When it comes to buying olive oil, we usually go to the store and choose any bottle we like, being sure that if there is an inscription “extra virgin”, then the oil is surely of high quality and tasty. But is it really so? Let's break it all down.
The idea to write this article came when, having first tried the oil of one well-known and advertised company, then the second and third, and being disappointed after tasting them, I decided to spend a little time and go broke in this matter.
Why is it important to include olive oil in your daily diet?
In our country, olive oil is still perceived by many as something exotic, overseas, but it is one of those products that should become common, just like bananas, for example.
The benefits of olive oil lies in its special composition. It is almost 100% (or rather 74%) composed of monounsaturated fatty acids, that is, it is a fat, but a very healthy and even necessary fat:
- Omega-3 lowers cholesterol levels and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease;
- It is the main ingredient in the Mediterranean diet, which is considered one of the healthiest and least rigid in existence;
- Olive oil regulates blood pressure with constant consumption;
- Fights in inflammatory processes and prevents the formation of thrombosis;
- Omega-3 fats are essential for normal brain function. Recent studies have shown that regular oil consumption can significantly reduce the risk of stroke in the elderly;
- 100 ml of olive oil contains 93% of the daily requirement of the human body of vitamin E, and 59% of vitamin K.
What are the types of olive oil and how to distinguish them?
Basically, varieties of olive oil differ depending on the production technology.
Extra Virgin- in addition to these words, look for information on the packaging about the method of obtaining "cold pressed" or "obtained only by mechanical means." All this is very important, since it is the Oil obtained by cold pressing, and the very first one, as evidenced by the word “extra”. The fact is that after the first spin, there may be a second, and a third, during which oil of lower quality is obtained. Some manufacturers just write "first press" (first press).
virgin olive oil- such an inscription on the label does not guarantee that the oil is the result of the first pressing of olives. Usually it is cheaper and the taste is less bright and rich.
Olio pomace or Olio di sansa (in Italian)– This oil is obtained from the residues after the first pressing. It turns out very light and almost odorless and colorless, so a little extra virgin oil is added to it to give color and aroma. This oil is cheaper, does not have the same taste.
Commercial types of olive oil: Light, Pure, Fine, Fino, refined oil. All of these varieties are much worse in quality than extra virgin. They are usually obtained by refining with chemicals. These types of oils should be avoided as they will not provide much benefit.
How to choose the right olive oil - important aspects
- Acidity
A very important aspect in the choice of oil. Quality olive should have an acidity of no more than 0.8%, but it is better, of course, when this indicator is less than 0.5%. However, the problem is that few manufacturers indicate the acidity on the label. In this case, you will have to determine by taste - good oil should not burn your throat.
- Color
Many people believe that the brighter and greener the olive oil, the better it is. However, the color is not an indicator of quality, but only the degree of ripeness of the olives at the time of pressing. Green olive oil is brighter and richer, has a slight herbal flavor and is more bitter. In general, with regard to color, it all depends on the personal tastes and preferences of each.
- Origin
Good olive oil must be grown, harvested and pressed in one country. That is, if the olives are harvested in Italy, then the oil must also be produced there. Everything is explained very simply: the faster the olives are processed after harvest, the better the quality and taste of the oil. Therefore, always look on the label not only for the country of production, but also for the country of origin of the raw materials.
Pay special attention to Italian brands, in this country they produce much more oil than their own olive plantations allow. Many Italian manufacturers (especially the largest ones) import raw materials from other countries. The import itself is not a crime, however, the transportation affects the quality of the olives and therefore the oil obtained from them.
From this point of view, things are better with Greek olive oil. In addition to the fact that 80% of Greek oil is extra virgin, Greece also has the most favorable climate for growing olives.
- Package
Olive oil is sensitive to light and heat and oxidizes quickly, so the packaging should be dark and away from direct sunlight.
How to properly store olive oil
After choosing olive oil, it's time to think about how best to store it in order to enjoy its delicious taste and beneficial properties for as long as possible.
- Firstly, it is important that after opening a bottle of oil, do not forget about using it. Over time, the oil will oxidize and become bitter and sour. It will already lose its properties.
- Secondly, oil should never be kept on the table, it must be protected from light and heat. It is best to keep it in a closet, away from the stove or oven.
- It is important to know that olive oil retains its beneficial properties best when used in salads, appetizers, marinades. When frying, it loses its antioxidant effect.
