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Oils and fats in foods provide a high proportion of the flavour in almost any dish, and when oils combine with other ingredients they develop their own distinct character. By using different oils for different purposes, you can enhance the taste and texture of your cooking and dressings.
What oil is best for what purpose?
Oils can be extracted from many different plants, seeds and nuts; this means that they not only posses a variety of tastes, but can differ greatly in colour and texture as well. Due to these varying properties, certain oils may be spectacular with a particular dish and disastrous with another. For example, if you dress a basil angel hair pasta with sesame oil before serving it with fresh tomatoes, parsley and garlic, the result would be a strange tasting dish. However, the dish would be delicious with the addition of extra virgin olive, or even smoky Camellia Tea oil.
Olive oils, like wines, vary in intensity and can be peppery, acidic and/or fruity. Some can be combined with strong flavours such as citrus and mustards. Oils such as Hazelnut, Walnut, Sesame and Mustard oil can often be blended with other oils and used in mayonnaises, dressings and sauces to achieve unusual flavours. Sesame, Camellia and Avocado oils can be blended with quite pungent and salty flavours. Some oils are perfect on their own. A beautiful lobster, shellfish, basil or tangerine oil are good examples.
