# Least smelly oil for reverse-sear



## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

I've been using a Sous Vide to cook meat and chicken for me and my son as my wife is vegan. I've been reverse-searing with olive oil and my wife complains of the smell. Is there a less smelly oil with a high smoke point that I should try?

Thanks


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## Slim278 (Sep 7, 2020)

maybe try this


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## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

Thanks slim. Unfortunately, I'm allergic to dairy.


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## tostadas (Sep 7, 2020)

How about avocado oil?


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## Pensacola Tiger (Sep 7, 2020)

Stratguy said:


> Thanks slim. Unfortunately, I'm allergic to dairy.



Typically if someone has a dairy intolerance, it is an intolerance to casein (a protein in milk) and lactose (the whey). Clarified butter contains neither.


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## GorillaGrunt (Sep 7, 2020)

Grape seed?


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## banzai_burrito (Sep 7, 2020)

Was going to suggest avocado oil as well, nice high smoke point too


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## ian (Sep 7, 2020)

I usually use avocado. High smoke point, neutral taste. Grape seed also good, but I can find avocado for cheaper. Peanut is good, but has more flavor. Canola is the oil of Satan.


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## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

Thanks everyone. I will try Avocado tonight as I'm SV'ing a peppered flank steak. Will report back.


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## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

Pensacola Tiger said:


> Typically if someone has a dairy intolerance, it is an intolerance to casein (a protein in milk) and lactose (the whey). Clarified butter contains neither.



Dairy gives me Emergency Room type migraines, so I avoid at all cost. Not to mention, I'm not overly fond of the taste of butter. Perhaps that's my body telling me I shouldn't have it.


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## Slim278 (Sep 7, 2020)

Stratguy said:


> I'm not overly fond of the taste of butter.


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## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

Slim278 said:


>


Heresy, right?


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## Miles (Sep 7, 2020)

Use grapeseed or sunflower oil.


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## nakiriknaifuwaifu (Sep 7, 2020)

+1 for avocado oil. Beef tallow also works


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## MarcelNL (Sep 7, 2020)

get one of these and do it outside in proper oil/fat, the bonus is that you can do a mean stir fry on it  Industrie Komfoor foker Ben beveiligd


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## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

MarcelNL said:


> get one of these and do it outside in proper oil/fat, the bonus is that you can do a mean stir fry on it  Industrie Komfoor foker Ben beveiligd


I wish, but living in a condo makes this impossible.


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## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

Have been thinking about a Searzall as an option as well.


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## SeattleBen (Sep 7, 2020)

I'll add another +1 for grapeseed and avocado. Personally I find grapeseed cheaper and it's my go to generic non evoo oil.


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## LostHighway (Sep 7, 2020)

Add another vote for avocado oil but be careful what you buy, there seems to be a a fairly large amount of bad avocado oil out there. Chosen Foods, one of the brands that passed, is what Trader Joe's sells, at least in Minnesota. I don't know whether the issues with with poor quality or fake avocado oil can be tied to this but the cartels having been moving into the avocado market over the past several years


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## MarcelNL (Sep 7, 2020)

inside is a Foker no fun....

Duck fat is wonderful for reverse saering, what, all searing. I'd rather use fat than oil as it spatters less.


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## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

LostHighway said:


> Add another vote for avocado oil but be careful what you buy, there seems to be a a fairly large amount of bad avocado oil out there. Chosen Foods, one of the brands that passed, is what Trader Joe's sells, at least in Minnesota.



Thanks for that. Coincidentally, I just got home from Trader Joe's and had purchased Chosen.


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## juice (Sep 7, 2020)

Avocado oil if ghee doesn't work, agreed. Avoid canola, rapeseed, etc. (i.e. industrially-processed seed oils) like the plague.


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## Nemo (Sep 7, 2020)

I use macadamia oil. Or coconut oil, depending on cuisine. 

Avacado oil has a a high smoke piont if it's been refined. Flavour is not entirely neutral though.

Rice bran oil has a high smoke point... but... it's mostly polyunsaturates which will oxidise readily in high temp cooking.


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## btbyrd (Sep 7, 2020)

I have a Searzall but don't find it especially good or useful for post-SV searing, even though that's what it was supposedly built for. It just takes too long and the results aren't as nice as using a very hot pan, grill, or deep frying setup. If you're concerned about generating smells from searing, my proposal is to invest in an Iwatani 35FW portable butane burner and sear outside in a heavy pan. They have a very powerful flame and can be used basically anywhere. If your pan is hot enough to deliver an excellent sear, your choice of oil isn't super important (so long as you're avoiding unrefined or heavily unsaturated oils). Meat itself will throw off a bunch of smoke if you're laying down a proper sear, which is why it's nice to be able to step outside. I have a bunch of fats with high smoke points in my pantry, but when the time comes to sear something, I either go outside or make peace with smoking out my whole house. 

