Cooking oils & fats
Oils and fats for everyday cooking, judged on purity, freshness and how they handle heat.
What we look for
We look for
- Purity you can check: an independent test or certification showing the oil is what the label says. Avocado oil, in particular, is often stale or cut. For ghee, tallow and coconut oil, an organic certificate is often the only check, and it covers how the fat is made, not each jar.
- Fat profile stated: mostly monounsaturated or saturated fat for high-heat cooking, with the omega-6 content given.
- Made without solvents: expeller- or cold-pressed, or a production method the maker explains in full.
- Packaging that blocks light: dark glass, tin or steel, with a date on it.
- A traceable source: the farm, region or production process named.
We avoid
- Hexane-extracted oils, and “vegetable oil” blends that do not name the plant.
- Clear plastic bottles kept under shop lights.
- Health claims for a cooking oil that go beyond its fat profile.
- Oils made by fermentation whose maker will not name the organism or say whether it is genetically modified.
Read the research
Know one that fits? Suggest a product
6 products · best rated first
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Marianne’s HarvestMarianne’s Harvest Classic Avocado Oil
An avocado oil named pure and not oxidized in UC Davis’s 2020 test, now in two certifier listings and publishing lot results. It is refined, in dark glass, and Marianne’s does not say how it is refined. Seed Oil Free Certified · Clean Label Project listing -
Algae Cooking ClubAlgae Cooking Club Algae Cooking Oil
A high-oleic oil from microalgae fed sugar in tanks: 93% monounsaturated, no omega-3. Two certifiers list it, but the maker names no strain or producer, does not say whether the strain is genetically modified, and gives no bottle material. Seed Oil Free Certified · Glyphosate Residue Free (Detox Project) -
Marianne’s HarvestMarianne’s Harvest Organic Beef Tallow
A one-ingredient, USDA organic beef tallow listed as Seed Oil Free Certified. The maker says the cattle are 100% grass-fed, which we could not confirm with a certifier, and the clear glass jar does not block light. USDA Organic (processor’s entry lists beef tallow) · Seed Oil Free Certified -
NutivaNutiva Organic Virgin Coconut Oil
A cold-pressed, unrefined virgin coconut oil from a company the USDA lists as certified organic since 2002. It is 93% saturated fat with a 350°F smoke point, so it suits baking and medium-heat cooking, not daily use. USDA Organic (QAI; scope lists coconut oil) -
Organic ValleyOrganic Valley Organic Ghee (Clarified Butter)
A shelf-stable ghee from a USDA-certified organic dairy cooperative, with ghee named in the USDA’s own database entry. It is made from pasture-raised organic butter, not cultured butter, and makes no 100% grass-fed claim. USDA Organic (Oregon Tilth; scope lists ghee) -
Pure Indian FoodsPure Indian Foods Organic Cultured Ghee (Grassfed)
An organic ghee made from cultured butter from grass-fed cows, the kind our ghee guide suggests. The USDA lists it as organic; the grass-fed and batch-testing claims are the maker’s. USDA Organic (OneCert; scope lists cultured ghee)