Anyone here an expert on olive oil?

[PH4555]

I'm looking for make my own tuna steaks in olive oil since Sainsburys have stopped doing their own tinned version. Unfortunately there was no indication of which olive oil they used but it was mild enough to be able to mash the tuna up in it and eat the entire contents with some salad.

I tried to recreate it with some drained tuna in brine and filippo berio extra virgin olive oil which I had in the cupboard, but the olive oil is far too harsh for this, quite acidic in taste and just didn't work.

Can anyone give me some pointers on a more suitable olive oil for this project please?

[Hashtaggggg]

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/237725/olive-oil...

[TX1]

I used to get them also and they just vanished from the shelves a couple of months ago, since have been buying the M&S ones which I found to be similar however more expensive and slightly larger.
Saying that if not mistaken I am pretty sure they were back in stock last week in single tins at Sainsbury.

Edited by TX1 on Monday 26th April 12:11

[omniflow]

PH4555 said:

I'm looking for make my own tuna steaks in olive oil since Sainsburys have stopped doing their own tinned version. Unfortunately there was no indication of which olive oil they used but it was mild enough to be able to mash the tuna up in it and eat the entire contents with some salad.

I tried to recreate it with some drained tuna in brine and filippo berio extra virgin olive oil which I had in the cupboard, but the olive oil is far too harsh for this, quite acidic in taste and just didn't work.

Can anyone give me some pointers on a more suitable olive oil for this project please?

Have you tried the "Taste the Difference" Ventresca Tuna Fillets in Olive Oil. They are so nice. A little bit on the expensive side, but so worth it. They have a much softer texture than standard tuna and a lovely mild flavour.

[craigjm]

Your mistake is using extra virgin olive oil. The product will have most likely be made using refined olive oil which is what you get left over after the extra and virgin presses and it’s usually blended. The cheap oils you see in the supermarket labelled as just “olive oil” will be refined oils

[PH4555]

Thanks all.

Yes, I've seen the TTD ones (not seen the standard ones back as singles yet) but the price is over double what the 4 pack ones were, which is a big increase in the shopping bill given how much of them I eat. I know Waitrose do a multi-pack of tuna in olive oil, think it is 4 tins for £6, which is still expensive compared to what Sainsburys sold theirs for, but I don't have a Waitrose close by.

Craig : this is very useful to know. Any recommendations for which one to get the same taste or are they are much of a muchness?

I'm looking for see if I can buy catering size tins of tuna and make it in bulk to save on the silly costs of buying individual tins which keep getting smaller and smaller in size .

[craigjm]

PH4555 said:

Craig : this is very useful to know. Any recommendations for which one to get the same taste or are they are much of a muchness?

Just buy the cheapest crap you possibly can like tesco value or Asda smart price or whatever. If it’s over 50p for a half litre then it’s too expensive it’s basically the waste product but it looks like olive oil, behaves like olive oil but has no taste

[paul0843]

Was told by an olive oil trader that unless it was virgin olive oil,then olive oil content was only 20%.

[craigjm]

paul0843 said:

Was told by an olive oil trader that unless it was virgin olive oil,then olive oil content was only 20%.

I think you are confusing yourself. Extra Virgin and virgin olive oils are 100% what they say they are. All other olive oil is still 100% olive oil but they are they are blends of refined oil and, where some flavour is wanted, an element of virgin or extra virgin oil. The level of virgin in the blend can vary from 5-25% and I suspect that is what he meant.

[PH4555]

craigjm said:

Just buy the cheapest crap you possibly can like tesco value or Asda smart price or whatever. If it’s over 50p for a half litre then it’s too expensive it’s basically the waste product but it looks like olive oil, behaves like olive oil but has no taste

Just trying it now Craig. Got Asda's own brand. Turned out not too bad, but it's quite bland and "cooking oily" in taste. Any suggestions for something with a slightly nicer taste without going full bore acidic taste from the extra virgin oil?

[sherman]

PH4555 said:

craigjm said:

Just buy the cheapest crap you possibly can like tesco value or Asda smart price or whatever. If it’s over 50p for a half litre then it’s too expensive it’s basically the waste product but it looks like olive oil, behaves like olive oil but has no taste

Just trying it now Craig. Got Asda's own brand. Turned out not too bad, but it's quite bland and "cooking oily" in taste. Any suggestions for something with a slightly nicer taste without going full bore acidic taste from the extra virgin oil?

Add a dash of extra virgin olive oil to the mix or some other flavouring you like?

[craigjm]

sherman said:

PH4555 said:

craigjm said:

Just buy the cheapest crap you possibly can like tesco value or Asda smart price or whatever. If it’s over 50p for a half litre then it’s too expensive it’s basically the waste product but it looks like olive oil, behaves like olive oil but has no taste

Just trying it now Craig. Got Asda's own brand. Turned out not too bad, but it's quite bland and "cooking oily" in taste. Any suggestions for something with a slightly nicer taste without going full bore acidic taste from the extra virgin oil?

Add a dash of extra virgin olive oil to the mix or some other flavouring you like?

Yeah this. Take your extra virgin you used and mix them together upping the ratio of EV until you get it right.

[PH4555]

omniflow said:

Have you tried the "Taste the Difference" Ventresca Tuna Fillets in Olive Oil. They are so nice. A little bit on the expensive side, but so worth it. They have a much softer texture than standard tuna and a lovely mild flavour.

Omni, I wasn't able to find those, but found the tinned albacore tuna in extra virgin olive oil for £1.55/tin and really enjoyed that.

Back to Craig, do you know what extra virgin olive oil they'll be using in that as the taste was spot on. It isn't "acidic" like the filippo berio. Is there a way to find out which oil without buying the trying them all? Does an olive oil ranking thing exist like you get for wines?

[craigjm]

The word acidic is probably the wrong word. The free acidity of oil is measured and the lower the acidity the more “virgin” it is. You can’t taste that acidity though. What you are referring to is the flavonoids that come from the olive itself. The more ripe the olives used then the less of that flavonoid you get and thus a smoother oil. Olive oil is like wine in that it can be made from a single olive type or a blend and olives at different ripeness stages. So just like people like different wines you will like different olive oils. You need to go down here that fills the bottles like an oil and vinegar type place and do some tasting. The brand you mention though, whilst well known and somehow seem as premium in the U.K. isn’t great

[sherman]

Heres some good olive oils from a very good italian deli in Edinburgh that I frequent. They will be better than anything you can buy in a supermarket.

https://www.valvonacrolla.co.uk/store-cupboard/ext...

[craigjm]

sherman said:

Heres some good olive oils from a very good italian deli in Edinburgh that I frequent. They will be better than anything you can buy in a supermarket.

https://www.valvonacrolla.co.uk/store-cupboard/ext...

You can get some very good stuff in the supermarket especially in the finest and taste the difference types. Most of the oil used for the flavour infused oils is rubbish regardless of what bottle it’s in. Just like wine there are some really good cheap ones and utter tosh at huge prices.

If one doesn’t like a certain oil then the solution is to try something else from a different variety or country just like wine until you find what you like. Don’t be fooled by labels