So, to summarize the article, a quality olive oil should be:
- Obtained by cold pressing,
- unrefined
- No other oils added
- No sediment or flakes
- Produced in the country where the olives were grown
- The acidity of the oil is not more than 0.8%
The choice of olive oil, as it turned out, is not an easy task. In the process, you will probably have to try the oil from different manufacturers until you find your favorite, but it's worth it. It is the search that will teach you to clearly distinguish them.
Olive oil has ceased to be an exotic and unique product that is hard to find. It has become easy to find a bottle of olive oil in company stores and in ordinary supermarkets.
Despite the fact that the production of such oil is not cheap, firms have learned to make more affordable options. Therefore, everyone can add healthy oil to a dish today. Of course, I want to choose the best product, especially since it costs more than the usual sunflower seed oil. To select brand of olive oil, it is worth knowing the methods of how to choose the right olive oil, and spend some time on the banal study of labels.
Unrefined Olive Oil Prestige Line Extra Virgin
Looking at a large assortment of olive oil, we usually get lost, and we can take any product at random. It is not at all a fact that the oil will be of high quality, but the money will be thrown away. To avoid such a situation, you just need to know which olive oil to choose on a salad or stir fry, and be more careful when studying the label with product information. There are several rules how to choose the right olive oil in the store.
- The first is to find out its name. The most used and most expensive is Extra Virgin, it was produced through cold pressing. This oil retains all natural elements, and these are oleic and linoleic acids, which cannot be obtained from other products. There is also an unrefined olive oil called Pomas. It is permissible to fry food on it, but it still contains fewer useful natural substances. Most often the question is how to choose cold pressed olive oil is important because it is a more natural product with corresponding benefits and price. Therefore, you need to spend more time on his choice, and have an idea of \u200b\u200bhow it should be.
- Date of manufacture and expiration dates. For olive oil, this is not just a set of numbers, but an indicator of the quality of the product. Many people believe that if the oil is stored for a long time, then over time its quality indicators improve, but this is a misconception. In general, a tasty and healthy oil should be the freshest, ideally it should be stored on the shelves for no more than six months from the date of release. After this date, the product inexorably loses its useful properties. Accordingly, after the expiration date, it is also better not to add oil to dishes. Open olive oil should not be stored for a long time, so you should try to end the product in a month. That is, you need to stock up on a large bottle of oil only when you are sure that you will have time to use it up in such a short time.
Olive Oil for Frying Sansa Doccia Doro
- Package. To reduce the cost of production, olive oil is often produced in ordinary plastic transparent containers. Such an approach to storing oil is fundamentally wrong, because its quality depends on the container into which the oil is poured. By purchasing olive oil in a dark glass bottle, you in no case overpay for packaging, but only acquire a useful product. A dark bottle protects the product from light, and helps useful trace elements to be stored in the product longer.
- method how to choose olive oil in the store there is also such a simple action as to look at the information on the label. In addition to basic information, it contains PDO or PGI indexes. This means that the product was made in the EU, according to the relevant standards, so you can vouch for its quality. Looking for methods how to choose a good olive oil, you can stumble upon a percentage of acidity that cannot exceed 0.8%, and if it is less, then this is even better for the product. This index is not indicated on European oils, but if there is a letter designation given above, then there is no doubt about the quality of the product.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Oil type. Deciding how to choose olive oil for salad, it is important to look at its type. An unrefined product is used as a dressing - it is more useful, and chemical processing methods are not used in its production. Therefore, the solution of the issue olive oil for salad which one to choose will become exclusively Extra Virgin. In order to fry foods, you can choose a refined product that is less useful in terms of benefits, but is better suited for cooking in a pan.
To know olive oil how to choose natural, you should also look at its price.
Refined Olive Oil for Frying Sansade Oliva
An expensive product is usually of better quality. Such oil may have an unusual taste and aroma, and they can be used to identify a natural dressing. The problem of olive oil how to choose quality requires careful study of the label, and all the information provided by the manufacturer.
Everyone knows about the benefits of olive oil and how useful it is: both those who monitor their health by periodically buying and consuming "liquid gold", and those who sell this product. How to choose the right olive oil so as not to make a mistake and not buy a fake?
Olive oil is a valuable source of antioxidants that strengthen the immune system, help keep the body in good shape, improve the functioning of the cardiovascular system, and have a beneficial effect on brain activity.
