Definition

1. Noun:
   • Any of numerous vegetable oils used in cooking: A type of fat, typically liquid at room temperature, that is extracted from plants and used for frying, baking, sautéing, or as an ingredient in food preparation.

Usage

• Noun:
  • Cooking oil is a kitchen staple for frying and baking.
  • You should heat the cooking oil in the pan before adding the vegetables.
  • This recipe calls for two tablespoons of cooking oil.

Advanced Usage

• "to change one's cooking oil": A metaphorical phrase sometimes used to suggest making a significant change in one's habits or life, analogous to changing the oil in a car for better performance.
  • After the burnout, he decided it was time to change his cooking oil and pursue a new career.

Variants and Related Words

• Vegetable oil (n): A common type of cooking oil made from various plants like soybeans, corn, or sunflowers. It is often used interchangeably with "cooking oil," though "cooking oil" is a broader category.
  • Canola oil and olive oil are both popular vegetable oils.
• Frying oil (n): Oil specifically used for deep-frying or pan-frying.
  • The restaurant filters its frying oil daily.

Synonyms

• Edible oil: Oil that is safe for human consumption.
• Salad oil: A light-tasting oil suitable for dressings and low-heat cooking, often a subset of cooking oils.

Related Phrases

• Cooking oil spray (n phrase): Cooking oil packaged in an aerosol can for easy, even coating.
  • Grease the baking tray with cooking oil spray.
• Used cooking oil (n phrase): Oil that has been utilized in frying and is no longer fresh.
  • Dispose of used cooking oil properly; do not pour it down the drain.

Idioms

• To be like water off a duck's back / To be like water on hot oil: While not directly containing "cooking oil," this idiom evokes the image of droplets sizzling and dispersing quickly on a hot, oily surface, meaning criticisms or problems have no lasting effect.
  • The harsh comments were like water on hot oil to her; she didn't let them bother her at all.

Noun

1. any of numerous vegetable oils used in cooking