The Oldways Table Excerpts: Stories, Lessons, and Recipes from Each Chapter

Chapter 5: Olive Oil, Butter, and Other Fats
Ari Weinzweig On Choosing Olive Oil

Ann Arbor, Michigan, has been known for years as a great place to go to college and a great place to live. More recently, though, one of its claims to fame is that it's the home (and only home) of Zingerman's. Zingerman's delicatessen was started in the 1980s by a trio of college friends as a place to get great sandwiches. Twenty-some years later, Zingerman's is one of America's premier sources of high-quality ingredients from all over the world. It is also known as the Coolest Place to Work in America (so says Inc. magazine), and a company that chose to be great instead of big (so says Bo Burlingham's 2006 book, Small Giants). Ari Weinzweig, one of the co-founders of Zingerman's, has spoken at a number of Oldways symposiums, giving sensible, full-of-information talks about olive oil, cheese, and many other wonderful ingredients he's traveled around the world to learn about. He's an expert we count on, and we asked him to offer advice on choosing olive oils.

To choose an olive oil...

The first thing I'd think about is what I was going to do with the oil. For everyday frying or that sort of thing, I'd use an oil that's produced in larger quantity, blended from the olives of various farms. These oils usually lack complexity, but they're perfectly fine for dishes where the flavor of the oil will be of only minimal import, and they're certainly more affordable.

For more interesting dishes where I really want the flavor of the oil to be prominent in the finished food, I always seek out the most flavorful oils I can find. And I always work to match the flavor of the oil with that of the dish overall -- lighter oils for fish; modestly fruity oils for more delicate lettuces and vegetables; peppery, green oils for mozzarella (where the oil is actually the highlight), meat, and spicier dishes. This is no different than pairing wines to foods to make a good match. The key is understanding that different oils are appropriate for different dishes, and to that end I always have three or four different oils on hand at home so that I am ready for almost any sort of cooking I might do. I really encourage everyone to taste and compare oils for themselves so they can find the ones they like best.

Here are a few really important lessons I've learned about choosing and using great olive oil.

FLAVOR COMES FIRST
While in the United States we usually think of oil or fat as being something that is used in small quantities as a medium for frying or sauteing or dressing salads, in the Mediterranean the flavor of olive oil is an integral part of the flavor of the finished dish. I've learned not to dismiss olive oil as a sidelight but rather to view it as one of the featured flavors of what I'm cooking.

BETTER-TASTING OIL IS WORTH THE MONEY
With that in mind I've learned that you can never compensate for lack of complexity and character in a lower-end oil simply by using more of it. (It's akin to eating five regular chocolate bars rather than enjoying one really well-made varietal chocolate. Volume just doesn't replace flavor.) So I really work to use the best oils I can -- you really can taste the difference.

THE MORE THE BETTER
Discovering these first two points has led me to a third discover, courtesy of some of the great cooks I've met from the Mediterranean who taught me the importance of using good quantities of good olive oil. This runs counter to our American tendency to use fat and anything costly (like good olive oil) as sparingly as possible. My Mediterranean role models taught me to do the opposite -- really pour on the olive oil so that its great flavor will enhance the flavor of the finished food.

EVERY REGION IS DIFFERENT
Like wine, every producing region (and actually every producer within each region) makes oil with a distinctive character. With that in mind I like to have a wide array of oils in my kitchen so that I can prepare all sorts of dishes and have the right flavor for each. At home I usually have a lot of olive oils on hand. At the least, though, I like to have a lighter oil from the Italian Riviera, a couple of really green, peppery oils either from Tuscany itself or made in the Tuscan style in one of the New World regions like California or New Zealand, a buttery oil from Provence, and maybe an interesting, modestly fruity oil made from Arbequina olives in Catalonia. Of course that's only a few of the many great oils that are out there -- I encourage everyone who loves to cook to taste and compare and choose for themselves.

SIMPLE DISHES MAKE GREAT SHOWCASES FOR OLIVE OIL
There are few better ways to eat than to simply enjoy a slice of toasted country bread topped with great olive oil and a little sea salt. It's a great showcase for a really great oil because the warmth of the bread brings out the aroma and flavor of the oil. Similarly, fine olive oil drizzled over simple broiled fish, just-cooked pasta, a great steak, or steamed new potatoes is a wonderful way to eat and to enjoy the rich complexity of the oil.

Next chapter