoke, its flavor and nutrition quality decreases. The oil with high smoke points is less likely to lose its quality easily.

A very good example of commercially available cooking oil that can resist high heat is palm oil like Golden Fiesta Palm Oil. Palm oil’s high heat tolerance not only prevents food from being over-cooked, it also allows the food to cook evenly inside and out and still maintain its clear state at a higher temperature.

Keep in mind that frying is dry cooking. When frying, food should be dry enough to prevent extreme oil sputter. Pad meat with paper towels or tissue to absorb any excess moisture before placing in oil. This process solves most burns that moms fear with frying. Another way to deal with oil sputters is to keep the pan’s lid within arm’s reach to easily cover it when sputters become uncontrollable.

Choose a pan deep enough for the food you are frying. Make sure that your pan’s depth is similar to the average thickness of the meat or food you’re frying. For example, a skillet’s rim should be high enough to prevent the spitting oil to reach the flames underneath the pan. This is a major reason why oil catches fire and causes most domestic fire incidents.

Knowing your oil’s readiness for frying. A good way to know if your oil is ready for frying is to simply place your palm just a few inches above the pan. Once you feel heat emanating from the oil, then it’s ready for cooking. Palm oil has a high smoke point, which means it won’t smoke for a longer period of time when heated compared with coconut oil.

Do not overcrowd your pan. Frying should be done in batches. Too many ingredients thrown may change the temperature of both the pan and the oil. Have a good ventilation system in the kitchen. Burnt cooking oil usually cause smoky kitchens. Do not let smoke clog up your kitchen as too much can actually cause suffocation.