Jump to content
  • Welcome to the eG Forums, a service of the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters. The Society is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of the culinary arts. These advertising-free forums are provided free of charge through donations from Society members. Anyone may read the forums, but to post you must create a free account.

Olive Oil Questions, Options, Favorites


Shiva

Recommended Posts

Back in 2002, I bought my parents a bottle of estate extra-virgin olive oil (2001 cold pressed & unfiltered) only to find out recently that they have been keeping it in the fridge for the past 4 years :blink: It has not yet been opened so I was wondering if it was still edible... As it was not filtered, a layer of white-ish 'bloom' has settled at the bottom of the glass bottle. The tag attached to the bottle advised that olive oil does not improve with age so I was wondering if I should take it and use it, or toss it? Any ideas?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hmmm...

Well, if it is unopened and packed with an inert gas, it might still be ok.

I would open it, warm some in a pan, and see what it smells like.

Rancid olive oil is usually pretty obvious to the nose.

If it still just smells like olive oil, use it up quickly.

---

Erik Ellestad

If the ocean was whiskey and I was a duck...

Bernal Heights, SF, CA

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree with slo_ted. The worst that can happen is that it's rancid, and then you can pitch it before you wreck the flavor of some food. It might be wonderful still, in which case you'll be glad you tried it first.

Nancy Smith, aka "Smithy"
HosteG Forumsnsmith@egstaff.org

Follow us on social media! Facebook; instagram.com/egulletx; twitter.com/egullet

"Every day should be filled with something delicious, because life is too short not to spoil yourself. " -- Ling (with permission)
"There comes a time in every project when you have to shoot the engineer and start production." -- author unknown

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The whitish bloom should go away as soon as the oil gets back to room temperature. If not, chuck it. Otherwise, sniff it; if it's rancid, you'll know.

I'd be tempted to use it for cooking rather than raw, just to be sure.

Hong Kong Dave

O que nao mata engorda.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Olive oil is getting increasingly popular today due to its high monosaturated fat contend for many health reasons chiefly protective against cardiovascular and others. In cooking I was told and somethings new to me that making dressing out of it for salad is good but for hot cooking when it is heated to a certain temperature it lose it value, it's is true?

主泡一杯邀西方. 馥郁幽香而湧.三焦回转沁心房

"Inhale the aroma before tasting and drinking, savour the goodness from the heart "

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Olive oil is getting increasingly popular today due to its high monosaturated fat contend for many health reasons chiefly protective against cardiovascular and others. In cooking  I was told and somethings new to me that making dressing out of it for salad is good but for hot cooking when it is heated to a certain temperature  it lose it value, it's is true?

It is true of all oils. Just some tolorate temp better than others.

Living hard will take its toll...
Link to comment
Share on other sites

You may be confusing several strands of information here, OP. Olive oil has a relatively low smoke point, so even leaving aside flavour, it isn't much use for something like stir frying. It is also considered wasteful to cook with a good, fruity olive oil (extra virgin, which is usually more expensive - though not where I live) because most of the flavour is lost. Cold, in salad dressings etc, the full flavour can be appreciated.

And really, olive oil is about food, not health. That's the main reason for its popularity - on its home turf, at least.

Edited by Ohba (log)
Link to comment
Share on other sites

When I was a kid we lived with my grandparents, I used to ask my grandmother to please cook like "everyone" else and stop making everything with olive oil. The only time she used vegetable oil (Mazola Corn Oil) was for pan frying breaded chicken cutlets.

Now the only thing I dont cook in Olive oil is chicken cutlets and Chinese food....so shoot me. :hmmm:

tracey

The great thing about barbeque is that when you get hungry 3 hours later....you can lick your fingers

Maxine

Avoid cutting yourself while slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold them while you chop away.

"It is the government's fault, they've eaten everything."

My Webpage

garden state motorcyle association

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Typically a good rule of thumb, if your temerature is going to approach medium or higher (on the stove) do not use olive oil...

I like to finish dishes with evoo, use it in salads, in pasta sauces where temps wont get high - and cook at higher temps with either grape seed oil, peanut, or veg.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Extra virgin is fine for sauteeing, but I would not use it for frying for two reasons. First there is the relatively low smoke point of somewhere between 325F and 375F, depending on who you ask, and the second is the difference in taste would be negligible. However, the thing is being overlooked here is that "pomace" olive oil, which I believe comes from the third pressing, has a smoke point of around 450F, and is not much more expensive than other oils. So if you want the health benefits of olive oil, have at it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What I'm trying to figure out is why olive oil besides extra virgin is getting hard to find. I used to have a good extra virgin oil for dresings and vinnaigretttes and dipping bread (anything raw) and a big can of cheap "pure" grade for cooking.

Now almost everything, even at my local (ghetto) supermarket is extra virgin. If there are any other grades, they're usually no cheaper than the cheap extra virgins.

Of course the cheap-o extra virgins are much less flavorful than most of the expensive ones ... but it makes me wonder what the deal is with this glut of extra virgin oil that tastes like and costs the same as cheaper grades.

Notes from the underbelly

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I keep regular (not extra-virgin) olive oil next to the stove in my kitchen. It is my go-to oil for sauteeing aromatics or for the first step in a braise. I rarely fry anything. I choose it specifically because 1) it is still fairly neutral in taste and what little it does add just adds to the party of flavors I am after; amd 2) I try to cook using the South Beach Diet as my guideline for balancing what I love to eat vs what will help keep me healthy (my cholesterol is better than it has been in many years). I use corn oil or peanut oil if I need to use a higher heat.

Since I have a whimpy builder grade stove that's only good for maybe 10,000 BTU it may explain why I don't generally worry about the smoke point of oils considering I start with a full-on flame.

I use a 30,000 BTU per burner free-standing camp stove when I do my renaisance feast cooking and don't use much oil but generally use wesson (someone else does the buying) when I do need oil.

Prothos Potwatcher

The Unrelenting Carnivore

Porthos Potwatcher
The Once and Future Cook

;

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think that the health benefits are greatest from the 1st cold pressing of the olives.

Hence, I use exclusively EVOO.

Yesterday, an unusual occurrence for me to be watching, Oprah had on this Health Rite Living guy. Now I don't know much about his diet regime, but he apparently is highly respected. Anyway, the first thing on his short list of very very healthy foods to eat was when he held up a bottle of Bertolli Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

I won't use canola oil as it is highly processed from the rapeseed plant which is highly toxic and was originally used only as an insulator in high voltage applications. Anything that has to be processed that much to make it edible makes me cautious.

Regardless of which oils you use in frying, the frying itself is probably more unhealthy for you than what oil you're using.

Same for grilling. Oil, any oil, falls into the flame and becomes toxic and deposits itself on your food.

At least, that's what I've read over and over over the years, and from a chemistry point of view, it tends to make sense to me.

doc

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I won't use canola oil as it is highly processed from the rapeseed plant which is highly toxic and was originally used only as an insulator in high voltage applications.  Anything that has to be processed that much to make it edible makes me cautious.

As opposed to say, tapioca? This anti-science bias really grates me. The chemistry of canola oil is well understood. It's not toxic in any way.

I think the US still isn't a signatory of the IOOC so the words "extra virgin" have no meaning. What's probably happening is some of the lower end manufacturers are putting EVOO on the label without changing the contents which allows them to sell more at a higher price.

PS: I am a guy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...