How much does fryer oil weigh?

  • By: Emma
  • Date: July 21, 2022
  • Time to read: 6 min.

Table of Contents

How much does fryer oil weigh?

Fryer oil is also known as a frying oil or deep-frying fat, it’s widely used in fast-food restaurants like KFC, McDonald’s, etc. For commercial use fryers are designed to hold enough volume of cooking oil (variable according to the production needs), and the heating element is able to bring the temperature of that oil high enough to cook the food items and give them golden color and crispy texture.

There is a common question that has been circulating on the internet that how much does a fryer oil weigh? The answer to this question is as follows

The standard weight of fryer oil varies according to the type of oils, notably, it’s approx 0.9 lbs per fluid ounce for corn /vegetable/canola oil, 4 ounces per cup for soybean oil, and 1 lb per cup for lard.

Read More: How much oil does a deep fryer use?

Why does fryer oil is need to be weighed?

Fryer oil is the main ingredient in any fast food restaurant because it’s needed to fry foods like chicken, french fries, etc.

But if you’ve ever worked in a restaurant kitchen then you know how much oil is wasted during the cooking process, this is why fryer system should be able to automatically drain that oil into the container for collection and to avoid spills that often happen when manual handling of the hot oil container.

You need to know all these things about your oils because the different types of oils come in different-sized containers; they can range anywhere from 1 gallon up to 208 gallons (see below image).

So obviously before purchasing or renting any commercial deep fryer you must ask yourself how much does fryer weigh? If weight matters, then size matters.

What is the standard size of fryer oil?

For home use, you can buy 1 gallon of oil which will last for 1 to 2 weeks if you deep frying food only once a week; but if you’re planning to host any family gathering or event then go for a 5-gallon container so that it can serve your need better.

For commercial use, the amount of oil to be bought should be enough for 3-5 days (to avoid frequent purchase) because there are other cooking methods available like ovens and microwaves, etc.

The containers in which oils are packed vary according to their type and quality, thus different manufacturers come up with different types of package sizes, here below image shows some common package types for reference points.

But before purchasing any oil/fryer you must calculate the number of quarts per hour (QPH) which your unit will require because it varies according to the design of the fryer. There are single basket and dual basket fryers available in the market; depending on your need you can choose anyone accordingly.

Which fryer oil has the best weight?

All cooking oils have different weights but if we compare them on a general basis then vegetable oil has the lowest weight as it’s pure fat, followed by lard or bacon grease having 3.5 lbs per cup, then olive oil which is a pure form of fruit juice and contains approx 0.7 lbs per fluid ounce, canola oil comes next with approx 0.9 lbs per fluid ounce and corn/sunflower/vegetable oils at 1 lb per fluid ounce.

Can fryer oil be used more than once?

Yes, definitely you can reuse your cooking oil for few times even after it becomes dark in color and starts gelling. But for this purpose, you need to have a fryer that allows the draining of hot oil and filters it before refilling.

How long can fryer oil be used?

Well, it depends on two factors, one is the quality of your cooking oil/fryer, second is the type of restaurant you’re operating. If you own a small food truck or small-scale restaurant then frying food once in 2-3 days will produce a reasonable quantity of oil which can be used for at least 10 deep fryings.

But if you’re an owner of a big restaurant with lots of orders per day then the same oil must not be fried more than 20 times as each time it’s reused the level of free radicals increases exponentially thus reducing its shelf life.

So now that we covered all basic need-to-know facts about how much does fryers weigh and how much oil is in a gallon, let’s take a look at a few commercial fryer brands and their specification.

How much does a gallon of fryer oil weigh?

A standard 1-gallon container weighs around 7-14 lbs depending upon its purpose like if it’s for making french fries then this type is lighter in weight than used for frying chicken or fish.

According to my experience using a good quality food grade container helps in cooking better-tasting food as it doesn’t react with the oil and other ingredients.

Read More: How much oil does a turkey fryer take?

What does 1 gallon of canola oil weigh?

How much does fryer oil weigh? A standard 1-gallon container weighs around  7 lbs for cooking purposes and if we consider  1 gallon of corn or sunflower oil then it will be  8.5 lbs and 9.5lbs respectively.

Also, note that all these weights are above average as there might be some weight variation in accordance with their quality, packaging materials, and original oil weight.

Can you believe that one cup of melted fat (oil) weighs about 3lbs; therefore 4 cups of it = 12bs (3*4=12).

How to calculate how much does a gallon of vegetable oil weigh:

Let’s assume the weight of your container is 10 lbs, then you need to know that how much does a gallon of corn oil weigh. So here are the steps to find out this.

Step 1:  Multiply 10lbs by 0.9078 which equals 9.078lb

Step 2:  Multiply 9.078lb by 16 oz/cup to get 160.72oz or in decimal form 0.4838 liter

Step 3: Take the result from step2 and multiply it with the total number of cups in one gallon i.e.: 160.72*16 = 2688ml or 2688cc’s

The answer to the question “how much does fryer oil weigh?” will be around 2688 grams or 2688 milligrams which is equal to 26.88 ounces or 8lbs 4oz that you need for one gallon of corn oil.

How much does a cup of vegetable oil weigh?

A cup holds 7 fluid oz or 0.2 liters therefore 1 cup of cooking oil will be around 14-16 fl oz, depending upon its type which means it will have a weight close to 336 grams or 11 ounces. Now if we consider how much does 1 cup of canola oil weigh then here are the steps to use for your convenience:

Step 1: Take the weight in pounds i.e.: 16oz*16= 256=2 lbs

Step 2: Multiply it with 0.9078 = 224/2.2 lbs

Step 3: Multiply it with 16 oz/cup = 448 ounces or 224 cups

The answer to the question “how much does a cup of canola oil weigh?” will be around 224 grams or 224 milligrams which is close to 224 ounces or 7lbs 8oz that you need for one gallon of cooking oil.

Do all oils weigh the same

No, it’s not true that all oils have the same weight but they’re comparatively close to each other. And the only difference is the density of oil which makes a particular type lighter or heavier than another one.

If the oil is less dense then it’s more flammable and vice versa. And because of this property, animal fats are considered as heaviest cooking oils which means they have the highest weight among all others including peanut oil, corn oil, canola oil, vegetable oil, etc.

Conclusion

So we saw how does a gallon of canola oil weigh and how much does a cup of vegetable oil weighs. Now you must be clear that how much does any type of cooking oil weighs and also what is the weight for one gallon of it.

So if you’re looking to buy different types of cooking oils then check out their weights before ordering them online or buying from a grocery store so that you can estimate their total number before placing an order.

And many times restaurants get a bad reputation because they don’t pay attention to such significant things and overcharge their customers due to wrong calculation of the total amount in gallons/liters which ultimately results in bankruptcy.

Thus, I hope this article has helped you learn how much does a gallon of any oil weighs.

Read More: How heavy is the pampered chef air fryer?

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