smoke point

noun

variants or smoking point

plural smoke points or smoking points

: the temperature at which an oil or fat (especially one used for cooking) begins to emit smoke

When choosing an oil, you want one with a higher smoke point than your cooking temperature … since surpassing the smoke point "can cause undesirable burnt aroma and flavors," says [Jason] Ginsberg, in addition to filling your kitchen with smoke.—

Laurel Randolph

Cold-pressed oils have a smoking point of less than 300°F and should not be used for high-heat cooking.—

Jane Salzgass Freiman

Film the pan with peanut oil or canola oil (which have higher smoke points than other vegetable oils).—

Harvey Steiman

Examples of smoke point in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Avocado oil’s smoke point varies depending on the type. —

Jillian Kubala, Health, 30 July 2024 Wang explained to me that good extra virgin olive oil actually has a high smoke point (around 200 degrees Celsius). —

Marshall Bright, refinery29.com, 24 May 2024 Unrefined avocado oil has a smoke point of about 482℉, while refined avocado oil has a smoke point of 520℉.21 Because of its high smoke point, avocado oil can be used for higher-heat cooking methods, such as frying. —

Jillian Kubala, Health, 30 July 2024 The smoke point is the temperature at which a cooking fat begins to smoke, oxidize, and begin to decompose. —

Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 July 2024 Overheating butter, which has one of the lowest smoke points of all cooking fats, leads to a kitchen full of fumes, and food that has potentially harmful compounds. —

Yasmin Tayag, The Atlantic, 21 June 2024 Don't bother cooking with it — it's got a low smoke point and the flavour will break down. —

Marshall Bright, refinery29.com, 24 May 2024 Brush the salmon skin with a thin layer of a high smoke point fat (Brekke suggests avocado or vegetable oil or ghee) to promote more even cooking. Place the salmon, skin-side down, on the cooking surface. —

Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 July 2024 Frying chicken in extra-virgin olive oil, which has a moderately high smoke point (though low compared with other neutral oils), might be less dangerous—albeit expensive. —

Yasmin Tayag, The Atlantic, 21 June 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'smoke point.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.