Doctors and nutritionists unanimously talk about the miraculous properties of olive oil. So, recently, Italian nutritionists found that regular use of olive oil can reduce the risk of symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, and French doctors have proven that olive oil improves cognitive functions of the brain - memory, attention, speech, coordination.
Regular consumption of extra virgin olive oil can lower and keep blood pressure in the normal range. Experts say that if you take one teaspoon of olive oil on an empty stomach every morning for three months, gastritis can be cured. This oil slows down aging and lowers cholesterol levels.
How olive oil is counterfeited
Statistics show that almost 90 percent of all olives on earth are used to produce oil. It takes about 1380 olives to release one liter bottle of oil into the distribution network. If we take into account that the average weight of one olive is 4 grams, then it is easy to calculate that 5.5 kg of olives go to 1 liter of oil.
The cost of olive oil is much higher than the cost of other edible oils. In 2007, the Italian authorities stated that only 4 per cent of the olive oil bottles exported from Italy were the real product. Experts believe that 70% of olive oil sold worldwide is diluted with other oils and flavor enhancers.
How to recognize a fake
Fake olive oil is hard to recognize on store shelves, but after buying it at home, you can do some experimentation.
try. Real olive oil should have a fairly strong specific smell, and it should taste with a pleasant bitterness. If the oil is rancid or completely tasteless, then most likely you are faced with a poor-quality product.
cool down. To test the authenticity of extra-virgin olive oil, place the bottle in the refrigerator. Natural oil, after several hours spent in the cold, should become cloudy, thicken or even completely harden. If there are no changes or they are almost invisible, then you bought a fake.
set fire to. Another way is trial by fire. Light a wick soaked in olive oil. If it is natural, the flame will be clean, but if the wick smokes or does not light up at all, then you have a fake in your hands.
How to buy quality olive oil?
The ancient Romans, who were the first to learn how to extract oil from olives, were very sensitive to its quality: on each bottle they indicated the weight, the name of the farm where the extraction was carried out, as well as the name of the expert who confirmed the quality of the product. The current manufacturers are less scrupulous in labeling due to the huge scale of production, however, conscientious owners do everything to ensure that their quality product is recognizable and reaches the consumer.
So, remember the 10 main rules that will help you choose high-quality olive oil in the store.
1. Meet by clothes
It is advisable to start the choice of olive oil from the "bride" - that is, according to its appearance. The color of olive oil is influenced by various factors: the time of harvest, the maturity of the olives, the presence of impurities. Ideally, olive oil should be a nice golden color that plays with different hues. In no case should it give off a gray and too yellow color - this indicates a poor-quality product. However, this advice is only useful if the olive oil is sold in a transparent glass bottle. Usually there are darkened bottles and cans on the shelf, then this item involuntarily disappears and makes you go straight to tip number 2.
2. It's all about the price
Any olive oil is a valuable product, which is often produced mechanically, so it cannot be cheap. As a rule, olive oil is 3-5 times more expensive than regular sunflower oil in the region where you live. If they offer cheap oil, they advise you to participate in a sale at a low price - this is a guarantee of a fake or the sale of a product whose shelf life has long passed.
3. Inscriptions on the packaging
On the shelves of stores, olive oil is usually presented in three main categories: natural (Virgin), refined or refined (Refined) and pomace, from already squeezed olives (Pomace). If you want to buy a natural product with beneficial properties, look for Extra Virgin on the label - it is he who is the guarantor of perfect quality. This oil is made from olives of the highest grades by cold, exclusively mechanical pressing, without the use of chemicals. Therefore, it is ideal for both cooking and beauty treatments. Refined oil is great for frying. Oil pomace refined from olive pomace (in this type of extraction, the use of chemical solvents and high temperatures is acceptable) is most often used in restaurants for baking.
Olive oil is divided into the following classes:
- Extra-virgin olive oil - 100% natural (obtained without chemical purification) oil with an acidity of 0.8% and excellent taste;
- Virgin olive oil - 100% natural oil with 2% acidity and good taste;
- Pure olive oil - a mixture of refined (refined) and natural oils;
- Olive oil - a mixture of refined and natural oils with an acidity of 1.5%, almost odorless;
- Olive-pomace oil - pomace (obtained from the squeeze) oil, sometimes mixed with natural. Most commonly used in cooking for baking;
- Lampante oil - used exclusively for industrial needs.
