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Olive Oil
Good, extra-virgin olive oil (just how a
virgin gets into a bottle of olive oil comes later) is the #1 ingredient
in an Italian kitchen. I use California extra-virgin olive oil for cooking
(most cooks and books say not to, but I say flavor is key and the more flavor
you start with, the more you will have at the end) and to add at the end
of cooking for a fresh olive flavor.
Olives picked early in the season, while they are still green, tend to produce
oils with a deep green color and peppery flavors particularly well suited
for beans, vegetables, game, and meat. Those picked later in the season,
when the olives have begun to change color — from green to a reddish
purple — often have a strawlike color and soft, fruity flavors with
a vanilla quality good for use with fish. Occasionally, olive oils are sold
unfiltered. They have a cloudy look from the tiny particles of olive suspended
in the oil. They have a rich, fresh olive taste and should be used within
a few months of opening the bottle.
Quality Grades of Olive Oil
All virgin olive oil is extracted from olives by mechanical means only. It
can receive no treatments other than washing, decantation, centrifugation,
and filtration. The oil's flavor must be without flaw. Two levels of virgin
oil are sold in the United States: extra-virgin olive oil and virgin olive
oil. The primary difference is their acidity level, the higher the acidity,
the poorer the quality.
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil is the highest virgin oil quality grade. These
oils have a distinctive taste ranging from soft and fruity to peppery depending
on methods and timing of harvesting and handling as well as olive variety
and specific growing conditions. The acidity is less than 1 percent.
Virgin Olive Oil also has individual taste characteristics though
not as fine as extra-virgin olive oil. Its acidity varies from 1 to 3 percent.
Olive Oil (also called pure olive oil) is the name for a blend of
refined olive oil and virgin olive oil. Refining results in a neutral-tasting
oil. Typically, 5 to 10 percent or more virgin or extra-virgin olive oil
is blended with the refined oil for flavor and balance.
Olive Pomace Oil is the least expensive oil. It is oil extracted with
the use of solvents from the remains of the olive paste after extraction
of olive oil by other means. This oil is then refined to produce a neutral
oil and blended with virgin olive oil for flavor and body.
Light Olive Oil is not a quality grade of olive oil nor does it have
anything to do with calories. "Light olive oil" is an olive oil blended for
its "light" (neutral) taste.
Buy NapaStyle Olive Oil.
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