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The Olive Oil Hunter News #59

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

Olive Oil and Scrambled Eggs with Peppers and Feta Recipe, The Benefits of Olive Oil for Beauty and The Anti-Aging Benefits of Olive Oil

Olive oil has a rich history not only as a delicious food but also as an anti-aging, health and beauty booster, dating back thousands of years. Scientific research is just beginning to unravel exactly how its nutrients work to keep the cells in your body young—younger than your chronological age. Here’s what we know so far. Plus: my favorite breakfast to power up your day.

The Benefits of Olive Oil for Beauty

The Research: International Journal of Molecular Sciences: “Anti-Inflammatory and Skin Barrier Repair Effects of Topical Application of Some Plant Oils.” 

Molecules: “Natural Ingredients Common in the Trás-os-Montes Region (Portugal) for Use in the Cosmetic Industry: A Review about Chemical Composition and Antigenotoxic Properties.”

A recent article in Town & Country magazine highlighted how celebrities from Sophia Loren to Jennifer Lopez have tapped into olive oil as their go-to beauty enhancer. J.Lo has even created an olive oil-based skin care line. A report published in the journal Molecules on the healing power of certain plant oils offers a technical explanation of why olive oil works well in beauty formulas and why it may enhance your skin: “…olive oil provides a safe and stable emulsion delivery system. The antioxidant activity of olives makes them a candidate for moderating the effects of the aging process on the skin by limiting biochemical consequences of oxidation.” Simple translation: It seems to help guard against the ravages of the environment.

Another report, this one in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, offers more detail on olive oil’s wealth of nutrients: “More than 200 different chemical compounds have been detected in olive oil, including sterols, carotenoids, triterpenic alcohols, and phenolic compounds. Hydrophilic phenols are the most abundant antioxidants of olive oil. The phenolic contents have antioxidant properties higher than those of vitamin E. In fact, these phenolic compounds and their antioxidant activity exhibit anti-inflammatory properties when olive oil is included in regular diet. Unsurprisingly, olive oil has been used as a skin product and hair cosmetic for a long time in several cultures.”

Lab studies have found that olive oil has wound-healing properties, possibly because it helps ease inflammation and may stimulate skin reconstruction. But it’s important to say that, when it comes to the benefits of applying it to your skin, much fewer studies have been done compared to how it helps when part of our diet.

The Anti-Aging Benefits of Olive Oil 

The Research: Nutrients: “Dietary Polyphenol Intake Is Associated with Biological Aging, a Novel Predictor of Cardiovascular Disease: Cross-Sectional Findings from the Moli-Sani Study.”

Advances in Nutrition: “Plant-Rich Dietary Patterns, Plant Foods and Nutrients, and Telomere Length.”

Nutrients: “Virgin Olive Oil and Health: Summary of the III International Conference on Virgin Olive Oil and Health Consensus Report, JAEN (Spain) 2018.”

How olive oil might promote youthful skin isn’t as clear as how it promotes a youthful body. I’m fascinated by the science of biological aging vs. chronological aging, the idea that your diet and lifestyle can keep your body younger than your birthday would suggest. According to the first of two Nutrients studies that I’m sharing, that benefit of olive oil stems from its polyphenols, and the most effective way to get them is by following the Mediterranean diet. As the researchers wrote, “A Mediterranean diet is traditionally rich in foods that are major sources of polyphenols, naturally occurring bioactive compounds that are the most abundant antioxidants in the diet. Prior work showed that a healthy diet, such as a Mediterranean diet, is associated with decelerated biological aging. Our group recently reported evidence that subjects with high adherence to Mediterranean diet are on average almost 1 year biologically younger than their chronological age, as compared to those with low adherence.” 

They explained that “decelerated,” or slowed, biological aging is a “novel predictor of cardiovascular disease risk, possibly through mechanisms that go beyond their antioxidant activity. In addition to being powerful antioxidants, polyphenols also possess anti-inflammatory properties, and their role in the prevention and treatment of various diseases linked to oxidative stress or inflammation, such as cardiovascular disease, has been extensively reported. Also, polyphenol-rich diets are favorably associated with bone mineral density; in particular, high consumption of extra-virgin olive oil, a major source of polyphenols, leads to lower risk of osteoporosis-related fractures.”