Apart from using a portable burner, the usual suspects for searing oils have been mentioned: ghee, refined avocado oil, tallow. Avocado is my go-to, and would make sense for you since you're wanting to avoid dairy. Tallow is nice, but can be difficult to source and store. Not a fan of rice bran since it can oxidize and go fishy (similar to the smell that canola can get).

Also, pre-searing helps when you're cooking SV proteins. It jump-starts the process and takes less time when you're searing on the pickup.


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## juice (Sep 7, 2020)

Nemo said:


> I use macadamia oil. Or coconut oil, depending on cuisine.
> 
> Avacado oil has a a high smoke piont if it's been refined. Flavour is not entirely neutral though.
> 
> Rice bran oil has a high smoke point... but... it's mostly polyunsaturates which will oxidise readily in high temp cooking.


  

We do use coconut oil as well. I prob shouldn't reply to posts at 4am or whatever it was 



btbyrd said:


> I have a Searzall but don't find it especially good or useful for post-SV searing, even though that's what it was supposedly built for. It just takes too long and the results aren't as nice as using a very hot pan, grill, or deep frying setup.



I used to want one as well, then I read the above in too many places from too many people.


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## Stratguy (Sep 7, 2020)

Thanks everyone. I used Avocado oil and it worked like a charm. As btbyrd suggested, I will try to pre-sear steak the next time to see how that works. What a great forum. Thanks again.


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## ecchef (Sep 8, 2020)

Here ya go...


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## juice (Sep 8, 2020)

ecchef said:


> Here ya go...


Only use soybean oil (or any industrially-processed seed oils) when cooking for people you don't care about.


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## aboynamedsuita (Sep 8, 2020)

Agree about taking an iwatani 35fw outdoors, only reservation I’ve had with this is when I’m using a large cast iron pan (such as the lodge 13.25” or 15”) is the overhang on the butane cylinder, but I try to keep it offset a bit. The new wok burner setup can accommodate those larger pans without issue though. 



btbyrd said:


> I have a Searzall but don't find it especially good or useful for post-SV searing, even though that's what it was supposedly built for. It just takes too long and the results aren't as nice as using a very hot pan, grill, or deep frying setup. If you're concerned about generating smells from searing, my proposal is to invest in an Iwatani 35FW portable butane burner and sear outside in a heavy pan. They have a very powerful flame and can be used basically anywhere. If your pan is hot enough to deliver an excellent sear, your choice of oil isn't super important (so long as you're avoiding unrefined or heavily unsaturated oils). Meat itself will throw off a bunch of smoke if you're laying down a proper sear, which is why it's nice to be able to step outside. I have a bunch of fats with high smoke points in my pantry, but when the time comes to sear something, I either go outside or make peace with smoking out my whole house.
> 
> Apart from using a portable burner, the usual suspects for searing oils have been mentioned: ghee, refined avocado oil, tallow. Avocado is my go-to, and would make sense for you since you're wanting to avoid dairy. Tallow is nice, but can be difficult to source and store. Not a fan of rice bran since it can oxidize and go fishy (similar to the smell that canola can get).
> 
> Also, pre-searing helps when you're cooking SV proteins. It jump-starts the process and takes less time when you're searing on the pickup.


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## MarcelNL (Sep 8, 2020)

Stratguy said:


> Thanks everyone. I used Avocado oil and it worked like a charm. As btbyrd suggested, I will try to pre-sear steak the next time to see how that works. What a great forum. Thanks again.



Tried pre searing, and I found that you still want to post sear for crispness.
That Iwatani looks similar to a cheap copy I have, it's a candle compared to the torch that Foker is.


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## podzap (Sep 8, 2020)

juice said:


> Avocado oil if ghee doesn't work, agreed. Avoid canola, rapeseed, etc. (i.e. industrially-processed seed oils) like the plague.



Avoid why? 

Rapeseed oil is actually an extremely good source of omega-3 for you people who don't live in "salmon country". It has a high smoke point (you can even use it to season cast-iron) and is basically flavourless so it won't alter the taste of your food.


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## juice (Sep 8, 2020)

How Industrial Seed Oils Are Making Us Sick - Chris Kresser


Industrial seed oils can contribute to heart disease, diabetes, autoimmunity, and many more chronic health conditions. Find out what you should eat instead.



chriskresser.com





There's plenty of info out there, oh Finnish Cat-King, but this is a decent introduction. Kresser is quite solid.

