Coconut oil is very different from most other cooking oils and contains a unique composition of fatty acids.
The fatty acids are about 90% saturated. But coconut oil is perhaps most unique for its high content of the saturated fat lauric acid, which makes up around 40% of its total fat content
This makes coconut oil highly resistant to oxidation at high heat. For this reason, it is very suitable for high-heat cooking methods like frying
Coconut oil is relatively rich in medium-chain fatty acids, containing around 7% caprylic acid and 5% capric acid.
Coconut oil contains about 40% lauric acid.
In comparison, most other cooking oils contain only trace amounts of it. An exception is palm kernel oil, which provides 47% lauric acid.
Lauric acid is an intermediate between the long-chain and medium-chain fatty acids.
While often considered medium-chain, it is digested and metabolised differently from the true medium-chain fatty acids and has more in common with the long-chain fatty acids
Studies show that lauric acid increases the blood levels of cholesterol, but this is mostly due to an increase in cholesterol bound to high-density lipoproteins (HDL)
An increase in HDL cholesterol, relative to total cholesterol, has been associated with a reduced risk of heart disease.
The Stability of Cooking Oils
When you’re cooking at a high heat, you want to use oils that are stable and don’t oxidise or go rancid easily.
When oils undergo oxidation, they react with oxygen to form free radicals and harmuful compounds that you definitely don’t want to be consuming.
The most important factor in determining an oil’s resistance to oxidation and rancidification, both at high and low heat, is the relative degree of saturation of the fatty acids in it.
Saturated fats have only single bonds in the fatty acid molecules, monounsaturated fats have one double bond and polyunsaturated fats have two or more.
It is these double bonds that are chemically reactive and sensitive to heat.
Saturated fats and monounsaturated fats are pretty resistant to heating, but oils that are high in polyunsaturated fats should be avoided for cooking.
