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When it comes to cooking, olive oil is a versatile and delicious ingredient that can add a unique flavour to your dishes. But with so many different types of olive oil on the market, it can be quite challenging to know which one is right for your cooking. Here are some tips to help you choose the right olive oil for your cooking.
For the palates of most people living in the United Kingdom olive oil is an acquired taste. Often people here have only ever had olive oils that were of low quality, rancid and had gone off, so they think they don't like olive oil. Others confuse the taste of table olives with how olive oil should taste. Table olives are fermented or brined, preserved eating olives instead of the fresh-from-the-tree olives that are used to press fresh olive juices out of them. This olive juice only has the vegetal waters removed from it before it ends up as the olive oil in the bottle on your kitchen counter and on your table. And yes, olive oil should NOT taste like table olives! People unfamiliar with really good olive oil think that its naturally slightly bitter and peppery tastes are a defect of the oil, when they are actually prized elements that mean that the oil is high in beneficial polyphenol antioxidants and is as close to its best natural state as possible. Bitterness is an acquired taste element just like you have it in many UK beers, in coffee or in Aperol spritzes.
A great olive oil has aromas of nature and is balanced in its taste elements of a slight bitterness, a pepperiness and the fruitiness of the olive fruit. It has a clean and pleasant feeling in your mouth rather than something heavy or clogging. When mixed with other foods it transforms and elevates them. Olive oil should never be bland and lifeless or more similar in taste to the processed neutral tasting seed oils. That would be a terrible sign that you have something that is not what it declares to be.
When cooking with olive oil, it is important to consider the smoke point. The smoke point is the temperature at which the oil will start to break down and smoke. Extra virgin olive oil has a range of smoke points, depending on its quality. Unfiltered olive oil has the lowest smoke point of all. As soon as you heat unfiltered olive oil, the suspended solids of olive skin, olive pulp and other debris ignite and smoke unpleasantly. It is the same solids that turn the unfiltered olive oil cloudy, that also oxidise first and give unfiltered olive oil a short shelf life, turning it rancid within just a couple of months of bottling. For best results , it is best to use filtered olive oil. Keep in mind that filtering is not a chemical process, but is performed mechanically by putting the olive oil through a large paper filter, similar to a coffee filter. This costs time and money, which is the reason some producers skip this and other costly, but important, parts of the production process.
Smoke point also depends on the olive variety used to make your olive oil. Opus, which is a Koroneiki variety extra virgin olive oil, has a smoke point of around 210 degrees Celsius. This is suitable for all home cooking processes (stovetop cooking, roasting and baking in the oven as well as shallow frying in a pan), with the exception of deep fat frying. Due to the high antioxidants content of this olive variety, studies have shown that the oil remains chemically stable even past its smoke point, as the antioxidants protect the molecules from degrading.
Take the time to think carefully about your olive oil purchase. Look for high-quality oil that is priced fairly. There is a lot of overpriced olive oil on the UK market, where you just pay for the brand's high expenses for marketing, promotion and advertising. Very often we see olive oils at half the quality of Opus being sold for double and triple the price. Fair pricing does not necessarily mean cheap, it means getting a good price for the quality ie. value. In determining quality look for an olive oil of extra virgin grade, that is filtered (but not refined or mixed with refined oils), that is high in polyphenols and that has won olive oil industry awards, where it has been correctly examined. Compare different brands and types to find the optimal selection that meets your needs.
Olive oil is one of the most popular cooking oils worldwide and for a good reason. It is a healthy and versatile cooking oil and has a distinct flavour that adds a unique taste to various dishes.
Olive oil is a great choice for cooking and baking as it is high in beneficial fats that help to protect our hearts. These fats help to reduce bad cholesterol levels while increasing good cholesterol levels.
It has a very distinctive taste which can give any dish a special zest. It can be used to bring out the flavours of vegetables, meats, and fish, and it can also be used in marinades, dressings, and sauces to add extra flavour.
Olive oil is a nutritious and beneficial food that contains healthy fats (higher Omega 3s than Omega 6s - which is always the goal), vitamins, minerals and polyphenols. Polyphenols act as powerful antioxidants, which help to protect our bodies from disease. Olive oil is a great addition to any diet and can be used for cooking, baking, and drizzling over salads and other dishes.
When cooking, selecting the right type of olive oil is important to ensure the best flavour. Extra-virgin olive oil is usually the best choice as it is unrefined and has a smoke point suitable for all home cooking processes (except deep fat frying) when it is the right oil, correctly selected. Quality is key, so buying the best olive oil you can afford is important.
We provide the finest extra virgin olive oil at Opus Live Well. Our oil has been honoured with multiple awards and boasts a sophisticated, delectable aroma. Our oil is organic, single variety, single origin, filtered and packed with beneficial antioxidants. Try and buy extra virgin olive oil in the UK!
