On 11/12/2012 3:28 AM, DavidW wrote:
> Hello,
>
> This is more of a local question, but the aus.food group looks quite dead.
>
> In a masterclass on the TV show Masterchef chef Matt Moran said that a lot of
> chefs say that they only cook with extra virgin olive oil, but he says that's
> silly because the extra virgin quality of the oil is lost when it's heated, for
> frying say.
>
> In Australia we are told that European countries dump their lowest quality oil
> here because we don't have strict enough labelling standards, so it's safest to
> use only Australian olive oil, which is good quality. However, in the big
> supermarkets I can see no Australian olive oil that's not extra virgin, and
> therefore I assume not suitable for cooking. So, what olive oil to cook with?
>
>
Depends where you're living. You will only see EV on the shelves
because they're trying to keep brand price up for one thing and
second shelf space is not given over to bulky low value items.

What you'll find in oil producing areas e.g. the SW of WA on the Capes
is producers who bottle and sell their high quality stuff for outrageous
prices (so you don't have to buy it if you don't want to) but will also
sell their seconds etc in bulk, often in plastic jugs for quite cheap
prices. As I said, depends on how close you are to where this is
because 2nd and on pressings don't return a lot in low output groves
You need things on an industrial scale to get the returns needed.
I'm in Tunisia at the moment and you can buy local oil for .60c
per litre in plastic bottles. They do OO on a massive scale here
and have done for 3,000 years.