You can add extra flavor to olive oil by steeping herbs in it.
Olive oil is like wine; what one person loves, another hates. Olive oil is also like wine in that it can be ridiculously expensive. Fortunately, you don't have to pay top dollar for quality olive oil. While there is no one "best" brand, your local supermarket most likely carries the best olive oil for you, whether you like a mild oil, a buttery one, or one with some bite. Add this to my Recipe Box.
Best Mild Olive Oil
If you like olive oil with a light, mild flavor, you might consider Carpelli Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Available nation-wide, Good Housekeeping magazine reports this oil has a mild flavor with just a hint of "grassiness"--a term foodies use to describe flavors that combine the sensation you'd get from biting into an orange peel with the aroma of a freshly-mowed lawn. That may not sound appetizing, but in small amounts, "grassy" flavors enhance the taste of olive oils just as an olive enhances a martini.
Best Buttery Olive Oil
If you like your olive oil to taste rich rather than sharp, you might consider Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The July 2008 issue of Cooks Illustrated magazine describes this oil as having a round, buttery flavor, reminiscent--as the name implies--of the richness of good European butter. Cooks tasters also mentioned being able to taste and smell the olives without being overwhelmed by any unpleasant sharpness or harshness.
Best Strong Olive Oil
If you like your olive oil to stand up and declare its presence, Whole Foods 365 Extra Virgin Olive Oil is the oil for you. Good Housekeeping tasters described this oil as "robust," and very "peppery." Peppery oils let you know they're there. When you swallow them, you'll feel a slight and not unpleasant burning sensation at the back of your throat. Good Housekeeping reported Whole Foods 365 had an expensive olive oil taste without the corresponding sticker shock.
Using Olive Oil
When you're buying olive oil, it's important to consider how you'll use it. According to cookbook author Alton Brown, extra virgin olive oils are processed so as to expose them to the least possible amount of heat. Processors try to avoid heat because, reports Brown, the flavorful compounds present in olive oil are heat-sensitive. Brown recommends using bottom-shelf regular olive oil, not expensive extra virgin, for cooking. Otherwise, you'll be sending your money up in smoke.
Tags: Olive like, Extra Virgin Olive, Good Housekeeping, Extra Virgin, like wine