In quest for healthy food, many people now turn to unsaturated fats for preparing their meals. Olive oil is often used as an alternative to butter or margarine. The oil is excellent simply drizzled over salads or cooked spaghetti, when used in marinades or as a dip for bread,... Olive oil also balances the acidity in high-acid foods, such as tomatoes, vinegar, wine, and lemon juice.
Using olive oil in cooking is actually a great way to get more monounsaturated fat and polyphenolic compounds in your diet.
The polyphenols present in extra virgin olive oil also protect blood lipids against oxidative stress and free radicals. Both in vitro tests and clinical trials have shown that olive oil traps free radicals. This property has led the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) to recognize the validity of the health claim "olive oil polyphenols contribute to the protection of blood lipids from oxidative stress".
Did you know that it has been shown that when tomatoes are cooked in extra virgin olive oil, the latter is loaded with carotenoids contained in the fruit vegetable. Even better: in the end, the bioavailability of carotenoids, i.e. their ability to be used by the body, is increased, which improves the antioxidant power of the preparation.
In addition, extra virgin olive oil provides antioxidants not only when consumed directly, but also when used in cooking. During frying, some of its antioxidants "migrate" into food!
Ok, say you are convinced to use olive oil in your food diet. Which olive oil to chose and how to use it ?
1. make sure you are buying the latest harvest
2. chose extra virgin first cold press olive oil
3. chose preferably AOP (Appellation d'Origine Protégé) or IGP.
Note: In oder to be sure that the oil is really AOP/IGP: check the back of the bottle and look whether there is a mention "EU Origin Oil". In such a case your oil is not truly AOP (Appelation d'Origine Protégé) or IGP even if the front label would state so
4. store your oil in a cool dark place
Note: light causes oxidation of the olive oil, which results in deterioration of the unsaturated fats that are naturally present in the olive oil.
5. when cooking with olive oil, make sure not to go above its smoke point (oil starts fuming). Olive oil has a higher smoke point than most other oils (210°C). In order to preserve the good qualities it is advised to stay below 190°C
Sources:
-https://theconversation.com/les-vraies-vertus-de-lhuile-dolive-119736
-https://www.quechoisir.org/decryptage-huile-d-olive-des-techniques-marketing-discutables-n68991/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=nlh&utm_campaign=nlh190717
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