Fat Free Cooking: How to Cook without Oil for a Healthy Liver

One of the most important rules when it comes to eating healthy and keeping your liver healthy is to cook your own food. By doing so, you control the ingredients that are used and you know that you will always choose the healthiest, safest options possible.

Since you are doing this and especially if you are trying to reverse fatty liver (now medically known as MASLD), cooking without frying or deep frying in oil makes the food a lot healthier (and, with a few tricks, still tasty).

This approach means you can greatly reduce or completely eliminate the use of oil during the cooking process, therefore reducing the amount of inflammatory fat your body receives. Let’s see how this can be done, based on my own experience reversing the condition (and practicing what I preach).

Is fat free cooking (or oil free cooking) really possible?

The main problem today regarding the food we eat is that almost all dishes are prepared using far more fat than needed.

Everything we eat in a restaurant, all recipes in cookbooks or online – EVERYTHING – seems to require some sort of frying or at least adding plenty of fat.

There is indeed one big reason why we add a lot of fat/oil when we cook. The foods taste better, they make you feel full for longer… and some fat is still required for our bodies to function properly.

But is it impossible to eat foods cooked without frying them in oil? Do these foods really taste horrible?

Of course not, on the contrary! And I’m saying this after doing both research and a lot of personal testing.

After being diagnosed with a fatty liver, I reduced the amount of added fat by probably 90%. This doesn’t mean that I stopped eating fatty products (on the contrary, I focus on healthy fats from avocado, nuts and even extra virgin olive oil).

What it means is that when preparing dishes I rarely added any extra oil or any type of additional fat.

But… does the food still taste good?

To be honest, most of them taste about the same, surprisingly. Some foods will take some adjusting, depending on how much oil and fat you were used to consuming.

For example, you won’t be eating fries anymore – and baked potatoes without added fat (or boiled ones) will taste a bit different. Many of the other dishes will, but without them becoming horrible or impossible to eat.

The best part? You will be eating healthier and your entire body – especially the liver – will be thankful for that.

UPDATE: After reversing my fatty liver, I started adding some oil when cooking, when needed. I still use minimal amounts though – mostly to make sure that I get all the healthy nutrients (and a bit of extra flavor) from my foods.

Why should you stop cooking with added fat if you have a fatty liver?

Well, it’s pretty much common sense honestly: you have an excess of fat in your body, if you’ve already been diagnosed with a fatty liver disease, and adding extra fat doesn’t help.

Oil is pure fat (9 calories per gram), and even though some oils are healthier than others, nothing in excess is healthy. But for those with MASLD, the issue goes deeper than just weight gain.

Here is the big secret: High heat destroys good oil.

When you heat oils, even the healthier types, to high temperatures for frying or sautéing, they can oxidize. This process creates free radicals and inflammatory compounds that directly attack liver cells.

So, while you might think you are eating healthy by stir-frying vegetables, if you are drowning them in hot, smoking oil, you are actually feeding your liver inflammation.

This extends to all types of fat, so replacing oils with butter or lard or anything won’t be a better option.

However, we must be careful not to swing too far the other way!

Remember, though, that simply cutting out the fat and adding tons of carbohydrates (or sugar) instead is not recommended either, since sugar is really bad for MASLD. Excess carbs spike your insulin, which signals your liver to store more fat.

At the same time, we shouldn’t completely eliminate fat from your diet. Fat has an important role in maintaining one’s health, absorbing vitamins (A, D, E, and K) and keeping our bodies functioning properly.

We just need to change how we consume it and understand that we only need small amounts of it, which we normally get from:

We need small amounts of high-quality fats, which we normally get from:

• Lean meats and fish (Omega-3s are fantastic for the liver).
• Dairy (in moderation).
• Nuts and seeds (Walnuts are particularly good).
• Avocados.
• Healthy chocolate.
• Raw Extra Virgin Olive Oil (added after cooking).

Basically, that is everything that you’re already eating if you’re following a Mediterranean diet (like this modified diet I followed to reverse my condition).

How much fat should you consume per day?

The golden rule of thumb is that a healthy human should ideally consume about 20 to 30 percent of their daily caloric intake as fat.

One gram of fat represents 9 calories, so if you want to find your required number, simply divide 20% of the amount of calories you have daily by 9.

For a generic 2,000-calorie diet, this means one should ideally consume between 44 to 66 grams of fat per day. However, if you are dealing with a fatty liver, sticking to the lower end of that spectrum is safer until your numbers improve.

Now, 44 grams of fat per day might seem like a lot, but it is frighteningly easy to go over that limit.

Keep in mind that one tablespoon of olive oil weighs about 14 grams and is almost 100% fat. A regular glass of 3% fat milk gives us 7.5 grams of fat.

It is easy to see how we end up consuming double or triple the recommended amount just by “eyeballing” oil into a frying pan. Even the “good” oils become a burden if consumed in excess or burned in a pan. Balance is key.

Also, the type of fat you’re eating is extremely important.

Monounsaturated fats (like olive oil and avocados) and Polyunsaturated fats (like walnuts and fish) are the “liver helpers” and the ones you should consume the most of.

Saturated fats (fatty beef, pork, butter, cream, cheese) are the bad ones, and they should always be kept to a minimum.

