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I have friends in Athens, whom I visit. I’ve observed that most of the time they put their virgin olive oil on the food once it is done cooking. When asked abou

I have friends in Athens, whom I visit. I’ve observed that most of the time they put their virgin olive oil on the food once it is done cooking. When asked about it they claimed that the oil is ‘full of healthy things that turn cancerous when burned.’ They rarely use extra-virgin to cook with, either.

aero142 8y ago
Extra virgin olive oil is the first press oil. It contains particulates that have a very low smoke point. You should not be cooking with extra virgin olive oil. Pure olive oil is a later hot press extraction and does not have the particulates. It has a much higher smoke point. Im not convinced that US stores are actually selling extra virgin olive oil anyway outside of specialty shops. Olive oil is supposed to be fresh and should taste spicy at first.
- dawnerd 8y ago
  Pretty common for us sold EVOO to be a mix. They’ll put some good stuff in it but the rest will be lower quality olive oil. https://www.forbes.com/sites/larryolmsted/2016/09/30/its-extra-virgin-olive-oil-day-is-your-evoo-real-or-fake/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/larryolmsted/2016/09/30/its-ext...
- linkregister 8y ago
  Your suspicion is substantiated [1]. Olive oil bought from U.S. producers will have had substantially less opportunity for adulteration, as their processes are certified by U.S. authorities (this is a mitigation and not a guarantee). 1. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/11988947/Italian-companies-investigated-for-passing-off-ordinary-olive-oil-as-extra-virgin.html https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/1198...
coldtea 8y ago
Greeks use virgin olive oil (and good quality one, often from some friend/relative in a village making their own) raw on top of salads, bread, and other stuff. Raw oil is also common over grilled fish and such. They do use it to cook all the time, in soups, stews, oven foods, pasta, meats, fish, etc. Often, however, they'll fry french fries) with some other oil like sunflower. But many still fry with olive oil as well, and usually consider it better. "In fact, olive oil may be one of the better oils to fry with. "Smoke points tend to increase with olive oil quality, as the free fatty acid content tends to decrease and the antioxidant content increases," explained Rachel Adams, a health science professor at Cardiff Metropolitan University in the U.K. "The high antioxidant content of olive oil could even reduce the amount of harmful chemicals produced during cooking," Adams told The Conversation. According to the Cleveland Clinic, flaxseed oil has a low smoking point, meaning you really shouldn't heat it up. Light olive oil, by comparison, has a high smoking point, meaning you can make it pretty hot. If you're going to deep fry, light refined olive oil is a good way to go. Extra virgin olive oil and canola oil are more in the middle – you can stir fry or bake with them, but don't deep fry. "Bottom line – if you cook at high heat, stick with refined olive oil," Berkowitz explained. "Medium temperature on most stoves is 250-350, which even extra virgin olive oil can handle. But high temp cooking or frying deserves high smoke point oils."

aero142 8y ago

Extra virgin olive oil is the first press oil. It contains particulates that have a very low smoke point. You should not be cooking with extra virgin olive oil. Pure olive oil is a later hot press extraction and does not have the particulates. It has a much higher smoke point. Im not convinced that US stores are actually selling extra virgin olive oil anyway outside of specialty shops. Olive oil is supposed to be fresh and should taste spicy at first.

dawnerd 8y ago
Pretty common for us sold EVOO to be a mix. They’ll put some good stuff in it but the rest will be lower quality olive oil. https://www.forbes.com/sites/larryolmsted/2016/09/30/its-extra-virgin-olive-oil-day-is-your-evoo-real-or-fake/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/larryolmsted/2016/09/30/its-ext...
linkregister 8y ago
Your suspicion is substantiated [1]. Olive oil bought from U.S. producers will have had substantially less opportunity for adulteration, as their processes are certified by U.S. authorities (this is a mitigation and not a guarantee). 1. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/11988947/Italian-companies-investigated-for-passing-off-ordinary-olive-oil-as-extra-virgin.html https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/1198...

coldtea 8y ago

Greeks use virgin olive oil (and good quality one, often from some friend/relative in a village making their own) raw on top of salads, bread, and other stuff. Raw oil is also common over grilled fish and such. They do use it to cook all the time, in soups, stews, oven foods, pasta, meats, fish, etc. Often, however, they'll fry french fries) with some other oil like sunflower. But many still fry with olive oil as well, and usually consider it better. "In fact, olive oil may be one of the better oils to fry with. "Smoke points tend to increase with olive oil quality, as the free fatty acid content tends to decrease and the antioxidant content increases," explained Rachel Adams, a health science professor at Cardiff Metropolitan University in the U.K. "The high antioxidant content of olive oil could even reduce the amount of harmful chemicals produced during cooking," Adams told The Conversation. According to the Cleveland Clinic, flaxseed oil has a low smoking point, meaning you really shouldn't heat it up. Light olive oil, by comparison, has a high smoking point, meaning you can make it pretty hot. If you're going to deep fry, light refined olive oil is a good way to go. Extra virgin olive oil and canola oil are more in the middle – you can stir fry or bake with them, but don't deep fry. "Bottom line – if you cook at high heat, stick with refined olive oil," Berkowitz explained. "Medium temperature on most stoves is 250-350, which even extra virgin olive oil can handle. But high temp cooking or frying deserves high smoke point oils."