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How To Cook Olive Oil: What Is Olive Oil?
Olive oil is produced from cold pressing olives. Olive oil has various health benefits as well as benefits for skin and hair. Nowadays, olive oil is commonly consumed because of its large number of health benefits. Olive oil enhances the flavor of foods and gives a satisfying feeling to the appetite. You can use it in various dishes that you like and eat them without any guilt. For cooking purposes, the best type of olive oil is virgin olive oil and extra virgin olive oil. Olive oil is very different from other cooking oils and in order to cook with olive oil, you need to keep a few things in mind.
Nutritional Values Of Olive Oil (per 100 ml)
| Calories | 884 kcal |
| Total fat | 100 g |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg |
| Sodium | 2 mg |
| Potassium | 1 mg |
| Total carbs | 0 g |
| Protein | 0 g |
Source: USDA
How To Cook With Olive Oil:
- You can use olive oil in sauces. Simply whisk or blend the oil properly in the sauce.
- You can make a healthy dip using olive oil. All you have to do is mix garlic, olive oil, and cooked white beans and blend them together. After that, you can add any spice or herb of your choice.
- When you make baked potatoes or mashed potatoes, instead of butter, you can use olive oil. For better taste, you can whip cooked potatoes, olive oil, and garlic together and add seasoning to it.
- To cook an easy appetizer, you can toast baguette slices under broiler, rub it gently with garlic and drizzle a little of olive oil on it.
- Olive oil can be used as a dip for bread. Simply pour olive oil in a side dish and drizzle balsamic vinegar on top. It will pool together in the center and look quite attractive and tempting.
- You can add olive oil on cooked pasta or cooked vegetables.
- After you are done cooking any dish, you can drizzle olive oil at the end and see the taste you get.
- You can also use olive oil for marinating seafood, chicken, and meats.
- You may also use olive oil as a salad dressing or over salad.
How To Cook With Olive Oil: Tips To Keep In Mind While Using Olive Oil
Olive oil has a smoke point beyond which if it is heated, olive oil loses its health benefits. This smoke point is different for different types of olive oil. Below is a table that has the smoke points for different types of olive oil.
As mentioned earlier, olive oil is not like other cooking oils, hence you need to keep in mind the following things while you are using olive oil for cooking.
Even though it is mentioned multiple times that virgin and extra virgin oil are the best type of olive oil for cooking, but they also lose their properties when heated.
Virgin olive oil and extra virgin olive oil are best for a light sauté and simple stir fry.
Olive oil is best used to enhance the flavor of a dish.
Olive oil provides a good balance of acid in foods with high levels of acidity.
You must keep in mind that it blends well with the dishes that you are using it for.
You must store the olive oil in a refrigerator or in a cool dark place. Olive oil has all its properties retained for 3 months. It must be used within this time.
Smoke Point For Different Olive Oils
| Extra virgin | 375-405 F |
| Virgin | 390 F |
| Pure | 410 F |
| Light | 470 F |
In conclusion, olive oil has a number of benefits and it can be used for cooking various dishes. Cooking with olive oil allows you to follow a healthy lifestyle with healthy meals.