Trans fats (often found in store-bought pastries and processed fried foods) are the most dangerous and should be completely taken out of your diet.

You can read more about the dangers of consuming saturated fats on Medline Plus.

All in all, going “oil free” or “fat free” when it comes to cooking doesn’t mean that you should completely stop consuming fat!

Fat is still required for our body to function properly, as we discussed already, but it’s that excess fat, unhealthy fat that you need to stop having.

I might still be a bit under some days, but my body has enough fat reserves not to worry about this for a few years, unfortunately… and probably the same can be said about most people diagnosed with a fatty liver disease.

Is oil-free cooked food that horrible?

Honestly, it’s not. For the first six months after being diagnosed with a fatty liver, I did not add any extra fat to anything that I have cooked.

I boiled and steamed or baked the ingredients when creating more complex dishes, replacing oil in recipes with… plain water.

None of the soups and broths that I made ever required extra oil (and if I use meat, I make sure it’s skinned and the leanest possible) and they are just as delicious.

And everything else tastes mostly the same or at least acceptable – just give it a try for a few days and you will see what I’m talking about!

You will actually get to see for yourself – after the first one, maybe one and a half months of drastically reducing the amount of oil you consume – that we do use too much oil when cooking.

I still remember that, some six months after starting with my fatty liver diet, I rewarded myself with my favorite pizza as the test results were so encouraging (spoiler alert: I managed to reverse my fatty liver in 18 months!)

I usually ate a whole pepperoni pizza without a problem, but now I found everything way too oily and greasy and gross and I could only eat half of that. I was full and didn’t feel good about it either, to be honest.

I can’t deny it – I enjoyed the taste, but I simply felt that everything’s way too oily. Less cheese, less pepperoni and it would’ve still been great!

I actually started to make pizza at home afterwards to keep the ingredients in check.

Also, I was forced to eat out once after the pizza event and even though I tried to pick the healthiest sounding dish which was not a salad, I still found it way too oily.

You only get to realize how unhealthy we eat after following a 100% healthy diet for a while…

You will get there yourself and you will see that we’re not doing any good simply by adding extra oil just because we think it tastes better. It’s actually part of what’s making us sick!

A solid option to cooking without added oil is switching to air fried food. Check out my article on that topic, although I don’t think you really have to make the switch, honestly.

How to cook without oil or with as little oil as possible?

Basically, simply not pouring oil into the pan is the first step. But if you just throw onions into a dry, hot pan, they will burn, so you need a new technique.

In most cases, replacing that with plain water works well (just keep an eye on it, as it evaporates quickly). In some cases, you simply don’t have to add anything as a replacement.

Use “Flavor Bombs”

If plain water in a pan doesn’t sound appealing, that’s because oil carries flavor. When you remove it, you remove that extra boost of flavor, but you can also find alternatives to replace it.

Use more spices, garlic, ginger, lemon juice, and vinegar. A splash of balsamic vinegar on roasted vegetables adds a richness that mimics the mouthfeel of oil.

If you don’t feel completely comfortable going cold turkey, try this approach: reduce the quantity of oil used by half for one week, then reduce it again by half the next week. It’s still much better than using it all!

Cooking without oil update: My “10 years after” update

It’s been over 10 years now since I was diagnosed with a fatty liver and I managed to reverse it in the meantime (it took me one year and a half).

I decided to write this update to tell you that I am still, for the most part, following the rules I set all these years ago and presented in the article above.

I still cook soups and bake without oil. I prepare most foods without adding a single drop of extra fat, and here I am, ten years later, happier and healthier than ever. This is a sustainable lifestyle, not just a temporary diet.

However, I think you can succeed without necessarily going to the extreme that I did initially. Even I use some additional oil now, but differently than before and only the healthiest options available.

In some cases, when preparing pancakes (yes, I allow myself one or two every now and then) or an omelet and other dishes that I can’t really think about right now, I use a tiny amount of oil or at least a spray for the pan.

I have also started to add a tablespoon of high-quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil after cooking the food.

Not in all foods, but some stews and dishes benefit from the tiny amount of oil added when they are done cooking.

This is chemically different from frying. By adding the oil raw, you keep the antioxidants and polyphenols intact, which are actually good for the liver, without creating the harmful compounds that come from high heat. And that single tablespoon covers 4-5 servings!

What I am trying to say is that after all these years, I know that we’re at a point where we use too much fat when cooking – as well as too much sugar (but that’s for another article!)

Most of our foods don’t need any of these two things that are also the most harmful ingredients for liver health. I was forced to understand this by being diagnosed, and hopefully, you agree now as well.

Greasy food, fried food, fatty food… these are not things that you need in your life – even if you’re still healthy now when you’re reading this.

Eat everything with moderation, keep an eye on the numbers (without getting too obsessed with counting calories), cut off excess fat from foods that are just as delicious without it, and avoid eating the ones that can’t be prepared without a lot of oil. In reality, that number is really low.

It might sound difficult today and it will reduce your options when eating out or entertaining guests, but you’re doing all these for your well being and I truly believe that you agree that this is what matters the most!

And if you want to get serious about reversing your condition, know that I wrote a book about my experience, sharing everything I did to heal my liver. The book’s available on Amazon here (or simply search for: “From Fatty Liver to Healthy Liver”).