If extra-virgin olive oil has turned up in a recipe or caught your eye at the store, here's what you need to use it with confidence and how to choose it, cook it, store it, what to substitute, and 1,186 recipes to try it in.

What is extra-virgin olive oil?

Extra-virgin olive oil is the top grade of olive oil, made from the first cold pressing of fresh olives with no heat and no chemicals. That first press is where the flavor lives, and it is what separates extra-virgin from the cheaper refined grades.

Good extra-virgin oil tastes like something. Depending on the olives and where they grew, it can be grassy, fruity, buttery, or sharply peppery, with a catch at the back of the throat that tells you it is fresh.

Refined olive oil, by contrast, is processed until it is mild and bland. Extra-virgin also has to meet a chemical standard: free acidity below 0.8% and no defects in a taste panel. Low acidity is a sign the olives were healthy and pressed quickly.

How to Use Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

The smart move is to use extra-virgin where you can taste it. Used raw or with gentle heat, the money you paid actually shows up on the plate.

Drizzle it over finished dishes, whisk it into dressings, and reach for it in low and medium-heat cooking. It carries a Maple, Soy Sauce & Mustard Vinaigrette, finishes a bowl of Hubbard Squash Soup, and is the whole point of Bruschetta Pizza with Garlic-Olive oil.

It also sautes vegetables and gently cooks aromatics for pasta beautifully, as in Warm Pasta with Broccoli, Bell Pepper & Parmesan.

The smoke point of a decent extra-virgin sits around 375°F (190°C). That is higher than people fear, but still not built for hard frying.

Pairing and Common Mistakes

The big mistake is wasting good extra-virgin on a deep-fryer or a screaming-hot pan. High heat burns off the delicate flavor compounds you paid for and pushes the oil toward its smoke point. For that work, use a refined or light olive oil, or a neutral oil like canola.

The other mistake is buying a fancy bottle and then hoarding it. Olive oil does not improve with age. It pairs naturally with garlic, lemon, tomatoes, basil, and good bread, so use it generously while it is fresh.

Substitutes

For finishing and dressings, the closest swap is a milder extra-virgin or a good virgin olive oil. You lose some pepper but keep the fruitiness.

For cooking where flavor matters less, refined or light olive oil works, as does avocado oil for higher heat. In baking, a neutral oil like canola steps in cleanly, though you give up the fruity note that makes olive oil cakes special.

Butter is not a true match. It changes the texture and behaves differently in the pan.

Buying and Storing

Look for a harvest date on the label, not just a best-by date, and buy the most recent crop you can find. Extra-virgin is freshest in its first year or so after pressing.

A dark glass or tin bottle protects it. A country or region of origin plus the words "extra virgin" and "cold pressed" are good signs. Light is the enemy, which is why clear bottles on a bright shelf are a bad bet.

Store the bottle in a cool, dark cupboard with the cap closed, away from the stove. Use it within a few months of opening.

Rancid olive oil smells flat or waxy and loses its pepper. If the kick is gone and it tastes dull, it is past its prime.

Nutrition

Quick facts

Where to find extra-virgin olive oil: Extra-virgin olive oil is usually found in the oils section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

Food group: Olive oil, extra-virgin is a member of the Fats and Oils US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.

In Chinese

橄榄油，特级初榨

British (UK) term

Olive oil, extra-virgin

en français

huile d'olive extra-vierge

en español

aceite de oliva virgen extra

How much does extra-virgin olive oil weigh?

Amount	Weight
1 tablespoon	13 grams
1 cup	216 grams
1 teaspoon	4 grams

Related

Fats and Oils

Recipes using extra-virgin olive oil

There are 1186 recipes that contain this ingredient.

All 1,186 extra-virgin olive oil recipes

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