Many people know surprisingly little about olive oil, a commodity that
so often makes the news — at times the subject of public esteem (as when a
study is released about new health benefits), and at other times, scandal (as
when more fraud is uncovered).
Part of the lack of general knowledge is a result of all the crazy
marketing out there: Peruse the olive oils in the cooking oil aisle of a
typical grocery store and you'll be greeted by all kinds of terminology. Some
of it is confusing — like "pure" and "extra-virgin" — which
is better? Other terms are just pointless — "cold-pressed" for
example, doesn’t really mean much; basically, all extra-virgin olive oil is
cold-pressed. And part of it is still a relative lack of popularity — according
to Tom Mueller, author of Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of
Olive Oil, "The Greeks eat more [olive] oil than any other nationality, 21
liters per capita every year as compared with 13 liters in Italy and Spain, 1
liter in Britain, and a little less than a liter in the United States."
The point of all this marketing, of course, is to make olive oil less
of a commodity in people's minds, and more of a product with different levels
of quality, which is a step in the right direction, but as just pointed out,
it's not always done well.
It's inevitable that something produced since antiquity and that is so
legendary is going to accumulate some myths over time. Just how long has the
olive oil trade been around? A very, very long time. There's a hill in Rome on
the south side of the Tiber River that's half a mile in circumference, called
Mount Testaccio, made out of the broken shards of 25 million amphorae,
containers used by the Romans between the first and third centuries to transport
olive oil. It's enough to hold 1.75 billion liters of oil, a testament to the
importance of olive oil then. Its lucrative allure drove the unscrupulous to
engage in all kinds of "interesting" business practices, some of
which, like the adulteration of olive oil with cheaper oils, haunt us again
today. "Crime has been part of the oil trade for at least 5,000
years," writes Mueller. "The earliest known documents to mention
olive oil, cuneiform tablets written at Ebla in the 24th century BC, refer to teams
of inspectors who checked olive growers and millers for fraudulent
practices."
While there's no way to really know for sure what's in the bottle
without opening it and tasting it, we can help uncover some of the mystery and
confusion surrounding olive oil.
Myth #1: If an extra-virgin
olive oil "freezes" in the refrigerator, then it's the real thing.
With all the recent controversy over fraud in the olive oil market (and
food fraud in general), it's natural to wonder if the extra money you're paying
for olive oil is worth it, especially when it's difficult to be sure that what
is in the bottle is the real thing. In an episode of Dr. Oz which aired Feb.
11, 2013, viewers were told that if an extra-virgin olive oil solidified in the
refrigerator, then it was probably the real thing — not necessarily true,
according to Eryn Balch, executive vice president of the North American Olive
Oil Association.
Many oils, not just extra-virgin olive oil, turn solid when chilled,
and whether or not a particular extra-virgin olive oil solidifies depends on
its fatty acid profile — the mix of saturated and types of unsaturated fats
unique to the type of olive or olives used to make the olive oil, their harvest
date, and other factors.
Myth #2: When cooking with olive
oil, always use extra-virgin olive oil.
How many recipes have you seen specify "extra-virgin olive
oil" in the ingredient list? The abbreviation has even become an endearing
(or eye-roll-inducing) mantra for home cooks, thanks to Rachael Ray —we're not
going to say it because we're not allowed to say it (the word is on a wall of
banned words called "The Island" in our office), and you already know
how it goes anyway. (Take a shot, now.)
If it's a salad dressing recipe or even a baking recipe, that's fine —
but if it asks you to sauté, grill, roast, or (gasp) fry, it's really bad
advice — the smoke point of extra-virgin olive oil is about 375 to 405 degrees,
and if you go past it, as you surely will when using one of these
high-temperature cooking techniques, you'll produce all sorts of nasty
chemicals that will end up in your food. Some common examples include
peroxides, aldehydes, ketones, and hydroperoxides, all of which are toxic. But
you don't just end up producing bad substances; you end up destroying the good
ones, too. At 356 degrees, antioxidants start to say goodbye — tocopherols are
the first to go.
Instead, when cooking at high temperatures, use a refined olive oil,
which has a much higher smoke point. At stores, it is often marketed as
"extra-light," "light tasting," or even just "olive
oil." Save that beautiful extra-virgin olive oil for finishing a dish, not
for cooking it.
Myth #3: You can't fry food with
olive oil.
This, too, is a myth. Olive oil is a popular choice in Spain, Italy,
Greece, and many other south European countries for frying. But the key is to
pick the right type of olive oil. As mentioned in the previous slide, it's not
such a good idea to fry with extra-virgin olive oil. But refined olive oil has
a much higher smoke point than extra-virgin. At roughly 468 degrees, its smoke
point is higher than or nearly as high as some other oils popular for frying,
including peanut oil (450 degrees) and canola oil (470 degrees). Pure olive
oil, a mixture of refined olive oil and extra-virgin olive oil, is also a good
choice for light frying.
Myth #4: "Light" or
"extra-light" olive oil is lower in calories than other olive oils.
A misleading marketing term. "Light" or
"extra-light" is more accurately in reference to the taste of the
oil, which after going through various processes including deodorization, is
flavorless and odorless, rather than the caloric or fat content of the oil.
"Light" and "extra-light" oils, like just about any other
cooking oil, contain 120 calories and 14 grams of fat per tablespoon.
http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2013/08/13/myths-about-olive-oil/
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