How to Choose Olive Oil

Olive oil is revered the world over for its delightful taste and its beneficial health qualities, such as protecting us from heart disease. There are many olive oils on the market, so how do you go about selecting one suitable for your needs?

1. Be aware of the differences in olive oil styles:
   
   
   
   
   
   • Extra-virgin olive oil (sometimes called EVOO) comes from the first pressing of the olives, contains no more than 0.8% acidity, and is judged to have a superior taste. There can be no refined oil in extra-virgin olive oil. This is the healthiest, top of the range of olive oils and should be the oil that graces your salads.
   • Virgin olive oil - The name denotes that this oil has not undergone any refinement; however, it has a higher acidity content (1-4%) than extra virgin olive oil so it retains only some of its natural aromas and flavors.
   • Olive oil - this is the oil stocked in copious amounts on the supermarket shelves. It is usually a blended oil, consisting of virgin olive oil blended with lower-quality refined olive oil. It really depends on the brand and the blend as to the quality and the price. Suitable for cooking.
   • Olive pomace oil - this is very refined olive oil, namely the residue that remains once the oil is pressed. It is of a very low grade and will be very cheap. It should be used for cleaning products rather than for cooking and consumption.
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   Decide the reason you want your olive oil. If it is for salads, choose virgin or extra virgin olive oils. It is often a good idea to purchase a very small amount of virgin or extra virgin olive oil and keep it aside just for salads. If you are cooking, just plain olive oils are the best choice. If you are creating a cleaning product, such as furniture polish, use the olive pomace oil.
   
   
   
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   Choose olive oil encased in dark glass. The dark color helps to prevent oxidation of the oil, which can quickly lead to deterioration of the oil and rancidity.
   
   
   
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   Choose for the oil quality, not the color. Olive oils vary considerably in color range, from dark green to a light golden color. The colors are not indicative of quality - the labels as described above are the quality indicators.
   
   
   
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   Finished.
   
   

   
   

   • Tips:Olive is best consumed within 12 - 18 months. Ensure that the use-by date is well within the time that you will be able to cook with it.
   • Extra virgin can actually be worse to cook with as opposed to the "lower grades" of olive oil. Extra virgin has a lower smoke point and cooking with it can result in greasier tasting dishes. Use regular olive oil if you intend to fry things with it.
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   • Warnings: Cold pressed or first pressed have higher levels of polyphenols (potent antioxidants) due to the fact that no heat or solvents were used when processing the olives.
   • Look out for "blended" oils. Blended "olive oil" products incorporate cheap, non-olive oils, which often make up more than half the content. These aren't necessarily bad - but you're not getting pure olive oil.

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