How can polyphenols account for so many of the benefits of olive oil? According to research published in Advances in Nutrition, it could be their protective effect on telomeres. Those are the DNA sequences at the ends of our chromosomes—think of them as protective caps. “Telomere length is considered to be a biomarker of aging; shorter telomeres are associated with a decreased life expectancy and increased rates of developing age-related chronic diseases,” the authors wrote. “Telomere length decreases with age and varies considerably among individuals. Moreover, telomere attrition is accelerated by oxidative stress and inflammation. Studies suggest that telomere attrition is modifiable, as substantial variability exists in the rate of telomere shortening that is independent of chronological age…variability may be partially explained by lifestyle practices, including dietary patterns.”

Many foods of the Mediterranean diet have polyphenols and other healthful plant compounds, and this variety also makes it a delicious way of eating. Yet extra virgin olive oil is a real standout. When several experts convened in Jaen, Spain, in May 2018 to discuss the research on the benefits of olive oil and its components, they came to this fascinating conclusion, published in another report in Nutrients: “The preeminent features of the Mediterranean diet have been agreed upon and…the use of olive oil as the nearly exclusive dietary fat is what mostly characterizes the Mediterranean area. Plenty of epidemiological studies have correlated that the consumption of olive oil was associated with better overall health. Indeed, extra virgin olive oil contains (poly)phenolic compounds that are being actively investigated for their purported biological and pharma-nutritional properties…substantial evidence is accruing to support the widespread opinion that extra virgin olive oil should, indeed, be the fat of choice when it comes to human health and sustainable agronomy.” That’s the science of soil management and crop production, meaning choosing olive oil is good for the planet, too.

Olive Oil and Scrambled Eggs with Peppers and Feta

  • Olive Oil and Scrambled Eggs with Peppers and Feta Recipe Olive Oil Scrambled Eggs with Peppers and Feta

    My wife, Meghan, and I love to make breakfast when we’re not traveling on behalf of the Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club. Eggs scrambled with peppers is one of our favorite meals, and we’ll have it for brunch or even supper if the day has gotten away from us. Peppers and feta are delicious additions—experiment with various cheeses and veggies to make this dish your own.

    Ingredients

    • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
    • 1/2 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced
    • 1/2 green bell pepper (or hot pepper if you’re adventurous), stemmed, seeded, and diced 
    • 4 large eggs, beaten
    • Coarse kosher or sea salt
    • 2 ounces crumbled feta cheese
    • Freshly ground black pepper, for serving 

    Directions

    Step 1

    Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the peppers to the pan and sauté until tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low.

    Step 2

    Add a pinch of salt to the eggs, then pour into the skillet. Use a rubber spatula to move the eggs around, cooking them slowly until curds form. (Do not let the eggs brown.) Transfer the eggs to two plates. Top with the feta and drizzle with additional olive oil. 

    Yields 2 servings.

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The Olive Oil Hunter News #58

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

Pork Chops with Apple Balsamic Vinegar and Capers and Shrub Coolers Recipes, Spotlight on Apple Balsamic Vinegar, and Pairing Vinegar with Your Fresh-Pressed Olive Oils

Vinegar Essentials, Part II

The next vinegar I want to introduce you to is one you may never have heard of, much less experienced, but the bouquet and taste are exquisite: apple balsamic vinegar. Fruity yet with a richness reminiscent of a traditional balsamic, this vinegar is so versatile that it can star in an aperitif syrup called a shrub as well as in a main course. And I’ll also show you how to pair various vinegars with Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club offerings so you can to all the benefits of olive oil in even more delicious ways.

Pork Chops with Apple Balsamic and Capers

  • Pork chops with tomatoes and capers Pork Chops with Tomatoes and Capers

    This Mediterranean-style dish is cooked on the stovetop in a single pan and creates a rich, tomato sauce. 

    Ingredients

    • 1/4 cup white whole-wheat or all-purpose flour
    • 1 teaspoon each coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
    • 6 pork chops, each about 1/2-inch thick
    • 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
    • 4 garlic cloves, minced
    • 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
    • 1/3 cup chicken stock, homemade or low-sodium store-bought
    • 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes with its juice
    • 4 tablespoons capers

    Directions

    Step 1

    Combine the flour, salt, and pepper in a pie plate. Heat a frying pan large enough to hold the chops (if necessary, you can cook the chops in batches). Once the pan is hot, add the olive oil and quickly coat both sides of each chop in the flour mixture, shake off any excess, and add to the pan. Sauté 5 minutes on each side or until browned. 

    Step 2

    Transfer the chops to a dish. Add the garlic to the pan and sauté slightly, then deglaze the pan with the vinegar. Add the tomatoes along with their juice, the broth, and the capers, and briefly bring to a boil.

