Americans love fried foods. While it’s not always good for us, it turns out to be a fact. There is nothing we don’t like to fry, even ice cream. While the flavor is out of this world, it’s not necessarily good for you. So is grilling better than frying and why? Would it help to grill our food?
Which cooking method really adds the least amount of fat to your food, and are there any other surprises we should know about?
Realistically, common sense says that adding fat to a deep fryer or skillet adds fat to something that is already fat, namely meat, which is the most common fried item. The lowest amount of fat that will be added is when the food is grilled, because the flames or electric grill will cause the fat to melt and separate from the food.
In a test conducted at the University of Pennsylvania, the differences were pretty incredible. Three samples were made, one grilled, one lightly sautéed, and the third deep friend. The roast beef sampler, done under a broiler, had about one percent added fat, while the stir-fried variety had about twice that, but surprisingly almost exactly the same as the fried variety.
The problem is that we usually put a lot of fried meats and other things in the batter. Honestly, meat doesn’t absorb that much fat on its own, but breading and other factors do absorb a great deal.
Now using a lean fat, we see that frying may not be as excruciating as you thought, but… and there is always a but in the equation, many of us are not satisfied with just frying, we pay little attention to the types of oils with which we fry, often buying the cheapest variety instead of the one that is best for us.
There are good fats and there are bad fats. Butter can be taken in moderation and if you fry food in it, you are setting yourself up for heart disease in the future. Vegetable oils, pure corn oil might be the way to go if you are going to fry and forget about flour or breading. Fry without it to keep fat absorption to a minimum.
Clearly, grilling is the best way to cook your food, as long as you do it on your kitchen stove. However, some of us thought that grilling our food outdoors was the answer. It cuts down on the fat, but there are also some roasting factor considerations.
California scientist James Felton studied the effects of cooking over coals, the traditional variety, and believes that some grilled foods can cause cancer.
There are two ways it can happen, but the more traditional way, according to Felton, is when fat from the meat drips onto the coals, causing a chemical reaction when the flame is ignited to blacken the meat. If you move the coals to the side so the grease doesn’t drip directly onto the coals, it tends to avoid this. Cooking on the gas grill can also help in this battle.
You can also try cooking at a lower temperature and moving the coals if you are going to grill over traditional coals and also try using regular wood instead of charcoal to grill your meat.
If none of that appeals to you, the reality is that grilled foods seem like the best option. First, the flame is coming from above and the fat drips into a pan below, second, there is less fat than in frying, and third, the grill may be doing things to your body that it’s not prepared for.
Do we need better reasons to grill your meat or fish?
