The market · Fats and oils · Southern Europe, The Middle East
Olive oil
The pressed juice of olives, and a Mediterranean staple for millennia.
grassy · peppery
What to do with it
Rosa Ibarra's Clarified milk punch, mezcal and pineappleOlive oil would soften its edgeIbu Sari's Sambal ijoOlive oil would soften its edgeKenji Hara's Milk punch, with hojichaOlive oil would soften its edge
LevantineHummusChickpeas cooked very soft and blended with tahini, lemon, garlic and salt until silky.No one here has made it yet
LevantineTabboulehA salad of parsley — mostly parsley — with tomato, mint, spring onion and a little bulgur, dressed with lemon and olive oil.No one here has made it yet
LevantineMuhammaraA thick dip of roasted red peppers, walnuts, breadcrumbs and pomegranate molasses — smoky, sweet, sour and hot at once.No one here has made it yetLevantineFattoushA salad of crisp leaves, tomato, cucumber, radish and herbs with shards of toasted or fried flatbread, in a sharp dressing of lemon and sumac.No one here has made it yetLevantineManakishFlatbread spread with za'atar and olive oil and baked hot and fast — breakfast in Lebanon, folded and eaten on the move.No one here has made it yetLevantineMusakhanRoast chicken on taboon bread soaked in olive oil and heaped with onions cooked soft with sumac, scattered with pine nuts.No one here has made it yetPersianJoojeh kababPieces of chicken marinated in saffron, lemon and onion, grilled over charcoal and eaten with rice and a charred tomato.No one here has made it yetTurkishDolmaVegetables hollowed and filled, or vine leaves rolled, round rice with herbs and spices and sometimes meat.No one here has made it yetTurkishMenemenEggs stirred soft into green peppers and tomatoes stewed in butter or olive oil, eaten from the pan.No one here has made it yetTurkishİmam bayıldıWhole aubergines, split and fried, filled with onion, garlic and tomato and baked in olive oil until they collapse — eaten cool.No one here has made it yet
MoroccanChicken with preserved lemon and olivesChicken braised with onion, ginger, saffron and turmeric until the sauce is thick, finished with preserved lemon and green olives.No one here has made it yet
MoroccanZaaloukAubergine and tomato cooked down with garlic, cumin and paprika, mashed, and eaten warm or cold with bread.No one here has made it yetMoroccanTanjiaBeef or lamb packed into a tall clay urn with preserved lemon, garlic, cumin, saffron and smen, and cooked for hours in the embers.No one here has made it yetMoroccanFish tagine with charmoulaFish marinated in charmoula, laid over potatoes, tomatoes and peppers with preserved lemon and olives, and cooked slowly in the tagine.No one here has made it yetMoroccanBissaraDried broad beans cooked with garlic and puréed to a thick soup, finished with olive oil, cumin and paprika.No one here has made it yet
BasqueBacalao al pil-pilSalt cod poached in olive oil with garlic and chilli, then swirled until the oil and the cod's gelatine become a thick sauce.1 version hereBasquePiperradaPeppers, onion, tomato and garlic stewed slowly in olive oil until soft and sweet — eaten alone, with eggs, or beside meat and fish.No one here has made it yet
BasqueTortilla de bacalaoA soft omelette of salt cod, onion and green pepper — the first course at the Basque cider houses.No one here has made it yetBasqueBacalao a la vizcaínaSalt cod in a deep red sauce of dried choricero peppers and onions cooked slowly until sweet.No one here has made it yetCatalanSuquet de peixA fishermen's stew of white fish and potatoes in a saffron-tinted broth, thickened at the end with a picada of garlic, almonds and fried bread.No one here has made it yetCatalanCalçots amb romescoLong, sweet onion shoots charred black over a fierce fire, peeled with the fingers and dipped in romesco, a sauce of dried peppers, roasted tomato, garlic and nuts.No one here has made it yetCatalanBotifarra amb mongetesA fresh pork sausage, grilled or fried, with white beans warmed through in the same pan with garlic and parsley.No one here has made it yetValencianPaella valencianaRice cooked in a thin layer in a wide, shallow pan with chicken, rabbit, flat green beans, butter beans and saffron.No one here has made it yetValencianFideuàShort, thin noodles cooked like a paella in a wide pan, in a strong fish stock with prawns and squid, until they curl up and crisp on top.No one here has made it yetValencianArròs negreRice cooked in a wide pan with cuttlefish or squid and their ink, which turns it glossy black — served with allioli.No one here has made it yetValencianAll i pebreEels from the Albufera lagoon stewed with potatoes in a sauce of garlic, pimentón and chilli — the name means garlic and pepper.No one here has made it yetValencianArròs al fornRice baked in a wide earthenware dish with chickpeas, pork, blood sausage, potato and tomato, with a whole head of garlic in the middle.No one here has made it