    Step 3

    Add back the chops, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook until the chops are cooked through and register 145°F on an instant-read thermometer, about 10 minutes more. 

    Yields 6 servings.

Shrub

  • Apple Balsamic Shrub Cooler Shrub

    Shrub is an old-fashioned sugar and vinegar syrup that’s having a renaissance. Enjoy it as a fabulous twist for Bellinis and mimosas. For a nonalcoholic alternative to lemonade and other coolers, pour two tablespoons over crushed ice in a tall glass and fill with seltzer. Add a jigger of gin to turn it into a variation of the classic Tom Collins.

    Ingredients

    For the shrub:

    • 8 ounces fresh fruit, such as blackberries or peach chunks
    • 1 cup sugar
    • 3/4 cup Gölles Apple Balsamic Vinegar

    For each aperitif:

    • 4–5 ounces sparkling wine, such as prosecco or champagne 
    • Berries or lime slice for garnish

    Directions

    Step 1

    To make the shrub, mash the fruit into the sugar in a glass measuring cup or bowl, cover, and put in the fridge overnight. The next day, mix in the vinegar and chill again for a few hours. Strain the mixture into a clean jar or small pitcher, pressing on the fruit to extract as much juice as possible. Taste and add more vinegar for tartness or more sugar for sweetness. Because the vinegar acts as a preservative, the shrub should last for weeks in the fridge.

    Step 2

    To make each aperitif, pour two tablespoons of the shrub into a champagne glass and top it off with sparkling wine. Garnish with berries or a lime slice. 

    Yields enough shrub for 4 to 6 drinks depending on the fruit.

Spotlight on Apple Balsamic Vinegar

Spotlight on Apple Balsamic Vinegar

A delicious modern-day creation

Much newer than most other vinegars, apple balsamic was invented just 27 years ago by Alois Gölles Jr. in Riegersburg, Austria. I’ve been a fan since I first tasted it in 2012, and it’s not hyperbole to say that Alois created a vinegar the likes of which the world had never seen.

Back in the late 1950s, his father, Alois Gölles Sr., switched from raising animals to being one of the first farmers in the area to cultivate apple trees and then black currants. Alois Jr., who runs the business today, literally grew up in the orchards. He initially created fruit wines, juices, and spirits, but had a revelation after a trip to Italy in the early ’80s, during which a cellar master told him about balsamic vinegar. “I then went to Modena, Italy, much like a tourist, to see the acetaias and learn about the process. I thought about doing something similar in Austria, but that was not possible because I wasn’t a wine grower, but an orchardist,” Alois said. “Since we were already working with apples and other fruits on wine and schnapps, it occurred to me to try a balsamic vinegar from apples.” 

He also had the foresight to use heirloom apples that had almost been forgotten. Varieties such as Maschansker, Ilzer Weinler, Rosenapfel, and Bohnapfel are sourced from just 30 or 40 small orchards in the region, some with just 10 to 20 apple trees, all chosen for their special characteristics. He also makes it a point to get every apple from each tree for a perfectly well-rounded taste. 

The fruit is first sorted and washed, then crushed and pressed into juice. Next, the juice is cooked in copper vessels for 24 hours to reduce it to a quarter of its original volume, which intensifies the flavors. The two-step fermentation process happens in big stainless-steel vats, after which the vinegar is moved into small oak barrels and aged for at least eight years, creating exceptional sweetness, a mild tartness, and a wonderfully strong aroma. I just love this unique Austrian artisanal vinegar!

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight: Enjoying apple balsamic vinegar

Food Pairings

Enjoying apple balsamic vinegar

This vinegar gives a delicious twist to classic salads like caprese with its mozzarella, tomato, and basil; spinach, blue cheese, and walnut; and fruit-based salads. Pair it with pork dishes, grilled fish, carpaccio, goat cheese, pâtés, and terrines. Just a few drops brighten savory dishes, especially oven-roasted root vegetables, as well as sweet panna cotta-type puddings and vanilla ice cream. Use it for deglazing and making a quick reduction—add some butter and you have an amazing sauce for steak. 