4. Frying is a separate issue
If you are going to fry in olive oil, be aware that not all varieties are suitable for this. For example, the category Extra Virgin for frying is not at all suitable. Valuable substances that, when dressing salads or preparing sauces, heal the body, when heated, become not only not useful, but also harmful.
Refining removes useful substances from olive oil, but at the same time makes it safe for further heat treatment. Therefore, refined oil is better for frying, stewing, boiling and other heat treatment.
5. Mix will save money
Undoubtedly, high-quality olive oil is a rather expensive product. So if you're looking to save some money, opt for a blend of refined oil and cold-pressed oil - it's a healthy alternative to Extra Virgin. It is not so useful for healing and rejuvenating the body, but it can be safely used both for preparing salads and for frying dishes.
6. Letters on the label
Do not neglect other identification marks that will help you choose high-quality olive oil. For example, the abbreviation DOP (Denominacion de Origen Protegida) indicates that olive oil is made from olives of the best varieties and bottled in the same region where it was produced. And this means that the product is branded, produced to the highest standards, and its quality is constantly and very carefully controlled.
7. Information about the place of production
Find information about the country where our olive oil came from. Remember the six leading countries in the production of olive oil: Spain, Italy, Israel, Greece, Syria, Turkey. Try to buy oil imported from these countries. Check for the manufacturer's barcode. If the oil was produced in a country within the European Union, the label must bear the EU mark.
8. Proper packaging
Pay attention not only to the external characteristics of the oil itself, but also to its packaging - it must also be correct. The best container for olive oil is a darkened glass bottle. This will protect the product from direct sunlight. Carefully check the integrity of the package - the container must be hermetically sealed and undamaged.
9. Acidity in numbers
The acidity of olive oil is another important indicator that you should pay attention to when it comes to buying a quality product. It is determined by the content of oleic acid in the oil - the lower this figure, the better the olive oil. For Extra Virgin oil, acidity should not exceed 1%, just Virgin - 2%, and for refined (Refined) - 1.5%.
10. Expiry date
Looking out for the cherished letters and marks on the label, we often forget about such a moment as the expiration date of the product. Although when buying olive oil this is very important! On average, it can be stored for about 18 months from the date of manufacture. Therefore, choose the freshest of the proposed oils - it will be the most fragrant, tasty and beneficial for your health.
About 400 companies supply olive oil to Russia. Most of the approximately 80 thousand tons of its exports come to us from Spain, Italy, Greece, Tunisia and Portugal. How to choose a really high-quality product from this variety?
The most juice
The best and most expensive olive oil is extra virgin (vergine, vierge) on the label. This term means that we have before us a completely natural product, produced exclusively by mechanical means, without the use of chemicals, and there are no flaws or flaws in the taste of the oil. It differs from just virgin, ordinary virgin and lampante virgin in having a higher content of oleic acid.
Extra virgin oil is made according to old technologies, only slightly modernized. For example, olives are harvested by hand in many farms today. The maximum mechanization is the use of a special device, similar to a rake, with which olives are shaken off the branches. The fact is that due to mechanical damage, raw materials quickly deteriorate, which worsens the taste of the product. The olives are washed, crushed together with the pits, placed under a press and the oil is squeezed out of them.
Taste and color
The color of olive oil depends on the region of growth, variety and degree of maturity of the olives and ranges from greenish to golden. There is no single standard for its taste. So, Italian tasters count about 400 "versions" of extra vergine - according to the number of olive varieties. The most refined is oil with a slight taste of artichoke. The ignorant consumer should know: the best oils are slightly bitter! And the oil can be really bitter if it is made from unripe olives. The disadvantages also include the taste of canned vegetables, fermentation, the smell of the earth (if the raw materials were not washed well), as well as the lack of a specific taste and smell inherent only to olives. The most common defect is a rancid smell, which appears if the oil has not been stored correctly.
The main criterion for the quality of olive oil is its acidity. The lower this figure, the better. Manufacturers usually do not display this parameter on the label. And if they do it, then only for advertising purposes.
You can test olive oil for naturalness at home. Place the product in the refrigerator for two to three days. If a white precipitate appears - stearin - you have made the right choice. When stored at room temperature, the olive oil will regain its original transparency, and you can enjoy the natural taste of "liquid gold".
