Aceite de Oliva (Olive oil)
Probably the most loved product in Spain (alongside Jamon) is Olive oil. In most of the food you eat here in Spain you will find the familiar flavor of olive oil either as a main component or hiding in the background. I have to admit I have tasted some extremely good olive oils all over the world but Spain pretty much comes out on top, the flavors are so special and unique that you cant help but love them.
Spend enough time here and you will also start to use olive oil with just about everything and I mean Everything (I have lived here 1 month short of a year and I now use a lot). But of course there is a huge difference between the type of olives it comes from and the region, and as a general rule of thumb “Pay peanuts and you get monkeys” you need to spend a decent amount of money to get a real special one.
The Chef I moved to Spain for is Paco Roncero, he is known as the Specialist when it comes to working with Olive oil. Paco is currently producing a book on texturizing olive oil using Avant Garde Techniques, I will write a post when it becomes available (Definitely worth the wait). I joined the search of new techniques with Paco a year ago, the techniques he has using olive oil as a main flavor include; Olive oil Jelly candies, frozen chocolate lolly-pops with powdered olive oil, Tomato and olive oil Spheres, olive oil lobster Soup, Olive oil pasta, Olive oil melting Parmesan cheese, plus many many more.
I am a Canadian living in Catalunya, and produce olive oil from the Arbequina olive, delicate, luscious oil…. I wanted to tell you what my father said about olive oil, which is really funny. He said “Everyone knows the best Italian olive oil comes from Spain”. Funny but true, we see the tankers leaving the co-ops full of our oil. Spain doesn´t do very well with marketing, Italy does. If Spain could market one of it´s number one product, WOW. Olive oil, unlike wine, is a necessity not a luxury, and if you use it, use the best, it goes a long way.