Martha Stewart Needs You To Double Down On Your Olive Oil Options

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If you want to be fully prepared with olive oil in the kitchen, you know Martha Stewart is the person to turn to. The legendary personality and author isn't just known for her taste and style, she's known as the consummate host, which means being perfectly prepared with everything you need to make the best recipes possible at the drop of a hat. And olive oil is one of the most essential items in your pantry. Used for cooking, making things like salad dressing, dipping, and drizzling over everything from fresh vegetables to roasted meat, there is probably no other kitchen staple besides salt that will get as much use from a home cook. And those wide variety of uses are exactly why Stewart knows you need choices when it comes to olive oil.

Answering questions for Deseret News, Stewart says you'll ideally need at least two bottles of olive oil in your kitchen. Why? Because affordable and more expensive extra virgin olive oils are best used in different applications. As she explains it, "an inexpensive one for cooking and a premium one for dishes that will showcase its nuanced flavor and aroma." Because olive oil loses some of its flavor when cooked, there is no reason to be using a pricey and complex olive oil when sautéing or baking. But when drizzled, you can taste every note, and the depth of fancier olive oil will really shine, while cheaper extra virgin olive oils will fall flat.

When stocking your more affordable olive oils for cooking, you may have heard that extra virgin olive oil isn't great for things like searing and sautéing, and that is partially true. Extra virgin olive oils do tend to have lower smoke points, which means they can turn bitter if cooked at too high a heat. However, more affordable supermarket extra virgin olive oils are often filtered, which gives them a higher smoke point, making them fine for most cooking uses. Some brands like Graza olive oil specifically have options aimed at cooking, and most solid grocery options like Bertolli or California Olive Ranch will also work well as an affordable cooking option.

When it comes to the condiment side of olive oil, dipping and drizzling, it's best to go with a slightly higher-end brand. Olive oils that are good for dipping bread are a great start because breads really showcase their flavor. But olive oil can have all kinds of tasting notes depending on the brand, being more buttery, or grassy, or nutty depending on their origins. Beyond picking a good brand, the most important thing for nicer olive oil is finding a bottle that's fresh, which means checking the harvest date on the bottle and finding one that was ideally picked less than 18 months ago. As long as you follow that rule, you'll have plenty of tasty options available.