cooking fats

[sm30]

I am on day 7 of my first whole30.  I feel like things are going well and I'm doing a good job balancing proteins/fats/veggies.  However, I've been reading these forums and noticing that almost everyone is cooking in ghee or coconut oil.  I have always cooked in olive oil and have just continued with olive oil in my whole30.  Is there a specific benefit to ghee/coconut oil over olive oil that I am missing out on or is it just personal preference?  It seems like people are making their own ghee and I really don't think I can handle more cooking since it seems like that is all I have been doing this past week!

[Tom Denham]

Some people clarify their own butter, but most people would not make their own ghee. I buy mine directly from Pure Indian Foods because I like their's the best. 

 

I completed the first 3-5 months of my Whole30 life cooking with olive oil before I bought coconut oil. It works, but olive oil should not be heated to high levels as it is fragile and starts to break down a bit. Not in a way that anything tastes different, but enough to be concerned about. Coconut oil and ghee handles heat better, so many people move to them for cooking and save olive oil for dressings. 

[GlennR]

Olive oil is fine, IMO, though if you're cooking with olive oil, try to use light or extra light, both of which have higher smoke points than EVOO. (And EVOO is actually okay for cooking on low or medium heat. My rule of thumb is if I can cook without the oil smoking, I'm good.)