To the last drop
In order to literally squeeze every last drop out of the olives, the pomace is subjected to repeated pressing under the influence of high temperatures and chemical agents. The resulting oil is suitable for cooking, but in terms of useful properties it is inferior to extra virgin. On the labels, such oil can be designated as “pure”, “for frying”, Pure, Pomace. Often this oil is a blend of olive oil with cheaper varieties of vegetable oils, in particular sunflower, which should be indicated on the label.
Useful facts
✓ A lot of controversy is caused by frying with unrefined oil. The flash point of extra virgin oil, at which the oil begins to decompose, forming harmful substances, is 160ºС. However, all of Europe fries on extra virgin! The fact is that housewives mainly use sautéing, in which the oil is heated to quite harmless 120ºС. Crossing the "critical line" occurs only when deep-frying, and this method is used infrequently.
✓ Researchers from the University of Philadelphia believe that olives have the ability to… reduce pain. Scientists came to a similar conclusion after they found that fresh olive oil irritates the walls of the throat in the same way that the painkiller ibuprofen does.
✓ In 100 g of butter there are 32 g of unsaturated (“good”) fats, and in 100 g of olive oil there are 84 g of them!
Expert opinion
Tatyana ANOKHINA, head of the testing center of the SOEKS HEAC of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation:
The quality of any vegetable oil is determined by its fatty acid composition. According to this indicator, all today's contestants meet the requirements for olive oil. Another important indicator of quality and safety is peroxide value (active oxygen content). It is not just normal for our oils, but much lower than the maximum allowable level. No toxic elements, pesticides, benzapyrene, radionuclides and GMOs of plant origin were found in the samples. And the organoleptic indicators of the subjects (appearance, taste, color and smell) were beyond praise. We admit that it was very difficult to choose the winners! But competition is competition. And the first place in it was taken by MONINI olive oil. Silver went to BORGES oil, and bronze went to ITLV oil.
Text: Evgenia Danilova
Test: olive oil*
| Delicato Monini | Carapelli | ITLV | Oliveta | Borges | Spainolli |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CATEGORY | |||||
| extra virgin | extra virgin | extra virgin | extra virgin | extra virgin | extra virgin |
| MANUFACTURER | |||||
| Italy | Italy | Spain | Spain | Spain | Spain |
| COMPOSITION ACCORDING TO THE LABEL | |||||
| Unrefined extra virgin olive oil | Extra virgin olive oil of the highest quality. First cold press | Olive oil. First cold press | Extra virgin olive oil of the highest quality | Extra virgin olive oil | |
| COMPLIANCE WITH THE INFORMATION ON THE LABEL | |||||
| Corresponds | Corresponds | Corresponds | Corresponds | Corresponds | Corresponds |
| CONTENT OF OLEIC ACID, % (at a rate of 56–83%) | |||||
| 71 | 79,9 | 66 | 68,8 | 67,4 | 79 |
| PEROXIDE NUMBER (norm - no more than 10.0) | |||||
| less than 0.2 | less than 0.2 | less than 0.2 | less than 0.2 | less than 0.2 | 0,3 |
| PRESERVATIVES | |||||
| Not detected | Not detected | Not detected | Not detected | Not detected | Not detected |
| TOXIC ELEMENTS, PESTICIDES, GMO PLANT ORIGIN | |||||
| Not detected | Not detected | Not detected | Not detected | Not detected | Not detected |
| PRICE (rub.) / VOLUME, ml | |||||
| 290/250 | 460/250 | 250/250 | 220/250 | 350/250 | 250/250 |
| OVERALL ASSESSMENT | |||||
|
This oil wins our test primarily due to its taste - thick, rich, juicy, a little bit bitter like a man. Give him a solo part in salads and fresh appetizers - you will not regret! |
If we had a competition "Where is the most oleic acid", then Carapelli oil would win this competition. All other parameters are also on top. But the taste was not as bright as I would like. Therefore, Carapelli was not in the top three. | This oil will shade fish and meat dishes well - it will make them more interesting and fragrant. But in green salads it should be added little by little: it has a pronounced bitter taste. | Oliveta is average in all respects. And to taste, too: it is not as bright as that of the winners of the test, but quite pleasant. Add here a reasonable price - and get a decent product for daily use. | This brand has very good marketers. Just look how they "decorated" the bottle! "BORGES oil - the taste of the Mediterranean", "Recommended by the Russian Academy of Sciences" ... However, the taste and quality of the oil are really excellent. | Against the background of other contestants, this one seems not so memorable. Well, it's better to fill the salad with another oil. But for everyday fried and baked dishes, Spainolli is quite suitable. |
* Thank you for your help in conducting the test HEAC "SOEKS"
From ancient times olive oil It is considered a gift of the gods, a medicine given to people by nature itself.
