It is also used as a cooking medium, for example by pouring it on freshly drained spaghetti which would otherwise stick together and be inedible, or even as a fatty and binding agent in sauces, creams, gravies or for example mayonnaise.
Extra virgin olive oil has a high smoke point , around 200° , but is rarely used for frying because it gives foods a strong olive flavor that is not always appreciated.
Cooking with olive oil
Olive oil has been used throughout the world for many centuries as a multipurpose culinary oil .
This includes when consumed with cold meals (drizzled raw as a salad dressing) and when used as a medium for stir-frying, sautéing, and baking.
Or it can be used for marinating , that is, the culinary technique that consists of immersing food in a mixture of ingredients (called marinade ) for a variable period of time, in order to soften it, flavour it and/or preserve it.
Oil, along with spices and often acidic liquids (such as vinegar or lemon), is used as the main ingredient in marinades for meat, fish, and vegetables, or even tofu and tempeh, helping to tenderize and flavor foods.
Marinating time varies depending on the type of food and the recipe, but generally ranges from 30 minutes to 24 hours.
Once the marinade is complete, the food is usually dried and cooked or baked as desired.
Extra virgin olive oil is the ubiquitous cooking medium of the Mediterranean diet .
It is an extremely healthy oil to use for all types of cooking, much existing and emerging research highlights its health benefits thanks to the high levels of antioxidants , some of which are unique to extra virgin olive oil: oleocanthal, oleuropein, hydroxytyrosol.
When cooking there is always an exchange between food and oil.
For example, most foods cooked in extra virgin olive oil will contain a higher percentage of monounsaturated fats than the original food.
Additionally, the antioxidants in the oil will transfer into the cooked food.
Fat-soluble vitamins and food components such as glucosinolates (found in broccoli and cabbage) and carotenoids (found in carrots) are better absorbed by the body when cooked in extra virgin olive oil.
Our advice is, as always, to prefer extra virgin olive oil for cooking .
What is the smoke point of oil?
The smoke point of oil (the temperature at which oil produces a thin, continuous stream of bluish smoke) has generally been used to predict the safety and suitability of an oil for cooking at domestic temperatures.
A 2018 study showed that there is little correlation between an oil's smoke point and its performance when heated. This research concluded that:
- Smoke point does not predict how an oil performs when heated
- Oxidative stability and UV coefficients are better predictors when combined with total polyunsaturated fat level
- Of all the oils tested, extra virgin olive oil was shown to be the oil that produced the lowest level of harmful compounds.
- the production of polar compounds was more pronounced for refined oils
- Extra virgin olive oil has been shown to be the most stable oil when heated, closely followed by other virgin oils.
In general, the smoke point of extra virgin olive oil can vary depending on several factors, such as the variety of olives, their degree of ripeness, production conditions, and the presence of impurities in the oil.
As mentioned above, the smoke point of extra virgin olive oil is around 200°C, but can vary from 160°C to 240°C (which is why we often find conflicting information online).
Why is it important to avoid exceeding the smoke point of extra virgin olive oil when cooking?
Because above this point the oil begins to degrade, to produce substances harmful to health and to have an unpleasant taste and odor.
Unique characteristics of extra virgin olive oil
Extra virgin olive oil is highly stable and resistant to decomposition and the formation of harmful compounds because it is:
- rich in polyphenols (antioxidants) that capture free radicals
- characterized by low acidity and consequently also by a low concentration of free radicals, responsible for the oxidation of the oil
- for the closed system extraction technique that reduces contact between oil and air: this guarantees less oxidation while preserving the quantity of polyphenols
Extra virgin olive oil is suitable for sautéing, pan-frying, frying, and baking.
Using extra virgin olive oil is good for our health (and our wallets too)
A plant-based Mediterranean-style diet , with extra virgin olive oil as the primary fat, has been shown to be more economical than an individual's typical eating pattern, especially when compared to a highly processed Western diet.
A 6-week U.S. study in 2013 found that people who followed a plant-based, Mediterranean-style eating pattern, with an emphasis on cooking with extra virgin olive oil, reduced their usual grocery spending from about $30 a week to $20 a week.
This was the first study to show a reduction in food insecurity as a result of a dietary intervention. Further improvements included a reduction in body weight and overall food purchases, including unhealthy items like soda.
A detailed analysis of 20 participants in a 2017 randomized control trial in Australia found that following a Mediterranean diet was more cost-effective than participants' baseline diet and reduced total grocery spending from about $26 per week to $21 per week.
In Italy, Spain, and Greece, these figures aren't surprising: it's common to always have a bottle of extra virgin olive oil at home and use it daily for both dressing and cooking.
To experiment with typical Apulian dishes and fully enjoy the flavor of extra virgin olive oil, we recommend trying the recipe for pasta and chickpeas or Apulian taralli : you won't be disappointed!