Yeah, I use rice bran oil for seasoning. Would never cook with it, though, so I've got this 4l container of it I've had for years


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## Matus (Sep 8, 2020)

I use rice oil for any higher temperature cooking or mayonnaise preparation as it has basically no taste at all, and olive oil for everything este


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## podzap (Sep 8, 2020)

juice said:


> How Industrial Seed Oils Are Making Us Sick - Chris Kresser
> 
> 
> Industrial seed oils can contribute to heart disease, diabetes, autoimmunity, and many more chronic health conditions. Find out what you should eat instead.
> ...



An acupuncturist giving medical advice? I think I just fell off my bed!


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## MarcelNL (Sep 8, 2020)

not sure how Kresser puts Keys conclusions about saturated fat and cholesterol 'around the same time' as the late 40-ies, the famously wrong 7 country study was in the 70-ies when cardiac disease soared...at least 20 years later. Not to say what he writes is wrong, but it also seems to lack any conclusive evidence, showing that oil X can cause liver damage does not mean that fat Y will not, the science does not jive IMO...My take home message is; don't re-use industrial seed oil, and don't use too much of it, avoid oxidized or trans fatty acids are sound advice IMO as well as the stop eating grain fed meat, and stop eating processed food.


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## MarcelNL (Sep 8, 2020)

podzap said:


> An acupuncturist giving medical advice? I think I just fell off my bed!


is THAT what I heard, LOL, nothing personal Juice, I get what you are saying but this article is not backed by science, it skates past it at best.


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## juice (Sep 8, 2020)

podzap said:


> An acupuncturist giving medical advice? I think I just fell off my bed!


Concentrate on the words, not that he's an acupuncturist, that's not all he does :-D

You're right, though, I do need to find another goto which isn't written by someone who throws up immediate red flags like that.



MarcelNL said:


> not sure how Kresser puts Keys conclusions about saturated fat and cholesterol 'around the same time' as the late 40-ies, the famously wrong 7 country study was in the 70-ies when cardiac disease soared...at least 20 years later.


Nah, Keys started with the Minnesota starvation study, then moved on via Eisenhower's heart attacks. Unfortunately, the information was well-established by the time McGovern decided "we can't wait for the evidence, Americans are dying NOW" in the 70s.


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## MarcelNL (Sep 8, 2020)

actually from what I read; the results from several studies were 'massaged' by heavy lobbying by the meat industry aiming to steer the public away from the main conclusion; avoid heart attacks, eat less red meat and so cholesterol got the blame


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## podzap (Sep 8, 2020)

Actually if you reverse-sear on a charcoal grill then you can avoid oil entirely! Waiting for someone now to claim that charcoal grilling causes cancer now that I've already done it 100 days per year for 40 years.


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## btbyrd (Sep 8, 2020)

Heterocyclic amines, my dude.


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## podzap (Sep 8, 2020)

btbyrd said:


> Heterocyclic amines, my dude.



I'm really screwed now!


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## bbrooks008 (Sep 8, 2020)

What about "light tasting" (i.e., opposite of extra virgin) olive oil? I use it for most of my cooking


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## chiffonodd (Sep 8, 2020)

I've used safflower oil for high temp, never had an issue with smoking/odor. Unless that's one of the evil seed oils too


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## juice (Sep 8, 2020)

chiffonodd said:


> Unless that's one of the evil seed oils too


You know it is


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## MarcelNL (Sep 9, 2020)

the OP lives in an appartment so charcoal is likely as much not an option as searing outside on a propane stove.


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## Nemo (Sep 9, 2020)

There are two seperate issues with using oils in high temp applications:

1) The smoke point is significantly affected by the level of impurities in the oil. That is to say that more highly refined oil generally has a higher smoke point. Burned impurites are (presumably obviously) not great for you, so smoky oil is good to avoid.

2) The rate at which oils oxidise into free radicals and trans fats is dependent on temperature and the chemistry of the oil. Saturated fats are quite oxidation resistant, monounsaturated fats are moderately resistant and polyunsaturated fats are not very resistant. Oxidised (rancid) and trans fats are not good for you at all.

Note that the question of which type of oil to cook at high temp with is completely seperate to (and should not be conflated with) the question of whether one should ideally consume more polys, monos or saturated fats in non high temp uses.


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## MarcelNL (Sep 9, 2020)

totally agree, the incidental use of fat at hight temp is likely of far less consequence than which fat is used for everyday use.
On a side note; Chinese (Sichuan) food is sometimes doused with 'smoking hot oil', couple of tablespoons full, of which you certainly not digest all so I'm not too worried about it.


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