I’m sure no one reading these blogs knows (I didn’t) or cares that food cooks in oil slower than water, even when both liquids are exactly the same temperature.  According to Cook’s Illustrated (March-April 2012)-Kitchen Notes, “This is true….  But how can this be? Isn’t temperature what determines speed of cooking?”  Actually, “equally critical is the liquid’s thermal capacity, or how much energy is needed to change its temperature by 1 degree centigrade.  Oil has roughly half the thermal capacity of water, which means it requires half the amount of energy to reach the same temperature as an equal volume of water.  This, in turn, means it has less energy to transfer to food and will cook it more slowly.

Don’t believe it?  Heat equal amount of water and oil to 135 degrees and then stick your finger in.  They will come out of the water faster than the oil.

Sounds like a science project!