Key Point: Extra virgin olive oil should be pure cold-pressed juice from fresh olives. It should contain no additives and should have a very low level of free acidity. Fake Extra Virgin Olive Oil Scandals If you’re looking for a high-quality olive oil that’s perfect for cooking, Bertolli has got you covered. Bertolli produces top-notch extra virgin olive oils that are great for cooking with. They have everything from flavored oils to dressings and sauces, so even if you don’t use their other products, you can still get your hands on some of the best olive oil around.

In this section, we will take a look at ten extra virgin olive oil brands that produce top-quality oils. Extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil, like Bertolli, is known for its health benefits, which include its ability to lower cholesterol levels. Studies have shown that consuming olive oil as part of a Mediterranean diet can help to lower LDL (bad) cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease.

What we were looking for in the olive oils

Key Point: There are many poor-quality extra virgin olive oils on the market. Some are fake, and some are real, but not worthy of the ‘extra virgin’ label. 10 Real Extra Virgin Olive Oil Brands The olive oil in your kitchen is likely not what you think it is. Fake olive oil is literally everywhere on the market – up to 70% of all store-bought extra virgin olive oils in the US are fake. And by fake I mean cut with cheaper oils.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/11988947/Italian-companies-investigated-for-passing-off-ordinary-olive-oil-as-extra-virgin.html Also, the use of plastic itself was a clear disappointment for many considering its health hazards. Here we are going to review some of their flagship olive oils which I have been using for quite a time now. 1. Bertolli Olive Oil: The cold pressing is done within the first few hours of the harvest to maintain olives’ original essence and freshness. You can use it for almost everything from sautéing to baking and frying. However, the price again was quite high, which was also a low point for me. 3. Bertolli Extra Virgin Olive Oil:

Bring on the Delicious

Cobram’s oils are certified for their authenticity by the COOC in California, and the company has won many awards too. Even as someone who cooks the vast majority of her meals at home and goes through a lot of olive oil every week, I find that section of the grocery store overwhelming. Some hail from Greece, others from California, others still from Italy. Some are small with high price tags, others are bigger at a reasonable cost. Some boast that they’re “extra-virgin,” and others say “pure” or “refined.” The sheer number of options gives me decision fatigue — which is why I consulted a group of 15 experts to narrow it down to some of the tastiest, most reliable options on the market. Their dual-location allows them to produce from two different harvests every year, ensuring optimal freshness of the oil. In 2017, Italian police arrested 33 people for their role in exporting hexane-treated refined oil to the US as ‘extra virgin olive oil’ ( 2).

Sadly, even if it looks like extra virgin olive oil and has a label stating so, we have no way to be sure it is the genuine article. Hyland and Lycopolus both say Cobram Estate makes a delicious olive oil. Because of the price point, it would be well suited as an oil for dipping or for dressings, both of which would benefit from something you can use relatively liberally but that is distinctly tasty in its raw form. “It’s buttery and grassy at the same time, which is a combo you don’t usually get,” says Hyland. “It’s complex but also easygoing. Get a nice bread, dip it, add some Maldon salt, and eat that for dinner.” Lycopolus points out that the taste can vary slightly from year to year but that the California blend is “typically well balanced, with lots of green fruity notes on the front of the palate (artichoke, green olive, Granny Smith apple) and peppery notes on the finish (arugula, mustard greens, peppercorn).” In addition to meeting these two criteria, the oil should also comply with international standards for extra virgin olive oil.Sensory (taste): the council’s panel taste test the oil for flavor and impurities in a “blind” setting. The best alternative is to buy from the above mentioned companies that you can trust, or, buy from local olive oil farmers. In the United States and Australia, there are certifications that you can look for on bottles. The seal denoting approval by the California Olive Oil Council is labelled as “COOC Certified Extra Virgin.” The Australian Olive Oil Association has a seal labelled as “Australian Extra Virgin Certified.” Other seals of approval are labelled fromItalian Oliver Growers’ Association such as Extra Virgin Alliance (EVA) and UNAPROL. Moving forward to nutritional content, it has 900kcal with 100g of fat per 100ml, out of which 15g is saturated fat. All Ellora Farms extra virgin olive oil comes from the ‘Koroneiki’ variety of olives, and it is 100% cold-pressed.