chapotraphouse

It's so fucking funny because if these people knew as much about culinary as they claim to know, they know there are many dishes that are in fact fried in olive oil. The smoke point discussion is pop science going too far in food. Kenji did an article about this. If these dumbass food nerds spent more time reading and actually cooking rather than arguing with people online, they would know how shit actually performs and how to actually cook. But instead we have a bunch of people who nerded the fuck out when The Menu came out, without realizing that they are Tyler, not the Chef.

So yeah, fry things in olive oil if you want them to taste like olive oil. Don't use olive oil if you don't want it to taste like olive oil

Edit: Adding this because I think some of you fuckin libs need a theory lesson

Mao in Oppose Book Worship

I. NO INVESTIGATION, NO RIGHT TO SPEAK

Unless you have investigated a problem, you will be deprived of the right to speak on it. Isn't that too harsh? Not in the least. When you have not probed into a problem, into the present facts and its past history, and know nothing of its essentials, whatever you say about it will undoubtedly be nonsense. Talking nonsense solves no problems, as everyone knows, so why is it unjust to deprive you of the right to speak? Quite a few comrades always keep their eyes shut and talk nonsense, and for a Communist that is disgraceful. How can a Communist keep his eyes shut and talk nonsense?

It won' t do!

It won't do!

You must investigate!

You must not talk nonsense!

...

III. OPPOSE BOOK WORSHIP

Whatever is written in a book is right — such is still the mentality of culturally backward Chinese peasants. Strangely enough, within the Communist Party there are also people who always say in a discussion, "Show me where it's written in the book." When we say that a directive of a higher organ of leadership is correct, that is not just because it comes from "a higher organ of leadership" but because its contents conform with both the objective and subjective circumstances of the struggle and meet its requirements. It is quite wrong to take a formalistic attitude and blindly carry out directives without discussing and examining them in the light of actual conditions simply because they come from a higher organ. It is the mischief done by this formalism which explains why the line and tactics of the Party do not take deeper root among the masses. To carry out a directive of a higher organ blindly, and seemingly without any disagreement, is not really to carry it out but is the most artful way of opposing or sabotaging it.

Discord?

I'm gonna throw a completely different take into this struggle session: 菜籽油

If you can possibly source 菜籽油, a Sichuanese roasted rapeseed oil (not blindly exchangeable with canola, I'll explain in a bit). It's versatile enough to be used to make chili oils for hot pots, stir frying AND deep frying.

It is/was banned in the US and many western countries because a 1960's study found that if you feed rats 70% of their daily caloric intake in the form of virgin rapeseed oil, they develop heart problems. Also because it's associated with Indians and Chinese and it was the 1960's.

The Canadians found a way to cross breed turnips with rapeseed to produce a legally distinct and "healthier" product, CANadian Oil, Low Acid. This CANOLA oil is cheap but has basically no flavour. But under 2% erucic acid which makes it street legal in the US and other western countries.

菜籽油, on the other hand, is a mix between native Chinese mustard and European rapeseed. It's toasted before being pressed for oil, and is a darker, more flavourful oil than canola despite both oils being derived from rapeseed crossbreeds. But it retains high smoke points, can absorb flavours quite well (if you were making a Chinese scallion oil or chili oil, this is a good base, or if you wanted to make some homemade Laoganma, this is good). More recent studies have disproved the link between eucic acid and heart disease, so some online retailers have been able to stock it.

You don't need to worry about smoke points and olive oil pricing and whether or not you accidentally gave money to Israel because some of the olives came from a stolen Palestinian olive trees.

Some form of Brassica oil has been use in India, south east Asia, China and Japan for thousands of years. Pick up a Chinese roasted rapeseed or an Indian mustard seed oil.

Hot take: There is no point in smoking olive oil, shit wont even get you high... go buy hash oil like a normal person!

Gamers, I swear

God you have begun another fucking struggle session fucking hell why

Why does this even matter. Extra virgin olive oil is way too fucking expensive to deep fry with even if I wanted to smoke out my kitchen and eat olive oil flavored chimichangas. Whole debate is bikeshedding for people with nice kitchens in their suburban homes and nothing else to do except pontificate about how seed oils are going to make you trans. Including Kenji, who in a just world would be court-enjoined from publishing links to EVOO deep frying fume analyses until the price falls below $0.30 per fluid ounce. And I thought I was living like a king, upgrading from canola to soybean.

While I'm at it let me take this moment to further complain about the absolutely piss-poor state of American rental stock kitchens. I have NEVER lived in an apartment that had an actual exhaust venting to building exterior, only those bullshit filters underneath a rangetop microwave. Everything gets coated in gummy dust from the aerosols that are recirculated and you can watch a CO2 meter climb to the maximum reading as the oven warms up. If you want to char anything you need to pull down the smoke detector - god help you in a big apartment building where they're hardwired and all you can do is poke the button once it's already started beeping. All of this is academic. Go fry something

Cover your car batteries in olive oil before you throw them into the ocean.

Hexbear marble counter top gang and its consequences...

hexbear having a struggle session over carnist talking points, you hate to see it.