When to add oil to the pan?

The debate is on! Do you add oil to your pan right away, or do you wait until it's ripping hot first? The answer isn't as obvious as you'd think. But, I DO have an answer for you.

In her book "Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat," author and chef Samin Nosrat argues that you should preheat. "As oil is heated," she says, "it breaks down, leading to flavour degradation and the release of toxic chemicals. Food is also more likely to stick to a cold pan—another reason to preheat."

But is this really true? Another famous author, J. Kenji Lopez-Alt argues that you don't EVER need to pre-heat.

Let's get to the bottom of this.

📚 *BIBLIOGRAPHY*
- Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat

📹 *FOOTAGE SOURCES*
- Nigella Lawson's Southern Style Deep-Fried Chicken | Nigella Bites

🎶 *MUSIC*
- Lolo Popo – Mona Wonderlick
- Anything by Soyb & Amine Maxwell Music
- As sorrow settles in your heart – Babasmas
- Path of the Fireflies – AERØHEAD
- Rolex (Instrumental) by RYYZN

💻 *VARIA*
- Filmed with a Sony A6000
- Audio recorded with a Shure SM58
- Edited with Adobe Premiere Pro

[beammeupscotty]

I really like videos like this where you take something that is "conventional wisdom" or even worse, "common sense" and you look really closely to see if there is any science behind it. As is often the case, there turns out to be not much science in it at all.

[tilerman]

My wife added chilli oil to an already screaming hot frying pan. Result. Whole family coughing up our guts on the pavement out front. Lethal!

[blueberry]

If you use steel, and don’t want the food to stick, you have to preheat the pan. If you put the oil at first, and wait the oil comes to the right temperature, it may burn depending on the type of oil and it’s not healthy.

[bvazdiniz]

You’re so enchanting… I loved the video and explanations, btw.

[PZXDNF]

Enjoyable video. I certainly learned a lot. I Will be a lot less adamant about preheating the pan

[nastiacooksplants]

I heard the same opition on adding oil to a preheated surface
makes sense to me!

I am curious about the book too
thank you for the recommendation! :)

[roospike]

This is quite the rabbit hole to go down, there are so many if, ands or butts, stipulations and rule of thumb ect.

[Mobekimasukidesu]

Gf always add food to non preheated pan and non heated oil... it drives me NUTS

[timcrompton]

Seed oils are poison. Having seen your excellent vid on acid whey, perhaps you could look into the mass production of seed oils and how they are bleached and treated to lower rancidity and increase shelf life.

[jesusgracia]

How do you add butter and no smoke coming out of it? Every oil that I use smokes a lot :(

[AaronFigFront]

That point on oil will only degrade above smoke point is wrong. Oils have an oxidative stability quality. Oil definitely degrades at room temperature, and depending on how much antioxidants are in the oil or how stable the bonds (saturated or unsaturated), heating the oil up will break down the oils into trans fat at different rates. Check out papers on frying oil, oxidative stability (there are papers funded by some oil industry organizations, so those are not reliable papers).

[gii]

You know why it sticks it's because the meat protein expands and bind somehow on the pan, but when it's hot enough it directly expands that skip the meat to bind to the pan due weaker structure of the outer meat

[OmarTan]

Hmm, so for butter, it’s better to place it on a cold pan and let it heat to melt vs preheating the pan am I right?

[XonixDerps]

So im confused here. TFal pans ask to preheat even though its non stick? So when should I add oil then

[hyojoonus]

Oil on a cold pan helps distribute heat evenly especially on pans with low conductivity like carbon steel or a cast iron.

[Maymona]

Another argument: cooking time.. majority of recipes assumes preheating, moreover, it saves time. 🤷‍♀️

[lingth]

i think for non stick you need to add oil first when it's cold.. heating the pan without any food or oil will harm the surface.
while for those who let the pan become really hot before adding oil. then to be using cast iron, carbon steel or stainless steel pans..

[dasmoove]

It's about what you are Cooking in my opinion....

[P.E.J.]

you just got against yourself. At 3 min in you preheat pan and oil and then throw in frosen vegtables wait what?? you just cooled everything off!!