The Healthiest Cooking Oils for Ketogenic Diets

by Team Senza August 29, 2024

Why vegetable oils are out and animal-based fats are in

Once you’ve mastered the basics of keto macros and adjusted to eating very low-carb meals, it’s time to turn your attention to the quality of your food. A “well-formulated” approach to the ketogenic diet goes beyond the tallying of protein, dietary fat, and net carbs to avoiding problematic ingredients and choosing the most nutrient-dense foods you can find. While it’s challenging at times, this relentless focus on food quality can accelerate your progress on the journey to optimal health.

By now you’ve discovered that whether you want to sautee nutrient-dense protein in a skillet, roast a tray of organic veggies, or simply round out your nutrition for the day, a drizzle of grass-fed butter or cold-pressed olive oil comes in handy. But did you know, these “healthy fats” also provide essential fatty acids, micronutrients, and antioxidants that help to combat inflammation and optimize the body’s response to being in ketosis?

Unfortunately, you won’t get these benefits from any cooking oil on the supermarket shelves. Big Food manufacturers have inundated the market with cheap industrial vegetable oils that are chemically extracted under high heat and shown to be unstable for human consumption. They oxidize easily, cause inflammation when consumed, and are used in almost every processed food you can imagine. We went into the details of these products in one of our first Fix the Food articles, What is wrong with vegetable oils?

In this guide, we’ll highlight the top cooking oils for people following a ketogenic diet, as well as anyone looking to improve the quality of ingredients they cook with. The options below are recommended by our coaching team and across Senza’s wellness community. But first, a word on types of dietary fats:

Three Main Types of Fatty Acids

Fatty acids are named for their molecular structure, and there are three main types. We call the type with one double carbon-carbon bond monounsaturated fatty acids, while those with more than one double carbon-carbon bond are called polyunsaturated fatty acids. Fatty acids with no double bonds are saturated with hydrogen atoms and therefore called saturated fatty acids. Here’s a little more background:

Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs): Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are essential polyunsaturated fats that we must obtain from our diet, optimally in a balanced 1:1 ratio. Omega-3s found in foods like oily fish, flaxseeds, chia seeds, and walnuts play an important role in heart and brain health, as well as reducing inflammation. Omega-6s found in vegetable oils, conventional chicken, and most processed foods are necessary for brain function and growth but can promote inflammation when consumed excessively. Modern diets tend to have too many omega-6s, which can increase the risk of chronic diseases. Hence, the rise of omega-3 supplements. Whether you’re keto or not, maintaining a balance by increasing omega-3 intake and moderating omega-6 consumption is crucial for overall health.

Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs): MUFAs can be sourced from olive oil, avocados, nuts, and seeds. In their unrefined forms, these fatty acids contain vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that are supportive for heart health and other functions. The body can make some of the monounsaturated fat it needs, so this type of fatty acid is not considered essential to consume.

Saturated fatty acids (SFAs): These fats are commonly found in animal products like butter, lard, and meat, as well as in tropical oils, including coconut and palm oil. Healthy SFAs have been demonized for half a century, thanks to the now controversial diet-heart hypothesis promoted by Ancel Keys. Investigative journalist Nina Teicholz summarized the series of events that led to this catastrophic mistake in the world of nutrition science in a 2023 paper, A short history of saturated fat: the making and unmaking of a scientific consensus.

Understanding the role of fatty acids and the history behind the wrong information we were taught over the years will help you make better choices about the oils you use in your keto cooking life.

Pro Tip: You can view the breakdown of fats for any whole food in Senza if you log either the Top100 or USDA record for that food.

Keto Lingo: Smoke Points

Each cooking oil has a smoke point at which temperature the oil heats up and begins to emit a bluish/gray smoke that contains toxins (free radicals), which can have adverse effects on your health. As a general rule, if you are cooking something at a very high temperature, always be sure you are familiar with the smoke point of the oil you want to use. Below is a table of common keto-friendly oils and their smoke points for quick reference:

Oil	Smoke Point	Description
Tallow	400°F	Rendered beef fat, best for high-heat cooking
Lard	370°F	Rendered pork fat, good for medium-heat frying/sautéing and the best-tasting carnitas
Schmaltz	375 °F	Rendered chicken fat, adds incredible flavor for making fried chicken
Butter	350°F	Rich in flavor, ideal for low- to medium-heat cooking
Ghee	400°F	Clarified butter with a higher smoke point, suitable for high-heat cooking
Coconut Oil *	350°F	Stable for medium-heat cooking, provides a distinct coconut flavor
Avocado Oil *	400°F	High smoke point, excellent for high-heat cooking/frying and neutral tasting dressings
Olive Oil *	325°F	Best for low- to medium-heat cooking and salad dressings

* Cold-pressed, unrefined; refined versions of these oils will have higher smoke points but fewer micronutrients

The Top 8 Oils for Cooking Keto-Style

1. Beef Tallow

Tallow is a rendered form of beef or mutton fat. It's a stable cooking oil that can withstand high temperatures without burning or smoking. Tallow is rich in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which has been linked to various health benefits, including weight loss and improved body composition. It is solid at room temperature, making it ideal for sautéing, frying, and roasting.