yetAndalusianPescaíto fritoSmall fish, squid and pieces of dogfish tossed in flour and fried fast in hot olive oil, eaten crisp with salt and lemon.No one here has made it yetAndalusianRabo de toroOxtail browned and stewed slowly in red wine with onions, peppers and carrots until the meat falls from the bone and the sauce turns thick and glossy.No one here has made it yetAndalusianEspinacas con garbanzosSpinach and chickpeas cooked with a pounded paste of fried bread, garlic, cumin and pimentón, sharpened with a splash of vinegar.No one here has made it yetAndalusianFlamenquínThin slices of pork loin rolled around jamón, breadcrumbed and fried into a long golden roll.No one here has made it yetGalicianEmpanada gallegaA large, flat pie of bread-like dough filled with onions and peppers stewed in olive oil and tuna, pork or shellfish, baked and cut into squares.No one here has made it yetGalicianPimientos de PadrónSmall green peppers fried whole in olive oil until blistered, then salted — most of them mild, now and then one hot.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridPatatas bravasChunks of fried potato with a hot, pimentón-red sauce — the bar tapa found all over Spain.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridTortilla de patatasA thick omelette of potatoes and, usually, onion, slowly poached in olive oil, then set with eggs and turned in the pan.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridSopa castellanaGarlic soup: stale bread and sliced garlic fried in olive oil with pimentón, simmered in broth, with an egg poached in each bowl.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridCallos a la madrileñaBeef tripe stewed slowly with chorizo, morcilla and jamón in a thick, sticky, pimentón-red sauce.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridBocadillo de calamaresRings of squid, floured and fried, packed into a crusty white roll — Madrid's cheap, much-loved sandwich.No one here has made it yetCastilian and MadridPisto manchegoOnions, peppers, courgettes and tomatoes cooked down slowly in olive oil into a soft, sweet stew, often with a fried egg on top.No one here has made it yetAsturianFabes con almejasLarge white Asturian beans cooked slowly and finished with clams, which open in the pot and season it with the sea.No one here has made it yetAsturianPixín fritoMonkfish — pixín in Asturian — cut into chunks, marinated with garlic and lemon, then floured, dipped in egg and fried.No one here has made it yet
ProvençalBouillabaisseMarseille's fish stew: bony rockfish boiled hard with olive oil, tomato, fennel and saffron, served with rouille and bread.No one here has made it yet
ProvençalRatatouilleAubergine, courgette, peppers, onion and tomato stewed slowly in olive oil with garlic and herbs.No one here has made it yet
ProvençalSoupe au pistouA summer soup of beans, green beans, courgette and pasta, with basil, garlic and olive oil pounded and stirred in at the end.No one here has made it yetProvençalAïoliGarlic pounded with salt and beaten with olive oil into a thick, pungent emulsion.No one here has made it yetProvençalSoccaA thin chickpea-flour pancake baked in a very hot oven in a wide copper pan, eaten hot with black pepper.No one here has made it yetProvençalPissaladièreA thick bread dough spread with onions cooked slowly to a sweet mass, criss-crossed with anchovies and dotted with black olives.No one here has made it yetProvençalDaube provençaleBeef marinated in red wine with garlic, herbs and orange peel, then braised for hours in a pot-bellied daubière until it gives to a spoon.No one here has made it yetProvençalGardiane de taureauBull's meat from the Camargue stewed slowly in red wine with onions, garlic and black olives, served with the delta's own rice.No one here has made it yetLyonnaisCervelle de canutFresh white cheese beaten with shallots, garlic, chives and parsley, a little oil and vinegar, eaten on bread.No one here has made it yetBretonHomard à l'armoricaineLobster cut up live, seared in its shell, flamed with cognac and simmered in white wine, tomato and shallots with a touch of cayenne.No one here has made it yetItalianCaponataFried aubergine with celery, onion, tomato, capers and olives, in a sweet-and-sour sauce of vinegar and sugar.No one here has made it yetItalianPizza napoletanaA soft round of long-risen dough, topped simply — tomato, mozzarella, basil, oil — and baked for about a minute in a wood-fired oven until blistered at the rim.No one here has made it yetItalianPesto alla genoveseBasil pounded with garlic, pine nuts, salt, parmesan and pecorino, loosened with olive oil and tossed raw through trofie or trenette.No one here has made it yetItalianPasta alla NormaPasta in a sauce of tomato, garlic and basil with fried aubergine, under a snow of grated ricotta salata.No one here has made it yetGreekMoussakaLayers of fried aubergine and minced lamb or beef in a cinnamon-scented