Have you ever wished for the ease of aerosol cooking spray, but loathed putting additional chemicals and ingredients into the food you cook for your family? Making your own cooking spray is easy and affordable, and has only two natural ingredients: water and olive oil!
Most of the cooking sprays on the market today have a surprisingly short shelf life (12-18 months, depending on brand!) and also have weird ingredients and propellants packed inside them. Turning over a can of organic olive oil cooking spray, you will find the following ingredients: Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Organic Grain Alcohol (Added for Clarity), Lecithin from Soybeans (Prevents Sticking), and Propellant.
Yes, propellant is listed as an ingredient! “N-Butane, iso-butane, nitrogen, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide are often used as propellants to deliver foodstuffs for example, whipped cream and cooking spray.” a
Whether you are attempting to limit your family’s consumption of unnecessary soy products, or simply want a more natural way to cook that requires less effort, making your own cooking spray is a good option that should fit in well with most family’s lifestyles.
How To:
Mix one part extra virgin olive oil with 5 parts distilled water into a spray bottle (we suggest using a glass bottle!) Shake well before each use.
You may find that not all spray bottles will be able to dispense the oil evenly. Getting a spray bottle that was designed for oil use, such as this one by Lotus, will be your best bet. We suggest using a glass spray bottle to avoid any plastic chemical residue.
Why do we like olive oil?
We love cooking and baking with olive oil because of its known health benefits. It may reduce the risk of heart disease by controlling bad cholesterol. Additionally, olive oil is easily digestible. It’s very vitamin rich, and also contains iron. Since it is derived from a plant, it has polyunsaturated fat in it. Strive to always buy extra virgin olive oil, simply because it is the least processed.
Source a: https://www.labelwatch.com/addinfo.php
Photo Credit: The Memoirs of Megan
You’re mixing water and oil? How would that work?
Hi Jaycee!
It will work, believe it or not. 🙂 The portions won’t be perfect, but for the use of a cooking spray, it dispenses enough (As long as you shake it) for it to coat the pan beautifully. I use it daily.
Thanks for commenting! 🙂
Awesome! I will defiantly be using this. I was just about to buy more cooking spray. I was looking for one without the chemicals and that google search led me here! Great find!
Could something like this work for other oils, such as coconut oil?
The liquid kind, yes.
I have read on other site about making this that you should only make enough to last 1 week to avoid it going rancid. How long will this last and is that advice good on only making enough for a week at a time? 🙂
Jenn,
I haven’t heard that before, and haven’t noticed mine going rancid at all. As you can see I use a small spray bottle so it typically lasts me about a month.