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Copyright © 2025 Foodies Only
Copyright © 2025 Foodies Only
5 min
14/01/2026
By choosing the right cookware and drying your ingredients, controlling the heat, and preventing burns with oil, and if an oil fire breaks out, being aware and prepared and having the ability to restrain yourself, you can easily prevent hot oil burns.
In India, many foods are cooked using hot oils; all the snacks and the crisp tadka (cooked spice oil) that is used to season food require a lot of skill and knowledge. The reason that hot oils cause most injuries in the kitchen is that people are hurrying along and skipping some of the small, but very important steps required to safely use hot oils. A key to reducing injuries when working with hot oils is to know how hot oil reacts when heated to very high temperatures and how it interacts with moisture.
An oil that has a high smoke point can reach a temperature well above the boiling point of water. Oil also retains its heat for a very long time after contact, so the oil continues to burn the skin for several seconds after contact. With steam burns, the steam penetrates through the two layers of skin; whereas oil penetrates deeper layers, resulting in a higher degree of injury from an oil burn or an oil fire.
Splatter occurs when water comes into contact with very hot oil, turning into steam instantly, which forces the oil outwards into a splattered area. Water from food product(s) can be introduced into hot oil via washing vegetables, wet utensils, dry dip or marinade on the utensils and condensation on pots and lids. The more moisture, the bigger the splatter, and in most instances, the splattering will catch the cook by surprise, rather than build up to it.
To reduce splatter from cooking, the very best thing to do is to dry your food products as much as possible before frying. The best way to properly dry food products is to use paper towels instead of leaving them to dry naturally - paper towels will remove all surface moisture - after being washed thoroughly, etc. Plus, excess batter/marinade needs to be allowed to drip off the food product before frying. Also, when tempering spices, make sure the curry leaves or mustard seeds used are totally dry and added to the pan with a gentle motion when tempering spices; do not drop spices from above into hot oil.
Heavy-based cookware that is deep in nature gives greater heat stabilisation during a frying process and therefore aids in containing splatter better than shallow pans. A pan should never be more than half full of oil to allow for bubbling to increase its volume. A flat, wide-bottomed frying pan may heat more quickly than a normal frying pan, but a frying pan with tall sides provides greater comfort when working with "tadka" or regular frying.
Never add food items directly into hot oil from above your body; always lower food items gently into the oil. Maintain a temperature between medium to medium high when cooking; using maximum heat creates an unstable oil and therefore increases the amount of smoke that will be produced. Have a lid nearby when cooking spices (tempering), but use it only for brief periods of time to cover the pan while the spices are frying, not continuously.
If you are dealing with an oil fire, never use water to put it out. This will create an explosive flare-up. Immediately remove the source of heat, and place a metal lid over the pan to suffocate the flames by cutting off their oxygen supply. If you have a fire blanket or baking soda handy, they work well for small fires. The key is to remain calm and act quickly so you don't make a panic-induced error.
