Difference between revisions of "Smoke point"

Latest revision as of 18:38, 13 October 2010

The smoke point generally refers to the temperature at which a cooking fat or oil begins to break down to glycerol and free fatty acids. The glycerol is then further broken down to acrolein which is a component of the bluish smoke. It is the presence of the acrolein that causes the smoke to be extremely irritating to the eyes and throat. The smoke point also marks the beginning of both flavor and nutritional degradation. Therefore, it is a key consideration when selecting a fat for frying, with the smoke point of the specific oil dictating its maximum usable temperature and therefore its possible applications. For instance, since deep frying is a very high temperature process, it requires a fat with a high smoke point.

Considerably above the temperature of the smoke point is the flash point, the point at which combustion occurs.

The following table presents smoke points of various fats:

References

1. ↑
   italiano:
   Scheda tecnica dell'olio di palma bifrazionato PO 64.

• Cooking For Engineers: Smoke Point of Various Fats - another list of smoke points along with some discussion on the subject
• Good Eats: Cooking Oil Smoke Points
• The Culinary Institute of America (1996). The New Professional Chef (6th edition ed.). John Wiley & Sons. CS1 maint: Extra text (link)

See also

• Boiling point
• Flash point
• Fire point
• Kindling point

es:Punto de humeo fr:Point de fumée it:Punto di fumo nl:Rookpunt no:Røykpunkt