How Do I Pair EVOO with Food?
Like pairing an excellent wine with food, there needs to be harmony and balance in pairing specific foods with extra virgin olive oils.
Luckily, EVOO is much easier to pair with food than wine. The easiest method to pair EVOO with food is to match an oil's intensity (categorized as mild, medium, or robust) with the strength of the main ingredient. For instance, kale would overwhelm a mild EVOO; however, a mild EVOO would be the perfect pair to drizzle over mozzarella cheese. Check out our blog for culinary ideas for you to craft an at-home, seasonal EVOO tasting experience.
Mild EVOOs can be buttery or slightly floral and fruity, making these oils ideal for; fresh cheeses, lean white fish or shellfish, tender-less bitter lettuces, desserts & baking, eggs, raw-crisp vegetables, fresh herbs, baby food and homemade mayonnaise.
Our Favorite Mild Intensity Olive Oils:
Our Award Wining Chef's Selection Arbequina is the perfect everyday EVOO for a professional chef or the home cook alike. This oil pairs nicely with a variety of foods thanks to its love bitterness and pungency.
Our early-harvest Hojiblanca is balanced with slightly more pungency than bitterness and very high fruitiness. The flavor is floral, nutty, and buttery, with hints of fresh artichoke, green apple, almond, green banana, mint, cinnamon, and black pepper.
Medium EVOOs are fruity and nutty with pops of pepper. These oils are ideal for; meats, poultry, and cooked veggies. Use these for bread dipping, fresh pasta, more robust cheeses, pizza, and fattier fish such as salmon and tuna.
Our Favorite Medium Intensity Olive Oils:
Our Family Reserve Picual is a beautiful medium intensity, balanced EVOO with fruity aromas of green almond, fresh fig, tomato plant, banana peel, and nettle. This mostly fruity and pungent, less bitter oil is alive with green herbaceous notes, mint, black pepper, and sweet sensations of green apple. Absolutely world-class and spectacular.
This Portuguese Cobrancosa extra virgin olive oil is primarily fruity and floral with medium intensity notes of green leaf, artichoke, and herbs. There are exotic fruit flavors, green pepper with an almondy and very mild bitterness.
Robust EVOOs are intense, often bitter, bold, and assertive, with notes of spice, grass, pepper, and green herbs. Robust EVOOs are ideal for red meats, grilled meats, steaks and chops, marinades, bitter greens, spicy stews, and meaty pasta sauces.
Our Favorite Robust Intensity Olive Oils:
This robust Coratina EVOO will liven up any food with its perfect balance of high fruitiness, medium bitterness, and strong pungency. Typical of the variety, it has very little ripe fruit flavor, but many green, spicy, herbaceous characteristics such as fresh-cut grass, green apple, green banana, mint, sage, cinnamon, and black pepper.
This robust and powerful Peranzana bursts with super bright herbal and minty aromas and flavors. Its spicy and herbaceous notes are complementary to some mild ripe fruit flavors. This oil is primarily green fruit-forward with unmistakable flavors and aromas of cinnamon, grass, nettle, green apple, mint, and black pepper.
Let's have some healthy fun with an Extra Virgin Olive Oil tasting at home!
Craft your own at-home, seasonal EVOO tasting experience. We assembled some of our favorite fruits, veggies, cheeses, bread, charcuterie, and spice blends for a fantastic at-home culinary experience.
1. Mild Intensity EVOO Pairings:
Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Snap Peas, Carrots, Melons, Berries, Fresh Mozzarella, Ricotta, Baguettes & Ciabatta.
Seasoning Blends: Tuscan Herb & Parmesan
2. Medium Intensity EVOO Pairings:
Bell Peppers, Asparagus, Celery, Cauliflower, Artichokes, Avocado, Manchego cheese, Young Gouda, Focaccia & French Bread.
Seasoning Blends: Garlic Bread & Chimichurri
3. Robust Intensity EVOO Pairings:
Radish, Endive, Broccoli, Broccoli Rabe, Brussel Sprouts, Scallions, Smoked Summer Sausages, Funky Bleu Cheeses, Parmesan, Pecorino, Cheddar, Sour Dough & Pumpernickel
Seasoning Blends: Sicilian & Pepe e Aglio
