Olive Oil's Lack Of Taste Is The Thing-It Won't Catch The Attention Of The King

[MikeBiDude]

Carcinogens or no, no oil tasted good when it burns.

 

If you need an oil to use at that high a temperature use grape seed oil. It has no flavor and a much higher smoke (or flame) point, and it's healthier than vegetable oil. You end up tasting the fried chicken instead of the oil.

I use peanut oil for deep frying turkeys, etc., high. Smoke/flash point

[AdamSmith]

Baking is basically alchemy.

http://dodd.cmcvellore.ac.in/hom/11%20-%20Paracelsus.jpg

[whipped guy]

I use peanut oil for deep frying turkeys, etc., high. Smoke/flash point

Yes, and peanut oil is great when stir-frying with a wok as well... something I have not done in eons!

[AdamSmith]

Yes, and peanut oil is great when stir-frying with a wok as well... something I have not done in eons!

Stir frying can make great food but your house smells like a cheap Chinese restaurant for a week. One of the foods to go OUT for.

[AdamSmith]

http://dodd.cmcvellore.ac.in/hom/11%20-%20Paracelsus.jpg

I am, predictably, a fairy mean baker.

[whipped guy]

Yes, and peanut oil is great when stir-frying with a wok as well... something I have not done in eons!

 

Stir frying can make great food but your house smells like a cheap Chinese restaurant for a week. One of the foods to go OUT for.

 

At the risk of quoting myself, I totally agree with the esteemed Mr. Smith and for some reason there is something that the Chinese do that somehow makes stir fry work better than what you can do at home. I think that the woks just get "seasoned" from constant use. So that's why I have not used a wok "in eons"!

 

Now the same for Chinese egg drop soup. I can never get it to come out even as good or hpbad as in "a cheap Chinese restaurant"!

[AdamSmith]

@whipped guy, doubtless right on both, and I agree.

 

My only exception was being served in their Queens apartment by the Hunan immigrant parents of a Yale friend.

 

She also led our Saturday expeditions fleeing the New Haven dining halls for dinner in Chinatown, where she would order for us off the Kanji menus taped to the wall.

 

Of course the Romanji menu was chockablock with sweet-and-sour this & that, and all the other goop for Murrican patrons.

 

But she gave us the greatest education in and exposure to real Hunan.

 

PS Also of course commercial gas range tops run many times hotter than even the "high-end" home ones.

[+ bashful]

Has anyone else tried Morton and Bassett herbs and spices?

 

I have. Found them in my local store one day. Purchased green peppercorn. Nice subtle difference. Yes, expensive. Almost $10 for a small bottle.

 

Recently ordered from Watkins. A little less expensive. One item I ordered was Ground Cardamom, that was only $10, vs. over $16 from Morton and Bassett. However, 1.76 oz. from Watkins vs. 1.9 oz. from Morton and Bassett. Haven't used it yet.

 

Have not done a lot of comparisons, but my guess is Morton and Bassett has a larger selection.

[Epigonos]

Again guys I highly recommend Penzey's for dried herbs and spices.

 

At one time I had over 700 cook books. I simply enjoy looking through them to get ideas. I happen to like Ina Garten's books but like many other cookbook writers she pisses me off by NOT providing the equivalent measurements of dried herbs for fresh ones. Yes I know fresh is better than dried but damnit most of us live in cities and don’t have the space for an extensive herb garden. Yes I know I could buy fresh herbs at my local grocer store but they are usually not very fresh. Yes I know I could plant a few herbs in pots but though I love cooking I DO NOT love gardening. I have come to cutting the fresh amount of fresh herbs by half which seems to work well for me.

[+ pitman]

I use peanut oil for deep frying turkeys, etc., high. Smoke/flash point

Peanut oil is also good for popping corn.

[BaronArtz]

I put olive oil on almost everything I eat. Even on my oatmeal in the morning. I mostly buy the house brand at Zabar's - I hope it is the real deal.

 

My nutritionist, however, has advised me to also use coconut oil as a substitute to olive oil - complementary qualities and digests more quickly.

 

Having grown up in a French-inspired culture, I DO miss the really good butter from Normandy. A fresh baguette, good butter, 'Jambon de Paris' ham ... yum. It is rare that I indulge in it though. I try to avoid bleached flour products. But that is a different discussion.

[+ Funguy]

Interesting that your nutritionist suggested coconut oil - not only good for the body internally but, bar none, it is the best moisturizer/emollient for the outside also. Moisturizes and then seals the moisture in. Especially good for the face. For other places we have already discussed.

[+ OliverSaks]

With coconut oil, I:

 

Play / massage / cook / spread / shave / add to coffee and whip / lip balm / bake / moisturize

 

Love the way it feels and tastes.

[BaronArtz]

With coconut oil, I:

 

Play / massage / cook / spread / shave / add to coffee and whip / lip balm / bake / moisturize

 

Love the way it feels and tastes.

 

I hadn't thought of using it as lip balm ... thanks for the advice. How do you use it for shaving though? Do you warm it up a bit?

 

I love the feel and taste myself. And it is remarkably affordable, I buy mine on Amazon

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003OGKCDC/ref=sr_ph_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1483314211&sr=sr-1&keywords=coconut+oil&th=1

[+ OliverSaks]

I hadn't thought of using it as lip balm ... thanks for the advice. How do you use it for shaving though? Do you warm it up a bit?

