Because they’re running counter to big agribusiness and other evil government and corporate types, it piques my interest, but most of these people seem dangerously adjacent to “carnivore diet” weirdos. I’m vegan I’m not gonna use tallow dude. Coconut oil would be fine thanks.
Anyone smarter than me know the real score?
If you are doing deep frying, unsaturated fats can isomerize into :trans-undertale: fats at high temperature, while saturated fats are more stable. For moderate temperature cooking, I think the science is pretty solid that liquid oils are better.
For oils or seeds that contain omega-3s, (chia, flax, canola) the lower the temperature the better.
Olive oil is pretty good for most uses. Use refined for frying, Virgin for slow roasting.
Palm oil (saturated but vegan) is bad for environmental/habitat and slave labor reasons. It’s hard to avoid in modern processed foods.
But deep frying is moderate temperature cooking. You always keep it below smoking.
Cooking with oil or a fat on a pan is usually hotter, pushing past 400F while deep frying is kept below 400F.
Also, polymerization is related to smoke point, with olive oil having a low one - as well as common fats.
I think products of the Maillard reaction act as catalysts to promote cis/trans isomerization at lower temperatures is different from smoke point
Maillard doesn't really make trans fats in any significant quantity, either. None of the above things do outside of choosing a very low smoke point oil, like flax (linoleic), which should really never be heated before eating.
Realistically, trans fats in food are primarily created through industrial processes and the best way to avoid them is to limit processed foods and artificially hydrogenated products like Crisco. Theoretically, Crisco has limited trans fat content, but I don't trust regulators to ensure their hydrogenation processes aren't making them in substantial quantities.