What oil does Carvel fry in?
Carvel cooks with Milk fat from the soft serve and scooped ice cream; the added fats are named in Carvel's own Nutrition & Allergen Guide (CAR-Nutrition-Book-1.20.26.pdf, January 2026 ingredient statements): Chocolate Crunch (the crunchies), the Flying Saucer cracker and the Chipster cookie are made with PALM OIL; the OREO Rounder cracker and the cake cone use CANOLA OIL; the brown and white bonnets and the bittersweet fudge use COCONUT OIL; the cake whip topping on every ice cream cake is fully hydrogenated PALM KERNEL OIL; the sugar cone is canola and/or modified palm and/or soybean shortening; the waffle cone is soybean and modified palm shortening; the brownie is interesterified soybean oil and the Cake Mix flavour contains soybean oil. Nothing is fried..
The 5 cleanest things to order at Carvel
Learn this once: a salad with grilled protein and the dressing left off is nearly always the lowest seed oil order anywhere. So the list below sticks to real meals, salads included, never just a water.
| Item | PUFA |
|---|---|
| Chipsters | 0.7g |
| Flying Saucer | 0.8g |
| Twist Soft Serve Cup (Small) | 0.9g |
| Chocolate Soft Serve Cup (Small) | 0.9g |
| Strawberry Soft Serve Cup (Small) | 0.9g |
Lower PUFA is cleaner. These are estimates from published nutrition data and disclosed oils; preparation varies by location.
Why the frying oil matters
Most fast-food chains fry in seed oils like soybean, canola, corn, or a blend of them, which are high in polyunsaturated fat (PUFA). A handful still use beef tallow or other stable fats, which are far lower in PUFA. The oil a kitchen fries in is the single biggest driver of how much seed oil ends up on your plate. See the full breakdown on the Carvel report card, or where it lands on the Seed Oil Index.
Frequently asked
Does Carvel use beef tallow?
No. Carvel cooks with Milk fat from the soft serve and scooped ice cream; the added fats are named in Carvel's own Nutrition & Allergen Guide (CAR-Nutrition-Book-1.20.26.pdf, January 2026 ingredient statements): Chocolate Crunch (the crunchies), the Flying Saucer cracker and the Chipster cookie are made with PALM OIL; the OREO Rounder cracker and the cake cone use CANOLA OIL; the brown and white bonnets and the bittersweet fudge use COCONUT OIL; the cake whip topping on every ice cream cake is fully hydrogenated PALM KERNEL OIL; the sugar cone is canola and/or modified palm and/or soybean shortening; the waffle cone is soybean and modified palm shortening; the brownie is interesterified soybean oil and the Cake Mix flavour contains soybean oil. Nothing is fried., not beef tallow. See which chains fry in real fats on Tallow Watch.