And it is no coincidence that the inhabitants of the Mediterranean, who regularly eat olive oil, retain youth, beauty and health for many years.
Russians do not have a rich tradition of using olive oil, and therefore the purpose of this article is to talk about the outstanding qualities of this solar product, which will certainly amaze you.
1. Olive oil: a unique composition
The main secret of olive oil is in its unique composition, this is a real pantry of useful components that are absorbed by the human body by almost 100%.
Olive oil contains a large amount of antioxidants and vitamin E, which helps to absorb vitamins A, K. The result of such a natural "chain reaction" is a general rejuvenation of the body, an improvement in the condition of the skin, hair, and nails.
And not without reason in Greece, where olive oil is idolized, the life expectancy rate is one of the highest in the world.
2. Olive oil: benefits for the digestive system
Olive oil is very good for the digestive system. It improves the activity of the stomach, intestines, pancreas and liver, promotes the healing of gastric and duodenal ulcers.
Olive oil has a choleretic and mild laxative effect. This is a rare and valuable property, because other vegetable oils do not have a choleretic effect.
A dessert spoon of olive oil on an empty stomach in three months helps to cure stomach ulcers and gastritis, while a spoonful of sunflower oil in such a situation can provoke hepatic colic and exacerbate gastrointestinal diseases.
3. Olive oil: prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer
Olive oil is a natural remedy for prevention of cardiovascular diseases, especially heart attacks and strokes, as well as cancer. The secret is in the content of a record amount of omega-3 monounsaturated fatty acids, which prevent atherosclerotic plaques from depositing on the walls of blood vessels and even destroy those that already exist.
Train yourself to take two tablespoons of olive oil a day (dress salad, add to soups, side dishes, marinades), and your heart will work like clockwork.
It is a known fact that the lowest mortality rate from cardiovascular diseases is in Greece, the world leader in the consumption of olive oil per capita.
In addition, scientists have found that the oleic acid contained in olive oil stimulates a gene that suppresses the activity of cancer cells. Accordingly, the risk of developing oncological diseases, in particular, breast cancer in women, is reduced.
4. Olive oil: Benefits for children
Olive oil especially useful for children and pregnant women, because the fatty acids contained in it are involved in the formation of the fetal brain, its bone and nervous systems.
Olive oil also provides a gentle transfer of infants to adult food. The fact is that the fatty acids of extra-virgin olive oil are very similar to the fats that make up mother's milk: linoleic acid in both is about 8%. Olive oil should be added to cereals and pureed vegetable purees.
It is important to remember that the lack of linoleic acid in the body can cause a number of skin diseases.
5. Olive oil is perfect for frying
Olive oil is one of the best oils for frying. it retains its structure at high temperatures and does not burn.
According to studies, extra virgin olive oil begins to burn at temperatures above 240 degrees and practically does not oxidize due to the low content of unsaturated fatty acids. Therefore, lovers of a healthy diet can safely use it to prepare all kinds of dishes - warm up, sauté, fry - and at the same time enjoy a pleasant natural aroma, without which it is impossible to imagine healthy Mediterranean cuisine. For example, IDEAL olive oil is produced in Spain by direct extraction, without the addition of preservatives and impurities.
Unlike olive oil, our favorite sunflower and corn oils have one significant drawback - they are extremely susceptible to oxidation, especially when heated and left exposed to air. As a result, we get carcinogenic products that are detrimental to the mucosa of the gastrointestinal tract.
6. Olive oil in cosmetology
Since ancient times, olive oil has been widely application in cosmetology. To preserve and maintain beauty and youth, the women of Ancient Greece regularly used masks based on olive oil.
Today, cosmetics based on extra virgin olive oil are very popular. It is a part of various creams, masks, shampoos, soaps.