tomato sauce, under a thick crust of béchamel, baked.No one here has made it yetGreekSpanakopitaSpinach and feta with spring onion and dill, baked in crisp layers of filo — as one big pie or small triangles.No one here has made it yetGreekSouvlakiSmall pieces of pork or chicken grilled on skewers, eaten from the stick or wrapped in pitta with tomato, onion, tzatziki and chips.No one here has made it yetGreekGemistaTomatoes and peppers hollowed out, filled with rice, herbs and their own pulp, and baked in olive oil with potatoes.No one here has made it yetGreekPastitsioLong tubes of pasta layered with a spiced meat sauce under thick béchamel, baked and cut in tall squares.No one here has made it yetGreekHoriatikiVillage salad: ripe tomato, cucumber, onion, green pepper and olives, with a slab of feta, oregano and plenty of olive oil — and no lettuce.No one here has made it yetGreekTzatzikiThick strained yoghurt with grated cucumber, garlic, olive oil and dill or mint — cold, sharp and made for grilled meat.No one here has made it yetGreekDakosA hard barley rusk softened with grated tomato and olive oil, heaped with soft white cheese, oregano and capers.No one here has made it yetMexicanPescado a la veracruzanaRed snapper baked or simmered in a sauce of tomato, onion and garlic with green olives, capers and pickled chillies.No one here has made it yetCreole and CajunMuffulettaA round Sicilian sesame loaf, split and stacked with cured meats, provolone and a chopped olive salad soaking into the bread.No one here has made it yetBrazilianChurrascoBeef and sausages on long skewers, roasted over embers with nothing but coarse salt and sliced straight onto the plate.No one here has made it yetKinds
- Extra virgin
- Unrefined, the most flavour.
- Virgin
- Unrefined, with small flaws.
- Refined / 'pure'
- Neutral, for high heat.
Goes with
Cooked with, here
How much, here
What cooks here have learned
“Let the oil cool further before emulsifying”Knowing it
- Where to buy
- Delis and good grocers. Look for a harvest date, not just a best-before.
- Worth knowing
- For pil pil, a mild, buttery Spanish oil emulsifies into a gentler sauce than a peppery one.
Kitchens that keep it in
Lebanon, Syria, Palestine and JordanLevantineThe cooking of the eastern Mediterranean: olive oil, lemon, tahini and herbs, eaten as a spread of small dishes to share.11 classicsTurkey — Anatolia and Thrace, between the Black Sea and the MediterraneanTurkishKebabs off the charcoal, yoghurt with nearly everything, vegetables slow-cooked in olive oil and pastry rolled thin as paper — the cooking of Anatolia and the Ottoman table.10 classicsMoroccoMoroccanSlow tagines, steamed couscous and sweet-savoury pastries, scented with warm spice, preserved lemon and handfuls of fresh herbs.11 classicsEuskadi — northern Spain and south-western FranceBasqueA coastal and mountain cooking built on salt cod, peppers and olive oil — and on sauces made from nothing but the fish and the pan.9 classics · 1 cooked hereCatalonia — north-eastern Spain, from the Pyrenees to the Ebro deltaCatalanA Mediterranean kitchen of sauces — a slow sofregit to begin, a pounded picada to finish — with bread rubbed with tomato, vegetables charred in the embers, and sea and mountain on the same plate.7 classicsThe Valencian Community — Spain's eastern coast, from Castellón to AlicanteValencianRice country: rice cooked dry in wide pans, soupy in pots and baked in the oven, beside the oranges, almonds, tiger nuts and turrón of Spain's orchard coast.7 classicsAndalucía — the south of Spain, from the Atlantic at Cádiz to the Mediterranean at AlmeríaAndalusianThe hot south: cold soups pounded from bread, oil and garlic, fish fried crisp in olive oil, sherry from Jerez, and a little something to eat with every drink.7 classicsGalicia — Spain's green, rainy north-west corner, on the Atlantic above PortugalGalicianSpain's great seafood coast — octopus, mussels, scallops and barnacles — with a green, rainy inland of pork, turnip tops, soft cows' milk cheeses and pies baked to share.6 classicsCastile and Madrid — the high central plateau of Spain, the mesetaCastilian and MadridThe kitchen of the high, dry meseta: suckling pig and lamb roasted in wood-fired ovens, chickpeas and garlic soups for hard winters, and a capital that eats out, late and standing up.10 classicsProvence — south-eastern France, from the Rhône to NiceProvençalOlive oil, garlic and the herbs of the dry hills, with tomatoes, fish from the Mediterranean and sauces pounded in a mortar.10 classicsItalyItalianNot one cuisine but twenty regional ones, united by a respect for a few very good ingredients and the argument about how each dish is 'really' made.11 classicsGreece — the mainland and islands of the Aegean and Ionian SeasGreekOlive oil poured freely, lemon and oregano, wild greens and sheep's cheese, and fish grilled by the sea — food for sharing, slowly, outdoors.10 classics