The AHA's fat guideline for Americans over the age of two is that total fat shouldn' t be more than 30 of their daily calories. Polyunsaturated fatty acids, found in corn oil and some other liquid vegetable oils, should be 8 to 10 percent of calories. Monounsaturated fatty acids, such as peanut, olive and canola oil, make up the rest of the total fat intake and should be about 10 to 15 percent of calories. Like saturated fat, cholesterol is present in all foods from animal sources, such as meat, fish and poultry, as well as dairy products. Healthy cooking guidelines Vitetta-Miller says be careful how you follow the AHA guidelines on fat.
People often fry in peanut oil believing it is one of the least evil of the oils.
That' s a lot of fat, as opposed to saut ing in olive oil. Frying not only uses more oil than saut ing, but peanut oil is less healthy than olive oil. A tablespoon of peanut oil has 6 grams of monounsaturated fat out of 14 total grams of fat versus a tablespoon of olive oil with its 10 out of 14 fat grams being monounsaturated, according to Vitetta-Miller. Try saut ing, grilling, roasting, broiling, braising in broth over frying. Be wary of fat-free foods, which use hydrogenated oils that create transfats.