Olive oil is ideal for skin because:
- well absorbed, does not clog pores, which is important for skin breathing, good complexion,
- does not cause allergic reactions,
- prevents the penetration of air pollution into the skin,
– due to the content of antioxidants and vitamin E, it prevents premature aging of the body and has a rejuvenating effect,
– has a disinfecting and wound-healing effect, which helps to solve the problems of dry, inflamed and dehydrated skin,
– actively affects fat metabolism in the body, which is effective in the fight against cellulite and skin stretch marks,
- eliminates brittle and split nails, gives vital shine to hair, prevents dandruff and hair loss,
- relieves pain, including after sports training. Since ancient times, Greek athletes have rubbed their bodies with olive oil after sports.
7. Unrefined olive oil
The process of purification (refining) of vegetable oil consists of three main stages: neutralization, bleaching, deodorization. The result is a product without a pronounced taste, color and smell.
Having opened a bottle of olive oil and not feeling the pronounced natural aroma of olives, think about the quality of the purchased oil.
Unfortunately, inexpensive olive oils from our supermarket shelves are often a mixture of refined and unrefined oils.
Therefore, when choosing olive oil, it is important to remember that high-quality oil cannot be cheap. One of the reasons for this is the time it takes to harvest the olives. They are harvested in winter and usually by hand. One tree produces about 8 kg of olives, and 5 kg of olives are needed to produce 1 liter of oil.
8. What is the best olive oil?
The best olive oil is first cold pressed oil (Extra Virgin). This is unrefined olive oil, which has not been subjected to any heat treatment and therefore has retained a maximum of useful substances.
Basically, before bottling, the oil is filtered, but unfiltered oil is valued higher.
The main indicator of the quality of olive oil is its acidity. The level of acidity is determined by the content of oleic acid in 100 g of the product. The lower the natural acidity of unrefined olive oil, the higher its quality.
High-quality oil (Extra Virgin) should have an acidity of no more than 0.8%.
Oil with an acidity of less than 0.5% in the Mediterranean is considered to be medicinal.
The quality of olive oil is also affected by its variety. The best is oil with a special marked P.D.O.(mark of protected origin), which is made from olives grown in a certain area. The entire production process of this oil is carried out at the place of collection of raw materials. This oil has a unique bouquet and aroma.
Oil labeled "Bio" or "Organic" means that the olives were harvested from plantations with this label. This means that you receive an organic product that meets strict system requirements, which include the elimination of the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, growth regulators and genetic engineering methods.
9. Olive oil: the best producers
world leaders in the production of olive oil are Spain, Italy, Greece and Tunisia. Moreover, this fact is interesting: Spanish production volumes are three times higher than Greek ones, but at the same time, Extra Virgin oil they have is only a fifth of the total production.
Greece, with smaller volumes, produces more than 80% of the first cold-pressed oil (Extra Virgin) and offers the best price-quality ratio.
Olive trees are known to have settled Greece over 5,000 years ago. There they found a favorable ecological niche. In Crete and in the mountainous part of Greece, olives have been growing wild for decades, reproducing naturally on the roots of dead trees. Breaking through the rocks, their roots go deep into the ground, nourishing the fruits with valuable substances.
Oil from other countries is often inferior in quality to Greek oil. The point, as a rule, is that raw materials are collected throughout the region from specially planted olives, which are watered abundantly. Naturally, the concentration of active substances in olives grown in this way decreases, the taste weakens. And in order for the oil to meet the specified quality standards, manufacturers add the necessary amount of Greek olive oil to it.
10. Olive oil: taste, color, aroma
Oil personality determined by numerous factors.
Professionals say that for a good harvest of olives, five components are needed: sun, stone, dryness, silence and solitude.
Indeed, the nature of the soil and climatic conditions are very important for olives. Depending on their characteristics, the color, taste and aroma of the oil may vary.
To determine the organoleptic characteristics of the oil, conduct a small tasting. Take a sip and hold it in your mouth. Pay attention to the color and bouquet, to the fruity taste, piquancy, slight bitterness, enveloping texture and highlight imperfections, such as rancidity, mustiness, woody taste.
Are you still wondering: “Which oil is the best?”. Remember that there are more than 700 varieties of olives growing in different parts of the world from America to Australia, but Greek oil is still a little "stronger", with a stronger taste.
Olive oil fatty acid molecules are very large, and the larger the molecule, the more carbohydrate atoms in it and the more heat it gives. Therefore, olive oil provides the largest influx of energy, which is especially necessary for the normal functioning of all organs and systems, and above all, in order to cope with stress and stay in a good mood!
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