Stop spending money on those store-bought cooking oil sprays with questionable ingredients and only a fraction of the oil. This homemade substitute for cooking spray is easy to make, can be made with healthy oils, and is the perfect non-stick cooking spray for all your baking or cooking needs.
Why We Stopped Buying Store-Bought Cooking Spray
Years ago I got rid of all the cooking spray in our house. I didn’t like that I didn’t know what was in it. There are all sorts of propellants and ingredients that I have no idea what they are because they’re not required to list them.
I also didn’t like that I was probably buying a cent or two of oil and the rest of my money was going toward the packaging that I would end up throwing away.
I finally decided to kick out the cooking oil spray in our house and we turned to buttering our pans or using cooking oil. But after finding greasy handprints all over the kitchen from kids who had buttered a bread pan, or spread oil onto a cookie sheet then touched the walls, I realized how much I missed cooking spray.
Why I Love This Recipe
When I found out just how easy it was to make homemade cooking spray I was blown away. I honestly wished I had known about it sooner!
What I love is that I can have multiple bottles of cooking spray with the various oils we like to use for cooking. My favorite are these bottles from Lehmans that actually come with little bands so you can label your bottles to know exactly which oil is in which bottle.
Ways to Use Homemade Cooking Spray
You can use your homemade cooking spray exactly the same way you would the store-bought version, just with a few shakes ahead of time!
Some of our favorite uses are:
- Adding a quick layer of oil to our cast iron pans after cleaning (or for properly seasoning our cast iron pans)
- To coat veggies with a small layer of oil before baking.
- Adding a bit of oil to the pan for cooking eggs (unless we’re using our homemade butter, which is usually preferred!)
- Spraying the BBQ for those foods that tend to stick, such as fish and certain veggies.
- Giving the cookie sheet a quick spritz as needed.
- Lightly coating the bread pan
Use your imagination! There are so many ways to use this stuff!
Supplies Needed
This recipe only needs two things (well, three if you include water) and couldn’t be easier to make.
- Cooking Oil – This is where you get to decide which oil you want to make your cooking spray from. In the video above, I’m using good quality olive oil. But you could use avocado oil, flaxseed oil, even fractionated coconut oil (but not regular coconut oil as that solidifies at room temperature). You could even press your own seed and nut oils at home.
- A Spray Bottle – I like using an amber glass spray bottle, but I recently found these spray bottles from Lehman’s that I’m excited to try because I can tell if my oils are mixed up well before spraying, and they come with little bands so you can label which oil is in the bottle (avocado, olive, peanut, etc.). Then there’s this spray bottle that’s a great non-aerosol version of the store-bought cooking sprays.
How to Make Homemade Cooking Spray
All you need to make homemade cooking spray is 1 part oil to 5 parts water. That’s it!
- Measure out 1 1/4 cup water into a glass measuring cup.
- Add 1/4 cup liquid oil of your choice (I like to have one bottle with olive oil and one bottle with avocado oil ready to use at all times).
- And that’s it! Anytime you want to use your cooking spray, simply give the bottle a few good strong shakes then coat your pan, veggies, skillet, or anything else!
More Homesteading Tips & Recipes
- Woodstove Cooking on the Homestead
- How to Clean Cast Iron Properly to Maintain the Seasoning
- Benefits of Cast Iron (+Choosing the Best, New or Used)
- How to Cook Scrambled Eggs in Cast Iron
- Quick & Easy Pan Sauce Recipe
- Michele’s Skillet Supper
- Rendering Lard (or Tallow) for Homestead Cooking
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Homemade Cooking Spray
Equipment
- Spray Bottle
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup cooking oil olive, avocado, etc.
- 1 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Measure out 1 1/4 cup water into a glass measuring cup.
- Add 1/4 cup liquid oil of your choice (I like to have one bottle with olive oil and one bottle with avocado oil ready to use at all times).
- Pour into spray bottle. That's it! Anytime you want to use your cooking spray, simply give the bottle a few good strong shakes then coat your pan, veggies, skillet, or anything else!
