As any chef worth their Maldon sea salt will tell you, the key to a great dish is using great ingredients. No matter how good your pan-searing technique or fancy your new sous-vide machine, it don't mean shit if the raw materials are … well, shit.Of course, sourcing the best quality ingredients is easier said than done. Not all of us live around the corner from a bounteously stocked farmers market or have a friendly butcher who can parcel up a few locally raised lamb chops on request.
Advertisement
But there are some kitchen staples that you can get right without having to embark on exploratory food shops. Ones that will raise your dinner party feedback from non-committal yeah-really-goods to resounding all-table exclamations of "OMG how did you make this?"
Like olive oil, for example. The backbone of Mediterranean cooking and drizzled into everything from cookies to cannabis, it's a pretty essential ingredient. And yet most of us don't have a clue what to look for when faced with conflicting bottles of "Freshly pressed!," "100-percent olives!," and "Direct from Sicily!" in the supermarket condiments aisle. Add to that the problem of fraudulent producers passing off inferior olive oil as extra virgin, and it's little wonder that most of us just grab a Bertolli and hope for the best.To clear up some of this confusion, MUNCHIES reached out to Rob McGavin of Cobram Estate, extra virgin olive oil producers with farms in Australia and California. Your olive oil game is about to get elevated.READ MORE: Meet the Electrician Who Sells the Best Olive Oil in England
What to look for on the label
Advertisement
Italy, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Portugal … Where should my oil be from?
Speaking of which, what exactly does "extra virgin" mean?
Advertisement
Glass or plastic bottle?
The colour
Don't be fooled
You've chosen your olive oil. How long will it keep for?
Advertisement