Olive Oil Thread

Also you aren’t supposed to cook with Extra V isn’t it not.

I like the standard basil oil from Waitroz too.

1 Like

Yeah I don’t think theres any benefit to cooking with extra v.
i don’t actually know what makes something extra v rather than a v

Have a large bottle of Tesco Olive oil that I use once every few months when it’s really necessary. Otherwise use Frylight for all my cooking.

I always go for the first pressing you know? I mean why wait until everyone else has had their fun with the olives?

4 Likes

Serious Eats did a thing on that: Cooking With Olive Oil: Should You Fry and Sear in It or Not?

Basically, it’s fine, you might be able to detect a tiny bit of flavour, might be better for you than vegetable oil or whatever.

Anyway, tend to use extra-virgin for anything involving tomatoes and that, normal veg oil for everything else. Nothing fancy oil-wise for dipping but we do have a couple of fancy balsamic vinegars which IMO are the more interesting part of the dipping experience than the oil.

I have been told you may as well use a cheap oil for cooking as after a certain temperature all oil becomes the same or something to that affect? Has anyone else heard this?

This stuff is nectar of the gods: https://casadeloli.com/product/arbequina-olive-oil-with-garlic-cold-smoked/

I could drink it out of the bottle, quite honestly

Any Clerkenwell bods ever gone to this shop? https://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/embassy-electrical-supplies-london

Bloke who runs an electrical supplies shop but also sells olive oil there pressed from a load of trees he inherited in Cyprus years ago. Like it’s just on the shelves next to a stack of electrical gear. Probably the best I’ve ever had and it’s very reasonably priced. I could drink the lemon one neat, it’s divine. Proper lovely bloke too.

1 Like

Another vote for Davidoff cool one for cooking and one nice one for dressings etc.
Also have sesame, sunflower, vegetable and chilli oils come at me

Hot dog
Jumping frog
Arbequina

Yeah smoking point of olive oil is a LOT lower than other oils meaning it’s carcenogenic etc. I mean if you were deep frying stuff in it all the time it’d probably be harmful but I can’t imagine many people are doing that regularly enough to be harmed by it. Guilty pleasure of mine is a fried egg done in a load of high quality extra virgin olive oil.

What do you use?
Depends on the situation really

Do you have a fancy one for dipping?
Yeah, got some of this Il Casolare stuff, it’s alright but only got tesco nearby, no fancy Italian Deli, would like something real nice.

Do you have a shitty one for cooking?
Yeah, just tesco’s own or aldi’s own.

Other oils
Usually have a bottle of either sunflower or veg for frying things that need the oil to be hotter, faster. Sesame for dressings and stuff.

Chat Encouraged.
Olive oil is the bloody best by the way! A weekend treat yo self lunch could consist of a nice ciabatta, some Serrano Ham, cherry toms, marinated anchovies, balsamic and a good drizzle of oil… feel a treat yo self weekend coming on soon thinking about this.

1 Like

I’ve been using coconut oil a lot more recently

1 Like

I used to work in a place than sold it, amongst other things. They’d sell the same stuff to budget and prime supermarkets. Often the £2 stuff in Lidl’s literally the same as the £8 bottle in Waitrose. Sometimes supermarkets would have virtually the same product into their value and quality ranges. Loads of places i’ve had (normally shit) jobs at do that sort of thing. We probably all know that already, but olive oil more than anything else off the top of of my head, bar possibly wine, there’s just no point spending the extra, you might as well be wiping your arse with your money.

That’s not to say you can’t source good quality versions, just the vast majority of time you’re just paying for a nicer bottle or label.

2 Likes

At least half of that article is about how olive oil isn’t any worse than any other oil for producing nasties when heated past its smoke point.

1 Like

Nice work, extra virgins

2 Likes

Fair enough (didn’t read it). Went on a cooking course about 5 years ago and the woman running it was saying there was going to be loads in the media soon about how no-one should cook with olive oil and it was going to be a HUGE thing so BE PREPARED etc. Never happened.

image

2 Likes

Kinda makes everything taste of coconut a bit though right? Rules it out for me, however I do use it when making curry though - that’s where it comes into its own.

this for dipping, dressing and some cooking. veg/sunflower/coconut/peanut for other types of cooking. Don’t know why anyone would use a shit olive oil for cooking when you could use veg/sunflower.
image

1 Like