Food Industry Archives

ARTISANAL IS SPECIAL

We often hear the term ‘artisanal’ applied to many different food products.

 

What exactly is artisanal?

 

In its simplest form, artisanal refers to any food product that is produced or grown in a manner that requires more attention, labor and with the use of a minimum of industrial methods.

 

Whether it is olive oil produced from estate, hand picked olives or long aged balsamic vinegar, artisanal pasta, the underlying process is the same. Care, attention and time are three of the basic ingredients.

 

Try one of our olive oils, pasta, or balsamic vinegar and see if the difference is not readily apparent. Sure, you will pay more, but then again it is always important to remember that quality does not come cheap.

 

You’ll never go back to commercial products again.

 

CHOOSING THE OLIVE OIL THAT’S RIGHT FOR YOU

When choosing an olive oil, one of the first and most important things to remember is to purchase your oil from a trusted merchant. Usually a reliable seller will have more than just one olive oil to offer. You should also be able to find a good description of each of the oils on the website. Take a look at the descriptions on www.olivenation.com. Here you will find a number of different oils along with a description of the attributes of each. In fact, a good merchant should not only have more than one oil from a country or region, but also offer olive oils from different regions and countries. After all, it might come as a surprise to a lot of people, but the Italians aren’t the only ones producing quality olive oil. So, expand your tastes and try olive oils from different countries!

MACADAMIA NUT OIL

Delicious and healthy, macadamia oil has a unique and delicate nutty taste. Light and smooth the oil has a high smoke point. It is also cholesterol free, contains up to 85% monounsaturated fat levels with the end result being a heart healthy oil like olive oil. It has an ideal ratio of omega 3 and 6, much higher than found in olive oil. Omega 3 seems to be more important than omega 6 since omega 3 seems to reduce the risks of heart disease, high blood pressure and arthritis. These fatty acids go a long way to keep cell walls healthy. They are the same acids found in seafood. Use it for baking, salad dressings, stir-frying, roasting, grilling basting and sautéing. Macadamia nut oil has a long shelf life of anywhere from one to two years.

 

AVOCADO OIL-THE ALTERNATIVE OIL

Cold pressed from avocados, this edible oil is known for its delightfully pure and fresh avocado taste and aroma. Avocado oil is one of few vegetable oils not pressed from seeds. It is pressed from the fleshy pulp that envelopes the avocado pit. Additionally, it is known to be one of the healthiest of the edible oils. It is high in monounsaturated fats (the good fat) and vitamin E. It is a fantastic way to take a salad to another level. It is also perfect for sautéing since it has a much higher smoking point than extra virgin olive oil. The smoking point of over 500° makes it a natural for cooking meats, fish and vegetables.

 

How to Taste and Evaluate Olive Oils

Frequently people will ask “Why some olive oils so much more expensive than others?” Good question. Perhaps a little better understanding will go a long way to answer the question.

 

First of all fine extra virgin olive oil, note the emphasis on extra virgin since plain olive oils don’t qualify, are akin to fine wine. Just as fine wine is evaluated by smell, taste and finally perception, the same is true of quality extra virgin olive oils. When doing taste and evaluation, it is always good to have more than one oil on hand, preferably from different regions or even different countries. This will give you a good comparison.

 

The first step is to smell the olive oil. To do this, place the room temperature oil in a wide mouth glass or glass container. Then gently swirl the olive oil and smell it. Good quality olive oil should give off the aroma of olive. There should be no musty or rancid odor. Then look for other aromas, such as grass, almond, herbs, spicy and any other odors which seem apparent. Remember olive oils from different regions and countries are going to be different. So what is apparent from one area won’t necessarily hold true from another area. This is one of the fun parts of olive oil tasting, i.e. picking up other scents.

 

Next comes the tasting. Take a small sip, making sure the olive oil stays in the front of your mouth. Observe the texture. Is it thick or thin? Is it smooth or spicy? Take notes.

 

Then swallow the oil. What is the aftereffect? Smooth, spicy, lingering or quickly diminishing in flavor are some of the characteristics.

 

Cleanse your palate with some plain bread and then repeat the steps for any additional oils on hand. Be sure to take notes for comparison purposes. It is also fun to do this with a few friends and then compare results.

The New York Fancy Food Show

July is my favorite month because we get to go to The Fancy Food Show in New York City. The Food Show may be the reason we started the OliveNation website. It has to be the most fun you can have with your palate. Three full days of tasting the best the world has to offer–from North and South America, to Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia, all gastronomical countries have booths. We are a bit partial to Italy, France and Spain, but we feel it is our duty to you, our OliveNation customers, to leave no food untasted, and in many cases, to try some foods twice, especially olive oil and cheese.

Maybe some day we will be able to offer burrata (a type of mozzarella from Apulia that is so creamy it almost tastes like butter,) prosciutto (we love San Daniele, of course, but La Quercia, a domestic brand is just as delicious, possibly even sweeter, ) big chunks of Parmigiano, bresaola, and Amit’s favorite, sheep ricotta. So for three straight days we roamed the Javits Convention Center and visited the Italian booths first, and then all the others. Sometimes we felt exausted, but we kept on, and in the process made friends with all the espresso vendors. I should also thank the chocolate booths, who made a great point: sipping chocolate is not only a winter treat (and here in Boston we appreciate that) but a fantastic summer party in a glass. We tasted several chilled chocolate martinis (shake sipping chocolate with ice and vodka) and smoothies (blend with ice) and those, too, kept us focused on our mission.

Our friend John Rusnak, of www.jrmushrooms.com, who was also attending the show, helped us to stay on track and introduced us, among many other delicacies, to new truffles and vanilla beans (he has the best ones from Madagascar.) My cousin Edoardo Lucia, also met us at the show (he lives upstate) and, after much tasting and pondering, he remembered some old family recipes that we will post soon. We took some time out to see the soccer final for the UEFA Cup: Spain vs. Germany. The Spanish team was excellent, and won the cup. You should have heard the cheering from the Spanish booths every time their team scored a goal. OLÉ!

Right now we are tasting a stack of exciting new pastas (both durum wheat and gluten-free varieties) we found at the show, as well as pasta sauces, balsamic vinegars, and infused extra virgin olive oils. Mission accomplished. We’ll keep you posted.