Recipe: Ketogenic Pot Roast in the Instant Pot

2. Lard

Pork lard, derived from rendered pig fat, has been used for centuries in cooking and food preservation. The process of making lard involves heating the fat to remove impurities. Historically, lard was a staple in European and Asian cuisines, valued for its flavor and versatility in frying, baking, and as a spread. Its use declined with the rise of vegetable oils in the 1950s, but lard has seen a resurgence due to interest in traditional cooking methods. Besides culinary uses, lard has been used in soap and candle making as well as industrial applications.

Lard from pastured pigs is an excellent source of monounsaturated and saturated fats, making it another great choice for high-heat cooking. Like tallow, lard remains solid at room temperature. Lard is rich in vitamin D, which is essential for bone health and immune function. However, be cautious of commercial lards sold in many supermarkets, as they often contain a blend of vegetable oil.

Recipes: Fatworks has a recipe for Keto Delivered Salmon with lard. Or try this Senza recipe for a carnivore-style mayo, Baconnaise.

3. Schmaltz

Schmaltz, is a traditional Jewish cooking fat made from rendered chicken or goose fat, and it has been a staple in Ashkenazi cuisine for centuries. Schmaltz was commonly used in Eastern Europe for frying, spreading on bread, and flavoring dishes such as matzo balls and chopped liver, serving as a kosher alternative to butter and pork fat. Jewish immigrants brought schmaltz to the U.S. in the early 20th century, where it became integral to Jewish delis and home cooking. Similar to tallow and lard, the use of schmaltz declined due to the rise of industrial vegetable oils in the 1950s.

Recipe: Kid Approved Chicken Tenders

4. Butter

For many people, butter is the quintessential fat for baking, sauces, and many other dishes. It's high in saturated fats and provides a rich, creamy flavor that enhances the taste of just about anything you can imagine. Although it’s mostly fat, butter does contain some dairy proteins, which might be a consideration for those with lactose intolerance or allergies.

Note: Avoid butter substitutes such as margarine, olio, spreadable butter, or plant butter. (We're looking at you, Country Crock!) These products contain unstable oils, such as soybean oil, corn oil, canola, etc., as well as added preservatives.

Recipe: Butter is the star ingredient in dishes this Keto Butter Chicken from the Healthy Recipes Blog by Vered DeLeeuw.

5. Ghee

Ghee is a clarified form of butter that has been used in Indian cuisine for centuries. It's made by removing the milk solids from butter, resulting in a pure, concentrated form of butterfat. Ghee has a higher smoke point than regular butter, making it ideal for high-heat cooking and those who are dairy intolerant.

Recipes: Try making a Golden Ghee Latte or this Lemon Garlic Ghee Keto Salmon meal from Keto Summit.

6. Coconut Oil (Cold-pressed, unrefined)

Coconut oil is a versatile and keto-friendly fat that's rich in medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs). MCTs are easily digested and converted into ketones, providing an instant energy source for the body. Unrefined coconut oil is best for preserving micronutrients in the oil. Or you can buy pure MCT oil that isolates the MCTs in a concentrated form. See our post Take it or Leave It for more on MCT and other supplements for keto. Coconut oil is also known for its antimicrobial and antioxidant properties.

Recipe: Make a batch of Lemon Protein Bites, created by Coach Karlie.

7. Avocado Oil (Cold-pressed, unrefined)

Avocado oil is a relatively newer product on the market, gaining popularity in the last decade or so. It's increasingly used in mayos, salad dressings, and by some higher-end brands for frying due to its neutral flavor, stability compared to vegetable oils, and beneficial fatty acid structure. Avocado oil contains monounsaturated fats and antioxidants, making it a favorite among health-conscious consumers. It's high smoke point makes it suitable for various cooking methods, including sautéing, roasting, and baking.

Recipe: Avocado oil is the perfect natural-tasting option for a homemade keto-friendly mayonnaise like this one from Real Simple Good: Keto Avocado Oil Mayo.

8. Olive Oil (Cold-pressed, unrefined)

Olive oil is the flavor we associate with Mediterranean cuisine and a popular choice for keto enthusiasts. It's rich in monounsaturated fats and antioxidants, which can help reduce inflammation, boost immunity, and improve heart health. Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is the highest quality and least refined variety, best for dressings, marinades, and low-heat cooking.

Recipe: This Keto Salad Dressing from the Big Man’s World blog has eight flavor variations to try!

Read Labels Carefully

Many products advertised as containing avocado or olive oil actually use blends that include undesirable seed oils. For avocado and olive oils, choose cold-pressed options from reputable brands like Chosen Foods. Look for oils bottled in dark glass, not plastic or clear containers. Poor processing and storage can lead to rancid products, so ensure you select high-quality, well-stored oils to avoid this issue.

Oils to Avoid

Whichever healthy fats you choose for your ketogenic diet, please throw these industrial oils away immediately. They have no place in a keto-friendly kitchen:

Canola
Corn
Cottonseed
Grapeseed
Peanut
Rice bran
Safflower
Soybean
Sunflower
Sesame (unless cold-pressed)
Vegetable Oil
Blended olive or avocado oils that contain any of these seed oils
Old containers of refined olive or avocado oil that may be rancid

By incorporating high-quality cooking oils into your ketogenic diet, you'll not only enjoy more delicious and satisfying meals but you’ll also reap the benefits of a chemical-free, whole-foods approach to nutrition. In this way, you can’t go wrong!

Learn more

Learn more about the history of fats and the best oils for cooking keto-style, from some of the sources we trust:

Content provided by Senza is not medical advice. It is intended for informational and educational purposes only.