Tidbit #31 - April 29, 2011

Mmm... If I ever had to cook my food with one oil and only one oil, I would choose olive oil. Olive oil circulated around the ancient Greeks' society; historians say that some Greeks even bathed in olive oil to cleanse themselves. Popeye loved Olive Oyl, too, since she was his girl. Now, I wouldn't bathe in olive oil (or go out with it), but I still wonder whenever I add olive oil into whatever I'm cooking:


Question: Why is it called "extra virgin" olive oil?


Answer: Well, Yahoo! Answers gives us a nice, short, to-the-point explanation:

Extra Virgin olive oil is the oil that comes from the very first pressing of the olives- it has the least impurities and the least amount of processing- no heat or other methods besides pressing was involved in obtaining the oil. (Re: Yahoo! Answers question)

Well, it looks like we've got a short tidbit today! Here's your condensed answer:


Extra virgin olive oil is so named because only absolutely fresh olives are pressed -- without impurities, like a virgin.


They probably add the "extra" in there just for good measure.