Olive Oil, Good or Bad, Internets Don't Know

[BarkingGhostar]

Was doing a little grocery shopping this past weekend and as an alternative to buying a bottle of salad dressing I thought about just using olive oil. Surprised by the number of products sitting on the shelf, but I picked one up and flipped it over for the nutritional information and was shocked when the bottle reported one tablespoon had 200 calories in it! So, I put it back and didn't buy anything as a dressing and then today I remembered all this and opened Google and searched on 'olive oil nutritional benefits' and then a couple of Google quick responses said exactly the opposite of each other--and leaving me rolling my eyes:



So, one of these sites is probably correct and the other is just the devil in disguise, right? Maybe I stick with eating a dry salad.

 

[RPD]

It's a healthy fat, of course it's going to have a high calorie density. Just don't over do it.

 

[mindless1]

Generally when I use olive oil (or whichever oil) for dressing, it's mixed with vinegar to taste, and potentially some water and thickener (like xanthan gum, if straight vinegar/mix is too strong), along with whatever else to flavor it , and usually a pinch of salt too.

The result is fewer calories per serving, and the vinegar or water allows the water soluble flavors from whatever else is added, to better mix in, or if the added ingredients are dehydrated, to rehydrate them first.

The problem with olive oil is when too much is consumed, but if you mix it as suggested above, then a tablespoon of 50/50% mix may only have ~7g fat or 63 calories, but with the vinegar and other flavors added, it takes a pretty big salad for me to want a whole tablespoon of dressing.

I cannot explain why the bottle you saw, read 200 calories for 1tbsp of olive oil, it should be closer to 120cal. per tbsp.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Get it, use wisely. Expeller or cold pressed.

 

[Torn Mind]

I remember reading something that pointed out that what gets sold as olive oil is quite a distance from actual olive oil.

The Best Olive Oils for Drizzling and Cooking

The best olive oils are as nuanced as a great bottle of wine. We tell you what makes for good oil, bad oil, and everything in between.

www.seriouseats.com

This is not the article I read, but it gives some idea on the label fraud.

The article I cannot remember where I read had the person actually go out into the fields and then when he tasted "real" olive oil, the taste triggered his memory of being in the field.

 

[BarkingGhostar]

It is amusing that while reading that article and following the links to Amazon and reading the reviews, a lot of buyers found the California product being written about were in fact scammered with olives from other countries. This would be 'whatever' but the fact that the article focused on oils made from 100% Califnornia olives just made me laugh.

 

[deadlyapp]

I've mostly exclusively switched to yogurt based salad dressings. Generally much more beneficial nutritional profile (for me) so I don't feel too bad using larger amounts when needed (I usually eat massive salads).

My most common salad dressing is a 50/50 mix of non-fat greek yogurt and salsa, with some ranch seasoning powder mixed in and sometimes some additional habanero extract if I need to spice it up more.

 

[mindless1]

^ I love salsa, and yogurt isn't too bad either, but together on a salad? Yuck, if it's leaf based instead of some bean avocado something something.

Who grew the olives for my oil or whether it's 100% olive oil or really extra virgin, I'm just not that picky about it as long as it tastes like olives or else there was no point.

 

[Torn Mind]

So I bought some Fillipo Berio oil. Big mistake.

Though this is might be first time sniffing and tasting so-called olive oil, what I got in my mouth and nose sure smelled like plain old vegetable oil with no sense of olives in the nose or tongue when pouring on lettuce. I just ingested some corporate inflammatory poison with a label of "EVOO".

Lucky Cretans and their special sauce.

 

[BarkingGhostar]

BTW, I ended up not putting anything on my greek salad. It is still very good and I eat them 3-4 days a week.

 

[Maxima1]

Yes, olive oil is healthier insofar it generally has high monounsaturated fat content relative to other fats BUT 99% of the benefit has nothing to do with the fat. They think it's the polyphenols that contribute to good outcomes. You want olive oil that's close to harvest date (polyphenols decline significantly within a year) and of a variety (generally but still varies a lot within variety and from season) that yields high in polyphenol count. That kind of makes it a crapshoot if they do not provide the amount, but it's not that difficult to get something that's at least 200-300 mg/kg. Generally good olive oils will be bitter and pungent if there is a high polyphenol count.

https://ucanr.edu/sites/SoCo/files/27747.pdf

https://ucanr.edu/sites/SoCo/files/27184.pdf

 

[Muse]

I've never seen olive oil badmouthed like that in the OP.

I have purchased and used no other oil for my cooking than olive oil for probably 20 years now. A few weeks ago I bought a bottle of cold pressed extra virgin, here's the note I made when I got home:

Kirkland various European locations origin Organic first press olive oil 2L 11.99 (the Italian only was 14.99, I figured why bother?)

On my salads for the last year plus I have spooned in about 2 teaspoons of thousand island dressing I make from mayo, Heinz catsup, and sweet pickle relish. I mix 16 oz of that concoction and keep it in a jar in the fridge. Still not tired of it and I eat a salad almost every day: all organics... Romaine lettuce, carrots, green pepper, raisins, home grown tomatoes, Jarlsberg cheese, a bit of salt and pepper... so delicious!

 

[BarkingGhostar]

I think you mean the badmouthing coming from what I posted, and not me. I was genuinely confused by the conflicting Google results and inquired. And while I thought I was moving into eating my Greek salads dry now I actually used from EV on Tuesday and might once again today.