Olive Oil 101

A Miracle Food?

Here’s a pop quiz, can you name a country that had  32% less cases of heart disease than the United States (in 2005) but who’s average citizen eats 42 times more olive oil as the average person in the U.S.?  The answer is Greece!  Furthermore, every one of the top three countries in Olive Oil consumption (Italy, Spain and Greece) have significantly lower cases of heart disease than the U.S.. I know that doesn’t necessarily have anything  to do with eating Olive Oil but consider this:

• Monounsaturated fats (the good kind of fat) in olive oil may help regulate cholesterol levels in the blood
• Olive Oil contains one of the most powerful antioxidants (DHPEA-EDA), which protects red-blood cells from damage
• Studies have shown that people that eat olive oil high in polyphenols  (like Virgin and Extra Virgin Olive Oils) have more elasticity in their arteries than people that eat olive oil with lower concentrations of polyphenols

Navigating the Olive Oil Labels

Buying Olive Oil at the grocery store can be a bit intimidating.  There are dozens of Olive Oils from several countries with labels that say things like 100% Pure Olive Oil, Virgin, Extra Virgin all with dramatically different prices.  I thought I’d help by first letting you know what the different terms mean, and I’ll also tell you why you should be very careful buying Olive Oil produced or packaged in the United States!

Extra Virgin

Extra Virgin Olive Oil has the most flavor, the most anti-oxidants, and the least amount of acid.  The reason is simple, the more times you press an olive the more acid you get out of it, so extra virgin oil comes from the first or second pressing of an olive. Use this type for salad dressings, vinaigrette, bread dipping, and drizzling over side dishes.

Virgin

Virgin Olive Oil has a bit more acid, a bit less flavor and anti-oxidants.  The quality is still good though, just not the absolute best of the best. Use this less flavorful, and less expensive oil for cooking.

100% Pure Olive Oil, and Everything else!

Don’t be fooled, “100% Pure Olive Oil” is used for the absolute lowest qualities of Olive Oil, usually containing much more acid than Virgin Olive Oil, significantly lower anti-oxidants and a very low flavor profile.  Unless you’re using it for frying I would pretty much avoid buying anything in this category.

Be Extra Careful about buying Olive Oil made in the U.S.A.!

As very patriotic individual it pains me to say this but as far as Olive Oil is concerned the U.S.A. needs to get their act together!  The United States is one of the few (and largest) Olive Oil producing countries that is not a signee of the International Olive Oil Council and it’s the I.O.O.C. that tests and regulates which olive oils can be labeled “Virgin” or “Extra Virgin.”

What does that all mean?  Well, in a nutshell an olive oil produced in the U.S. can legally put “Extra Virgin” or “Virgin” on the label of any olive oil they produce regardless of the acidity or anti-oxidant level. If you’ve read this far you can already see why that could be a pretty big problem for you, the consumer, when trying to make an informed decision on the type of Olive Oil to buy!

There is a solution though, The California Olive Oil Council provides a way for Olive Oil Producers to submit their Olive Oil for testing and certification, so before trusting the label of a U.S. made Olive Oil look for the C.O.O.C. seal and you should be just fine!

Ideas for Eating More Olive Oil at home or at Corbin’s Grille!

Request it during Bread Service!

We serve our delicious Garlic Butter with our loaf of sourdough bread when you dine at Corbin’s Grille for dinner (bread service is on-request only during lunch) but did you know that you are welcome to request Olive Oil and Vinegar instead?  Try it next time, but if it gets too popular you may have to wait your turn since we only have a handful of containers suitable for use at the table.

Try Our Home-Made Vinaigrette Dressings

We make all our own dressings and our Citrus Vinaigrette, Raspberry Vinaigrette, and Balsamic Vinaigrette use more Olive Oil than the rest of our dressings.

Do an Olive Oil Tasting

Olive Oil Tastings are starting to become very popular at Farmer’s Markets especially in California, why not organize one for yourself with all your food-loving friends.  Check out this site for ideas, terms and education about Olive Oil tasting.   http://oliveoilsource.com/tasting.htm

What do YOU think?

I would love to hear about your ideas and favorite recipes using Olive Oil, please leave a comment and share your opinion with the world!

-Jake Garn
Owner/Operator of Corbin’s Grille

Want to read more?  Here are some of my sources used for the information in this blog post.

• http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090401200447.htm
• http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070811224755.htm
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olive_oil
• http://www.oliveoilsource.com