Finishing dishes with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil elevates flavor, aroma, and mouthfeel across a wide range of foods. Pastas, soups, lentil stews, sandwiches, cold meats, vegetables, proteins, and salads gain brightness and richness when lightly finished with high-quality olive oil. A small trail or quick glug of luxurious extra virgin olive oil can transform subpar frozen pizza, popcorn toppings, and simple sandwiches. Chefs, recipe developers, and experienced home cooks commonly use finishing oil to raise a dish's stakes. A finishing drizzle pairs well with a splash of vinegar on stews or a sprinkle of salt and pepper on cold plates.
And in all of my reading (and subsequent cooking), there's one simple instruction that immediately endears me to a recipe. One simple directive that convinces me to trust the mind behind the text, because it's a step that truly makes a world of difference. It's so easy. A quick trick that augments any dish; it's the food hack to end all food hacks: a drizzle of olive oil.
Just a couple weeks ago, I watched a deli worker at Molinari in San Francisco drizzle a little bit of oil from a container of sun-dried tomatoes onto my focaccia sandwich. Genius. At one of my favorite restaurants in Detroit, I was recently served a cold plate of Parisian ham that's finished with salt, pepper, and yep, you guessed it, a little shower of olive oil.
Chefs, recipe developers, and savvy home cooks all understand the power of a little drizzle of oil, and it's time for everyone else to wise up at home. Extra virgin olive oil raises the stakes on everything it touches. Subpar frozen pizza? Add a little olive oil. Need a nonbutter yet buttery popcorn topping? Olive oil. Shoot, I reckon a Crunchwrap Supreme from Taco Bell would be vastly improved from a little bit of the stuff.
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