With oil, as with wine, you can determine how a particular product relates to different types of food. From an organoleptic standpoint, extra virgin olive oils are classified in terms of their fruitiness, which can be Intense, Medium or Mild. These are distinctions that affect the final result of any dish, whether you are using the oil raw or cooked.
We would like to give some general advice, indicating the best way that extra virgin olive oil can be combined with different foods, depending on the intensity of its fruitiness.
These are just guidelines, because it is fun to experiment with various combinations in company, comparing different points of view and different tastes. Indeed, this is one of the attractive aspects of introducing extra-virgin olive oil to your table.

One piece of advice, however: although we can look for either harmony or contrast when combining food and wine, we generally only wish for harmony between food and olive oil.

  • MILD FRUITINESS
  • Sweet oils, with a subtle, delicate scent: these are ideal with boiled and fried fish, salads with delicate ingredients, mayonnaise, or vegetables with vinaigrette.
  • MEDIUM FRUITINESS
  • These fresh, fragrant and tasty oils are at their best with vegetable soups, grilled fish, meat with tomato sauce, fried and sautéed white meat, creamed beans, boiled vegetables (spinach and zucchini), grilled aubergines, raw fennel, boiled chickpeas, wild salad, green beans and asparagus with vinaigrette.
  • INTENSE FRUITINESS
  • combined with different foods, depending on the intensity of its fruitiness.
    These are just guidelines, because it is fun to experiment with various combinations in company, comparing different points of view and different tastes. Indeed, this is one of the attractive aspects of introducing extra virgin olive oil to your table.

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