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INFUSED OLIVE OILS BY ALEX MACKAY
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Only a decade or so ago, the place to go if you wanted a little olive oil for your dressing was the chemist. Imagine that, I'll have some shampoo, a few plasters, some odour eaters, oh, and a little oil for my dressing tonight. Doesn't really bear thinking about does it? Today we have infused oils, flavoured oils and olive oils from all over the world, including my beloved New Zealand where it has become something of a desired lifestyle to sell up everything, plant a few rows of trees and hope for a healthy harvest.
There was also a period when every restaurant was flavouring its own olive oil, the quality of which would vary from such an extreme to another that it was a pretty pointless exercise. Like anything, to do it correctly it takes experience and expertise and the type of oil that is used is also very important. Olive oil changes from olive to olive, country to country and region to region. Some are full of fruity flavours, others seem to have an overpowering pepperyness to them, and some are just downright oily. After a long search Merchant Gourmet chose an extra virgin olive oil from the mountains of Liguria. Here they specially blend their olive oil and combine a delicate olive oil with Lemon, Basil, and Sun Dried Tomatoes. Their more peppery olive oil they blend with Chilli and Garlic to develop a delicious range of infused oils.
For the sake of clarity, infused and flavoured oils are two completely different beasts. A few drops of nature identical chemical (sounds frightening doesn't it, makes me think of cloning) and you have your average flavoured oil. I use the word average here in a very descriptive and unflattering way. Whereby, infused oil is the glorious reward of a very careful and natural extraction of flavour that is intense and fresh tasting. Imagine huge tubs packed with the best basil in Genoa, gently imparting its wonderful scent into extra virgin olive oil and you have the picture.
All of the infused extra virgin olive oils in the Merchant Gourmet range are perfect for marinades. So often when you marinate, say a pork chop as in our recipe, 'Lemon Marinated Pork Chops with Couscous', you end up with lots of bits of lemon, bits of garlic or bits of chilli.... These may flavour it very well, but once cooked tend to blacken and burn. Using an infused extra virgin olive oil, you get all of the flavour without any of the side effect of black grit in your teeth. Of course it doesn't stop there! Drizzling a bit of basil infused extra virgin olive oil into minestrone perks it up perfectly. A little lemon infused extra virgin olive oil over a grilled chicken breast or steak in the Italian style is wonderful. The variety of vinaigrettes you can make is also endless, and not just for salads. Chopping a few tomatoes, adding a good dash of chilli infused extra virgin olive oil, some lime juice, your favourite herb and some salt gives you a spicy little number that'll transform anything from a plateful of rice to a veal medallion. You may have guests who enjoy garlic but don't like to eat it raw, so make your dressing with garlic infused extra virgin olive oil. I made a classic Caesar salad in this way recently and it was superb.
I'll end with a little word to the wise… When storing your oils make sure that they stay out of direct light and away from the heat. They are made with the same care and love as fine wines and need to be treated and enjoyed as such. |
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