Fitness Flash: Pairing vinegar varieties with your fresh-pressed olive oils

Healthy Kitchen Nugget

Pairing vinegar varieties with your fresh-pressed olive oils 

While I don’t believe in any hard-and-fast rules, I do like using milder vinegars with milder oils so that one doesn’t overwhelm the other. If you’re using a fruitier mild olive oil from the Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club, pair it with apple balsamic. If you’re using a bold selection, go with a bold vinegar like red wine vinegar. Think about the foods on the plate, too. If you’re making a salad with bitter greens, add sweetness with a balsamic or sherry vinegar. If you’re making a chopped salad with provolone and salami, use red wine vinegar to balance the richness of the meat and cheese. I also like to combine vinegars for a vinaigrette with great complexity—use half balsamic for sweetness and half red wine vinegar for tartness along with your extra virgin olive oil. 

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The Olive Oil Hunter News #57

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

The Ultimate Thanksgiving Day Stuffing Recipe, Spotlight on Mushrooms, How to Shop for Sausage and the Healthy Benefits of The Great Outdoors

When it comes to Thanksgiving feasts, for me it’s all about the sides, starting with the stuffing! I’m sharing a stuffing recipe that can be a meal in itself—it makes the perfect lunch the day after, with or without leftover turkey. One of the ways you can customize stuffing is with mushrooms, so I’m giving you the lowdown on the tastiest varieties. Plus: Here’s why communing with nature is so good for you.

The Ultimate Thanksgiving Day Stuffing

  • The Ultimate Thanksgiving Day Stuffing Recipe The Ultimate Thanksgiving Day Stuffing

    The blend of sweet and hot sausage means a taste explosion in every bite. (Of course, if you prefer your stuffing to be on the milder side, you can use 2 pounds of sweet sausage only.) Though we still call it “stuffing,” the safest and tastiest way to bake it is in its own dish—you’ll get the crispy top that everyone loves over the greatest surface area too. 

    Ingredients

    • 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for the baking pan
    • 2 large onions, peeled and diced
    • 3 stalks celery, trimmed and sliced thin (leaves are OK)
    • 1 pound mushrooms, thickly sliced
    • 1 pound each, sweet and hot sausage
    • ½ cup pine nuts
    • ½ teaspoon dried thyme or the leaves of a sprig of fresh thyme
    • ½ cup sweet vermouth
    • 1 French baguette or crusty Italian bread, cut into small cubes
    • 3 to 4 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
    • 3 large eggs, beaten
    • 8 tablespoons salted butter, cut into half-inch cubes

    Directions

    Step 1

    Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil and then the onions and celery, sautéing the vegetables until soft. Push them to the outer rim of the pan, and sauté the mushrooms in batches to avoid crowding them. Next add the sausage, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks. Continue cooking the meat until no pink is visible. Add the pine nuts and thyme, and cook for another minute. Pour in the vermouth, stir, and cook for another minute or two, loosening any bits on the bottom of the pan.

    Step 2

    Place the bread cubes in a very large mixing bowl, and fold in the sausage and vegetable mixture. Moisten with the broth, adding one cup at a time—the mixture should be very wet but not runny. Fold in the eggs. 

    Step 3

    Grease a deep 13″ by 9″ baking pan with olive oil, and pour the stuffing mixture into the pan, leaving about 1″ clearance from the top—it will bubble up as it bakes. (Use two baking dishes if necessary.) Dot the surface of the stuffing with the butter cubes, and cover with foil, making a fairly tight seal. Bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes, taking the foil off for the last 15 minutes to brown the top, if needed. The stuffing will keep warm out of the oven with the foil back in place for up to an hour.

Healthy Kitchen Tip: How to Shop for Sausage

Healthy Kitchen Nugget

Shopping for sausage

I like to buy sausage meat that’s been spiced but not put into casings because it’s easier to sauté for stuffing or form into patties for breakfast sandwiches. Ask for it from the butcher at your favorite store if you don’t see it in the meat section. If links are the only option, squeeze the meat out of each sausage, working from the middle out to the two sides, and then discard the casings. 

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight: Flavorful fungi

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight

Flavorful fungi

White mushrooms, whether button or jumbo size and primed for filling and baking, are versatile and delicious, but there are other varieties that can enhance many dishes with their earthy flavors. 

Portobellomushrooms are large, dense, and highly flavorful—they can be the star of many meatless dishes. They’re great grilled, thanks to their toothsome, steak-like texture, and wonderful when sliced and sautéed for pasta dishes.

Crimini mushrooms are young portobellos—you might see them labeled “baby bellos.” Use them to elevate most any recipe that calls for white button mushrooms. These are great for my stuffing recipe.

