I was recently at my locals farmers market and someone was handing out samples (cooked) of what they were selling. The guy cooking said to never use olive oil and use grapeseed oil instead because olive oil burns too easily (lower smoking point). I've done a brief search into past posts, but nothing quite answers my question.
So I was thinking, for an amateur/home cook, is it just best to always cook with the oil that has the highest smoking point? (I believe those are safflower oil and sunflower oil). I am considering doing this to avoid wasting any more time scrubbing pots and pans (the brown residue that's impossible to scrub off) — I don't like to use teflon pans, so everything is on stainless steel. However, I'm unaware of what the changes are in the end product.
Best Answer
The smoke point of the oil is only one factor. It is advantageous in some types of cooking (particularly searing and deep frying) to have a very high smoke point.
Cost is another factor; the high smoke point oils are often more refined (getting rid of the elements that smoke) and are therefore more expensive.
They also don't contribute flavor the same way something like (unrefined) olive oil will do.
Most importantly, however, they will not really save you any effort on cleanup. You still need to wash your pans. They may be somewhat less likely to polymerize on into a hard film during routine cooking, but that should not happen in any case.