You’ve probably heard a lot about canola oil in recent times, both good and bad. Most of the bad news does not have a solid scientific basis. On the other hand, the many health benefits of this oil are well studied. As for whether the oil will turn your food brown, yes it will, if you use it to fry your food, or on a barbecue or roast.
Health benefits of canola oil
Canola oil is extracted from canola seeds. Canola plants are recognized as safe for human use by the FDA. Much of canola’s bad reputation is likely due to the fact that it is a hybrid of the rapeseed plant, posing health risks to both animals and people. Rapeseed oil has high levels of a chemical: erucic acid, which is toxic in large amounts. However, canola is not an original rapeseed, and scientists created it using an ancient process of selective crossing to remove erucic acid. Among the advantages, being low in saturated fat gives one of the highest proportions of monounsaturated fats.
Golden effect
Whether it will turn your food brown and how brown it will actually turn will depend on the cooking method you are using. This oil will not have any excessive or unusual browning effects in things like stir fry, sauteed, and baked. But, if you choose to drizzle canola oil on a roast, fry something on it, or use it for your barbecue steaks, yes, it will make them nice and browned. It is a light oil and does not have a significant browning or coloring effect in baked goods, salad dressings, or cold dishes. However, if you fry your food, maybe French fries or fried chicken, it will definitely turn brown.
Depth of browning
You can control the level of brown, or the depth of the color, by controlling how long and at what temperature you fry something. As with most oils, frying some in canola oil causes fried foods to slowly develop a crispy, golden or brown outer crust. This effect is universal and is caused by any oil you can use to fry food. Likewise, the broiling or broiling process itself will brown your food, no matter what oil you use.
Effect on stale food
Another concern you may have is whether this oil will affect rancid foods or cause them to go rancid and brown earlier. Canola oil generally doesn’t make food brown or rancid any faster. But stale foods originally cooked in canola oil can give them an unusually strong, spoiled odor. Oil also tends to turn rancid and brown if stored for long periods of time, so buy it fresh when you want to use it, or store it for up to two months in a cool, dry place.