Shiitake, oyster, and enoki mushrooms are uniquely shaped varieties, popular in many Asian dishes. You can often find dried shiitakes and can easily rehydrate them by soaking them in water; they are an essential in stir-fries. Enokis are more delicate than other varieties and are often used in broths.

Native to the US, hen-of-the-wood mushrooms grow in wide clusters with overlapping light brown and somewhat frilly-looking caps. 

Many French and Italian recipes feature wild mushrooms, such as golden chanterelles and brown-toned porcinis and morels, all prized as delicacies. Because they are often foraged, they can be quite expensive, but some are available dried, which makes them more affordable and gives them a longer shelf life.

For Your Best Health: Magic of mushrooms

For Your Best Health

The magic of mushrooms

Despite being very low in calories, mushrooms have a variety of nutrients as well as key antioxidant and anti-inflammatory substances such as polyphenols and carotenoids. According to experts at Harvard Health, these fungi also have a substance called ergosterol that can turn into vitamin D when exposed to UV light. Mushrooms grown in dark conditions have very little of the substance, but fresh wild mushrooms such as chanterelles and morels may develop up to 1,200 IUs of vitamin D in a 3.5-ounce (100-gram) serving. Button mushrooms that are exposed to sunlight can produce up to 400 IU (about two-thirds of the recommended daily amount), but some producers actually expose their mushrooms to light before packaging to increase their D content, so check labels. (There’s vitamin D in dried varieties as well.) Mushrooms also deliver some of the B vitamins and such minerals as copper, phosphorus, and selenium.

Fitness Flash: The great outdoors

Fitness Flash

The great outdoors

Leif Hass, MD, a family medicine doctor and hospitalist at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Oakland, California, and a clinical instructor with UCSF, wrote a wonderful post in Greater Good Magazine online, pointing out how science has finally caught up with what years of human experience have demonstrated—that being outside amid greenery is healing and that trees, like exercise, is free medicine. What’s more, we should take our cue from Japan, where forest bathing—spending time taking in awe-inspiring forests and allowing their sights, sounds, and smells to wash over you—is practiced by nearly a quarter of the people. Its proven benefits include lowering blood pressure, heart rate, and stress levels; improving mood and immune function; better sleep; and increased creativity. 

How much outdoor exposure is enough? Dr. Hass reported that researchers from Finland suggest a minimum of five hours every month to get lasting effects (being out on water or even in a city park can be healing too). He wrote that he often gives “nature prescriptions” to his patients: “For those with the resources, I prescribe breaks to a quiet cabin or tent for at least three days, once or twice a year. I also recommend house plants for home and office, microbreaks where you stop work to look out the window, or a couple short walks even if it is in an urban environment. If all else fails, there are always nature videos, which have been shown to have positive effects. A walk with a friend outside is a Greater Good ‘three-fer’: exercise, friendship, and nature all at once.” 

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The Olive Oil Hunter Newsletter #56

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

The Best BBQ Sauce and Red Wine Vinaigrette Recipes, Gastrique À L’Orange, Spotlight on Red Wine Vinegar

Ever since I introduced my fresh-pressed olive oils, I’ve been asked about the right vinegars to pair them with. I believe in having a full collection of vinegars, but red wine vinegar is a pantry essential—it’s amazingly versatile. And vinaigrettes are just the tip of the culinary iceberg when it comes to how many dishes red wine vinegar enhances. To show you what I mean, I’m sharing three very different recipes along with red wine vinegar’s intriguing history and why I went to Portugal to source it for my new collection of artisanal vinegars.

The Best BBQ Sauce

  • The Best BBQ Sauce The Best BBQ Sauce

    This sweet and tangy sauce is great on ribs as well as roast chicken—and it makes a terrific topping for your favorite style of burger!

    Ingredients

    • 3 cups ketchup
    • 2/3 cup dark brown sugar
    • 1/2 cup water
    • 1/3 cup red wine vinegar, such as Vinagre de Touriga Nacional
    • 6-ounce can tomato paste
    • 2 tablespoons powdered yellow mustard
    • 2 tablespoons ancho chili powder
    • 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
    • 1 teaspoon coarse salt
    • 1 teaspoon onion powder
    • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
    • 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated, or 1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger

    Directions

    Step 1

    Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and stir to mix.

    Step 2

    Bring to a boil, and then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

    Yields about 4 cups

Red Wine Vinaigrette

  • Red Wine Vinaigrette Red Wine Vinaigrette

    Simple and superb! This sweet and tangy sauce is great on ribs as well as roast chicken—and it makes a terrific topping for your favorite style of burger!

