What is extra-virgin olive oil?
What is extra-virgin olive oil?
Extra-virgin olive oil is the precious unrefined first result of cold-pressing olives to make a fruity liquid that contains less than one percent acid.
Extra-virgin olive oil is the most expensive olive oil variety, and it is best appreciated in salads or as a garnish to give preparations a final flourish. If you are using olive oil to cook, it's fine to use regular olive oil.
Greece is the #1 consumer of olive oil in the world and also the leading producer of extra virgin olive oils, which account for 82 percent of their olive oil production. The U.S. is not a member of the International Olive Oil Council (IOOC), which regulates olive oil standards worldwide, and the IOOC does not recognize the U.S. standards for extra-virgin oil.
There is much controversy in the olive oil world, with accusations of corruption and adulteration smearing consumer confidence and shedding doubt on the purity of so-called virgin olive oil.
A canapé is just a French catch-all name for small and pretty finger foods, ideally served with drinks before a meal or at a cocktail party, and able to be swallowed in less than two bites.
Technically, a canapé is composed of a bread, puffed pastry (as in the vol-au-vent) or pancake (as in blini) base, with some kind of spread (butter, sour cream, tarama, flavored cream cheese, you name it), a main ingredient, and a little garnish such as herb sprigs, caviar, or truffles.
A canapé is usually salty, made from puffed pastry or thinly sliced white bread cut into decorative shapes and then topped with a spread that is often piped on using a pastry bag for maximum glamour before being garnished.
The word sauté actually comes from the French sauter, “to jump”. The jumping describes the constant motion of the food in the pan, which is caused by constant stirring and/or shaking the pan.
Sautéing usually requires only a small amount of oil (or butter) in a very hot pan, an environment in which keeping things moving is a top priority. (James Beard called sautéing a "fast, deft procedure.")
Though it's possible to sauté in just about any type of pan, the true sauté pan is wide and usually a couple of inches deep, with straight sides. Sauté pans are made pretty large to prevent the food from overcrowding, which can lead to too much moisture staying in the pan. If there is too much food in the pan, the moisture released will start to create steam, which interacts with the oil and leads to sticking.
