We use a lot of olive oil and the last time I was at Costco I noticed they carried a huge jug of “olive oil”. It was not extra virgin, but it was MUCH cheaper than the standard extra virgin olive oil that you see. So, I did some research and here is what I found on the differences in olive oils…
Extra Virgin Olive Oil. “Extra” is the highest grade for olive oil–the best you can buy. The virgin oil produced from the mechanical pressing described above may be called “extra” if it has less than 1% free oleic acid, and if it exhibits superior taste, color and aroma. Thus, the “extra” in extra virgin olive oil means “premium,” or simply, “the best.”
Olive Oil. Ordinary “olive oil” is actually a blended oil product. Olive oil producers start with low quality virgin olive oils. For these oils to be fit for consumption, they must be refined using mechanical, thermal and/or chemical processes. The resulting “refined olive oil” is largely colorless and tasteless. Before the resulting product is sold as “olive oil,” the producer blends into the refined olive oil a percentage of quality virgin olive oil to provide color and taste.“Light” or “Mild” Olive Oil. Light olive oil is a variation on ordinary olive oil. Producers of this product use a highly refined olive oil, and add less quality virgin oil than that typically used to blend olive oil. The only thing “light” about light olive oil is the taste and color; it has the same caloric and fat content as other oils.
So after reading this, I decided that to cook I will use regular inexpensive olive oil in the large 5 quart jugs.
For salad dressings, I will invest in a smaller bottle of the extra-virgin olive oil, for the taste.
Here is a breakdown of the cost differences by quantity at Costco:
- Kirkland’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 64 ozs. $13
- Kirkland’s Olive Oil, 5qt. (160 ozs.) $25