    Ingredients

    • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, such as Vinaigre de Banyuls
    • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
    • 1 teaspoon honey
    • 1/8 teaspoon coarse salt, plus more to taste
    • 1/2 small garlic clove, peeled and minced  
    • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
    • Freshly ground black pepper to taste

    Directions

    Step 1

    In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, honey, the 1/8 teaspoon of salt, and garlic.

    Step 2

    Gradually whisk in the olive oil until the dressing is emulsified. Season to taste with black pepper and more salt.

    Yields about 1/3 cup

Gastrique À L’Orange

  • French sweet-and-sour sauce Gastrique À l’Orange

    This quintessential French sweet-and-sour sauce is a wonderful way to dress duck and beef, especially when the meat is seared. The ingredients are simple: sugar, vinegar, and fruit juice or purée. Here is the classic gastrique recipe, but have fun experimenting with different combinations using this basic technique. 

    Ingredients

    • 1/2 cup white sugar
    • 1/2 cup red wine vinegar, such as Vinagre de Touriga Nacional
    • Juice of one orange

    Directions

    Step 1

    In a sauté pan over medium heat and without stirring, slowly heat the sugar until it caramelizes. Lower the heat and carefully whisk in the vinegar.

    Step 2

    Next, add the juice, whisking continuously (if the mixture hardens, the heat will melt it again). Continue cooking until the liquid reaches a syrupy consistency, but don’t let it get too thick or it will solidify—take it off the heat just before you think it’s done.

    Yields about a 1/4 cup, enough to sauce two portions of your chosen protein

Spotlight on Red Wine Vinegar

Spotlight on Red Wine Vinegar

The finest vinegar comes from the finest grapes

The history of red wine vinegar dates back to Roman times, but it was arguably the French who turned it into a culinary staple when, as legend has it, wine abandoned in the area of Orléans turned to vinegar on its own. The city became the de facto vinegar capital of France, and the Orléans method of barrel-aging was adopted around the world.

Of course, France doesn’t have a lock on making fine vinegar. I discovered the amazing Vinagre de Touriga Nacional offered in my Curated Culinary Collection of artisanal vinegars in Almendra, Portugal, at CARM, the Casa Agricola Roboredo Madeira (if you missed my email about the collection, just click on the link in the P.S. below!). Members of the Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil Club have come to know my dear friends Filipe Roboredo Madeira, his brother, António, and their father, Celso—now 88 and still going strong—and the story of how Celso made the delicious decision more than two decades ago to revive the centuries-old olive groves on their estate. This is also where the country’s oldest-noted wine region begins—the Demarcated Douro and Port Wine Region was recognized in 1756 and made a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2001—and the grapes grown here are legendary. The family’s vineyards are at an average altitude of about 1,000 feet with an eastward exposure. The confluence of geography and climate enables the production of grapes that create aromatic, fresh, and elegant wines.

To craft a vinegar worthy of his olive oil, Filipe decided to use only Touriga Nacional grapes, considered by many the finest of Portugal’s red wine grapes. Both red wine and red wine vinegar are made by fermenting red grapes, but vinegar requires an additional step, a second fermentation that turns the wine’s natural sugars into acetic acid. It’s a painstaking endeavor, with the typical aging process for red wine vinegar being two years. Of course, Filipe had other ideas—the vinegar that’s part of my collection of artisanal vinegars has been aged for 20 years!

Enjoying Red Wine Vinegar

Food Pairings

Enjoying Red Wine Vinegar

Many red wine vinegars are very concentrated, including my Vinagre de Touriga Nacional, so use it judiciously—add, taste, and then add more as desired. Use it in soups and stews, in beans with chorizo and rice, with fried fish, and in the cod dish bacalao; in wild green and vegetable salads and sautés; in antipasto salads and with grilled cheeses; and in herb-based sauces and marinades. It’s perfect for quick-pickling cucumbers and red onions and as a finishing touch for caramelized vegetables such as onions, potatoes, and beets, and for fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, and cod. 

Healthy Kitchen Nugget: Versatile vinegar

Healthy Kitchen Nugget

Versatile vinegar

Here are two of my favorite ways to cook with red wine vinegar:

Deglazing. Use vinegar instead of (or even in addition to) wine to deglaze a pan and turn the fond—those dark, flavorful bits that collect on the bottom of your pan—into a rich and quick sauce.

Marinating. Because vinegar is acidic, it helps break down and tenderize protein fibers for juicier grilled meat.

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