How do you know which olive oil is best for salad dressing, and which steak is to be fried? How does one olive oil differ from another, and what are the secrets to choosing a good, inexpensive olive oil?
Olive oil used to be a novelty for us – it is more common and cheaper to use sunflower oil, which are rich in our fields. But today olive oil occupies a worthy place in our diet and has taken a leading position as more useful and easily digestible.
Olive oil is rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids – they have a beneficial effect on the condition of our skin and hair, on the functioning of the immune system and overall well-being.
Extra Virgin
This oil is of the highest quality, it is also called “liquid gold”. This category of oil contains a lot of nutrients, and it costs much more than other types – for 1 liter of this oil you need 4 kg of selected olives of the highest quality.
The technology of production of this oil allows leaving all the vitamins in the product as much as possible: the peeled olives are placed under a press and the oil is collected, without using any additional additives.
You can use Extra Virgin oil for dressing vegetable salads, sauces, marinades, croutons, bruschettes and sandwiches, fish and seafood. The oil tastes a little bitter, but this is already a matter of habit. Extra Virgin should never be heated, as the meaning of its high price and excellent quality fades away.
Refined olive oil
This is the oil of the first extraction, which, after the extraction process, is subjected to further purification (refining). It is mixed with Extra Virgin oil – and you get oil of different quality, depending on the proportion of the first and second – usually it is almost 90% refined and about 10% Extra Virgin.
The taste of refined olive oil is not so original, but the content of nutrients in it is quite high. It is cheaper than Extra Virgin, and therefore very popular, besides, refined oil is universal in the kitchen. The oil is used both for preparing salads and for frying or baking.
Pomace olive oil
This is the next in the gradation of olive oils in terms of quality – the oil of the second extraction. It is obtained after pressing previously pressed olives, adding solvents and heat treatment. At the outlet, such oil is diluted with Extra Virgin in order to adjust the acidity and even out the taste – there will be up to 20% of elite oil here. Of course, this oil contains practically no vitamins and minerals, but it is affordable and suitable for cooking at high temperatures.
A few more tips on how to choose olive oil:
– Choose the right packaging – the bottle with olive oil should be darkened, the oil deteriorates in a light container.
– Estimate the color and clarity of the oil. You can check this at home, but if you don’t like the shade of the oil, next time give preference to another brand.
– Pay attention to the date of manufacture – from the date of manufacture, the oil is stored for a year and a half, after this period the usefulness of this oil is reduced to nothing.