Olive oil........

[braumeister]

Costco is very good, and the last time I checked, I believer Consumer Reports ranked Trader Joe at the top. You probably can't go wrong with either.

 

[NW-Bound]

Last time we were in Napa Valley, visiting the CIA (Culinary Institute of America) school there, which used to be Christian Brothers Winery, I saw that they offered to teach olive oil tasting for $10.

I should have taken the above offer. Perhaps that would teach my palate to detect fake olive oil. Well, maybe not...

 

[FIREd]

I use California EVOO or butter for pretty much everything. Deep frying would require an oil with a high smoke point, but I rarely deep fry anything.

 

[veremchuka]

The OO industry is the Wild West, w/ no regulation national or int'natl. Notably exposed in this NPR piece. Caveat emptor!

Trader Joe's California Estate gets high marks here. Recently bought a bottle but haven't opened it yet.

Never been to Cosco but many seem to like their OO.

+1 on TJ CA Estate, it is my "eating" OO ie it has great taste and I use it where other things won't overpower it like putting it on plain brown rice or dipping bread into it. Otherwise I use TJ "Trader Giotto's" for frying. Both are EVOO Italian and very reasonably priced for the quality.

I have tasted Spanish, Greek, Tunisian EVOO and they pale in comparison to Italian. YMMV in EVOO TA TA!

 

[WhoDaresWins]

I would join Costco in a New York minute if one were closer to me. I also like Trader Joe but none is really convenient for me either. Same goes for Whole Foods. I am somewhat bereft that the summer farmers markets are finished for the season as I have grown to rely heavily upon them for my provisions for part of the year.

 

[spncity]

And if you want to flavor or infuse your olive oil, there's evidently a recommended way to do it that prevents botulism...

How to Infuse Your Own Olive Oil [Video] | Back Burner

Kindest regards.

 

[brett]

We never deep fry. We only use Costco OO-Kirland Signature. It is highly rated and is very well priced.

 

[panacea]

Can you use any olive oil for cooking? I know some of them break down fast under high heat...........

I use it for cooking (no gourmet here) for just about everything and haven't had any trouble.

+1 on the Kirkland brand. Haven't compared many, but it's inexpensive and does the job.

 

[UtahSkier]

This is on the premium side, but we have a new kind of boutique olive oil shop here in Arizona called Outrageous oils. They have lots of stuff, but their focus is having 6 kinds of fresh olive oils from around the world.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

In the shop, you can taste test the oils and compare the strong against the light flavors. Dipping your tongue into a little cup of the strongest, most bitter, olive oil provides a very strong flavor.

However, when I use that oil directly on a salad (2 teaspoons), I can barely taste the oil. I am interested in the strong flavored oils for their high Polyphenols count.

I recommend the Spainish Hojiblanca and the Greek Koroneiki oils along with a bottle of the 18 year old Balsamic vinegar. When getting a cheaper oil for around the house, I have been purchasing California Olive Ranch.

California Extra Virgin Olive Oil | California Olive Ranch

For high heat cooking, I use coconut oil.