Olive Oils - Smooth And Spicy Tastes Of The Mediterranean

One of the oldest foods known to mankind comes from the olive tree, native to Mediterranean regions. The olive tree is mentioned frequently in the Bible, in the Garden of Gethsemane and famous in the Jewish tradition, where the oil miraculously burned for eight days. Olive oils retain a prominent place today, a subject of culinary delights, winning praises from nutritionists as a healthy way to prevent cholesterol problems. Many countries where olive trees thrive claim superiority in their locally produced olive oils. There are many grades, with various uses  suitable to a given culinary application. To the average cook, the subject of olive oils can prove confusing. When do you use extra virgin, cold-pressed oil? Which type of oils are suitable to dress your salad to perfection? What's best for general cooking? Spanish or Italian? Let's take a quick look at what's available and try to sort out some of the mystery.

All olive oils are missing one component found in almost every other type of oil – cholesterol. As a starting point, you know you're making a healthy diet choice when you choose olive oils.

Now what about country of origin? Italy, Spain, Greece and France all have prolific olive producing regions, and vie with one another for the top spot in quality and purity.

The truth is that each olive growing region has soil and climate conditions, producing a distinctive character to the oils produced and has not much to do with an inherent degree of quality that can be pinpointed as superior or inferior. Soil makeup and climate lend a distinctive flavor, amounting to simple preference or affinity of particular oils to foods within the same locale.

The grading of olive oils is another story. Grading defines the refinement of the product, mainly apparent in the acidity.

The “extra virgin” label is designated to the first “cold” pressing of the olives. This designation prescribes a maximum of 0.8% acidity, suitable for the finest salad dressing, where the superior flavor of the cold pressing shines.

Oils designated “virgin” are considered a lower grade, but still an acceptable salad dressing quality. Virgin olive oils may not contain more than 2% acidity, and must contain no refined oil. Virgin oils should not be wasted in cooking, as the delicate flavor will be lost in cooking.

Products simply labeled “olive oil” do not aspire to strong or refined flavors and are best suited to cooking. Likewise, a label proclaiming “100% pure” or “Imported from Italy” can be misleading, implying a degree of quality that is not warranted. Such labels indicate the lower end of quality, composites of oils from several countries, suited to frying without the fine distinctive flavors and low acidity of virgin olive oils.

Olive oil is a cult thing among cooks. It's important to understand the grades if you want to get the most from your cooking. In any case, remember that these oils contain no cholesterol and it will do your heart good to understand the fine points.