Are there any other considerations when buying oils?

It is sometimes worth considering the method you are going to use to cook a dish. Are you stir frying, deep frying or perhaps baking? Depending on how you are cooking you may choose certain oils because of their 'smoke point'. This is simply the temperature at which the oil will 'smoke' or burn, but it's important to realize that some oils can take more heat than others. When a fat or oil reaches its smoke point the oil will change colour and release an acrid smoke and at this point it will start to taste bitter and quickly burn the outside of anything you choose to cook. For this reason oils with a high smoke point will be more suitable for frying at high temperatures. In this way you can make sure that the oil you are using will give you a better tasting result and will not set fire to your kitchen or cremate the barbeque.

Here is a quick guide to smoke points for some oils: