Olive Oil
Extra-virgin olive oil is the beating heart of Mediterranean cooking — and of this kitchen. Buy it well, keep it in the dark, and use it generously.
Why I love it
If I could keep only one thing in my kitchen, this would be it. Good extra-virgin olive oil makes vegetables taste like more of themselves, turns three ingredients into a dressing, and finishes almost everything I cook — flavor and nourishment in the same pour, rich in monounsaturated fats and the polyphenol antioxidants that give a fresh oil its peppery bite.
Buying it
Look for extra-virgin, in dark glass or tin, with a harvest date — fresher is better, because olive oil doesn't improve with age. I wrote a whole guide: Choosing Olive Oil.
Storing it
Keep it in a cool, dark cupboard — not beside the stove, where heat and light turn it stale. Buy a size you'll finish within a couple of months, cap on tight.
Cooking with it
Use a good everyday extra-virgin for sautéing and roasting at moderate heat, and save a nicer bottle to drizzle raw over finished food, where its flavor really sings. More: Olive Oil & Heat.
A little nutrition
Mostly monounsaturated fat, with vitamin E and polyphenol antioxidants. A drizzle of real-food fat also helps you absorb the fat-soluble vitamins in your vegetables — one more reason not to be shy with it.
Keep two bottles: an everyday one for the pan, and a special one you only ever use raw, for finishing. Once you taste what a good finishing oil does to a simple salad, you won't go back.