 

I love the feel and taste myself. And it is remarkably affordable, I buy mine on Amazon

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003OGKCDC/ref=sr_ph_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1483314211&sr=sr-1&keywords=coconut+oil&th=1

I use it exactly like shaving cream.

Warm up a little in my hands to soften, then rub on my cheeks and shave.

[BaronArtz]

I use it exactly like shaving cream.

Warm up a little in my hands to soften, then rub on my cheeks and shave.

 

That sounds ... SEXY

[gallahadesquire]

I have. Found them in my local store one day. Purchased green peppercorn. Nice subtle difference. Yes, expensive. Almost $10 for a small bottle.

 

Recently ordered from Watkins. A little less expensive. One item I ordered was Ground Cardamom, that was only $10, vs. over $16 from Morton and Bassett. However, 1.76 oz. from Watkins vs. 1.9 oz. from Morton and Bassett. Haven't used it yet.

 

Have not done a lot of comparisons, but my guess is Morton and Bassett has a larger selection.

 

Morton and Basett is like $5.99 for basil and oregano, and has at least 70 herbs and spices.

 

http://www.mortonbassett.com/home.html

[+ WmClarke]

So I've been thinking about this thread and where I should go to get some quality olive oil.

 

And then I'm out running errands today and, voilà! Across the street is an olive oil store.

 

http://i1305.photobucket.com/albums/s545/WmClarke/IMG_0297_zps0zdkjrez.jpg

 

Ahhh, serendipity!

[AdamSmith]

AdamSmith, This is a most egregious post.To call the Chinese characters on the menus on the wall "Kanji" is an insult of the highest order."Kanji" is the Japanese word for the Chinese characters that the Japanese adopted as they had no written language . The correct term is 'Hanzi"which is the Chinese term for the written characters which they invented.

Please forgive! I fully grasp the depth of my blunder.

 

In fact our Chinese classmate had to give me that very correction herself.

 

Practically every time we went to Chinatown.

[whipped guy]

Please forgive! I fully grasp the depth of my blunder.

 

In fact our Chinese classmate had to give me that very correction herself.

 

Practically every time we went to Chinatown.

Well our esteemed Mr. Smith has almost 9,000 posts and he finally made an error... I guess he is one of us after all!!!

 

Also, AS made mention of "fleeing New Haven" on Saturdays. I can't understand why anyone would want or need to flee the beloved Elm City!?! And even to flee as he implied those Eli dinning halls...

 

Incidentally, getting back to the main topic of this thread just today I finally found a use for the leftover bland bottle of California olive oil that I had purchased at Trader Joe's. It makes for a quite tasty personal lubrucant. I kid you not... A bit messy, but one usually needs to clean up afterwards anyway...

[AdamSmith]

Well our esteemed Mr. Smith has almost 9,000 posts and he finally made an error... I guess he is one of us after all!!!

I thought getting my Wagner all mixed up had already knocked that one off.

[TruthBTold]

Being of Italian heritage I know that Italians take their olive oil seriously. In fact they will not ask how a salad was rather they will ask how the olive oil in the dressing was.

[+ Funguy]

 

Incidentally, getting back to the main topic of this thread just today I finally found a use for the leftover bland bottle of California olive oil that I had purchased at Trader Joe's. It makes for a quite tasty personal lubrucant. I kid you not... A bit messy, but one usually needs to clean up afterwards anyway...

 

I believe I mentioned that in post #21, tho I failed to mention that it was "quite tasty"!

[whipped guy]

I believe I mentioned that in post #21, tho I failed to mention that it was "quite tasty"!

Well, I hate to waste anything and it was not being used for culinary purposes because it was fruity and did not have the zippy peppery taste that I like in an EVO, and fruity is good for lube. However, more importantly I was low on the real thing... you know the infamous bottle of lube that I stole from a "mutual friend" of ours down here at the FL command post if you recall... a crime that I have been paying dearly for (to my delight I must add) ever since!

I thought getting my Wagner all mixed up had already knocked that one off.

Well I had not caught that, but but then again by the time one gets to Act One of Die Gotterammerung its a lost cause anyway! :confused::eek: So no points against you for getting your "Wagner all mixed up"!

Being of Italian heritage I know that Italians take their olive oil seriously. In fact they will not ask how a salad was rather they will ask how the olive oil in the dressing was.

Parlato proprio come un vero italiano! (Spoken just like a true Italian!)

[+ kent]

I have posted here about high quality extra virgin olive oil! Yes, it's like a fine wine!

 

http://www.companyofmen.org/threads/a-culinary-question.107209/page-3

 

There are as many different types and flavors as there are wine. Plus, the flavor varies from season to season. I like a fruity taste with a pungent after bite. Some unfiltered extra virgin oils have that property.

 

WG: Have you seen the reviews of Olive Oils in Cooks Illustrated ( https://www.cooksillustrated.com/search?dFR%5Bsearch_site_list%5D%5B0%5D=cio&dFR%5Bsearch_site_list%5D%5B1%5D=cco&dFR%5Bsearch_site_list%5D%5B2%5D=atk&dFR%5Bsearch_site_list%5D%5B3%5D=cookbook_collection&display_format=grid&fR%5Bsearch_document_klass%5D%5B0%5D=taste_test&q=olive+oil )?