Why use olive oil?

I understand how olive oil can be really expensive, especially those high grade first pressed kinds - i.e. Extra Virgin Olive Oil. But olive oil, in general, is actually healthier than any other oil in the market because of its high content of monosaturated fat. Science facts aside, olive oil is also a very flavorful oil. You only need a little bit and it'll go a long way.

I'm not saying that you should be deepfrying stuff with olive oil, that would indeed be a waste so a simple canola oil will do that job just fine too :) I'm talking about the daily cooking like frying an egg, stir fries, sauteing, you know stuff like that.

I have switched to cooking using olive only because, not only for reasons of health, it just adds a whole lot of wonderful flavor to any dish out there. You toss some salad with some olive oil, salt and pepper and you basically have a full bodied flavor going on there for your salad. And it's healthier than using all those fat laden, unhealthy salad dressing out there. Although, I am partial to ceasar salad dressing MmmhH! :)

My very own infused olive oil with garlic and chili flakes.

I make my own infused olive oil all the time. Right now on my pantry, I have infused olive oil with garlic and chili flakes. It gives any meal a little kick when u drizzle it on them... this garlic-chili flakes infused oil is awesome in salads, roasted beef, and seafood. It's pretty easy to make too.

Heat 1 cup of olive oil until it's sizzling hot, add 5 large cloves of garlic (roughly chopped) and 1 tablespoon of chiliflakes in. Turn off heat and let it sit to infuse. When it's cool, drain it into a oil canister with the garlic and chili or you can strain the chunks out. I'd just leave it there, really.

There are several grades of olive oil that you should know and they are:

• Extra-virgin olive oil comes from the first pressing of the olives, contains no more than 0.8% acidity, and is judged to have a superior taste. There can be no refined oil in extra-virgin olive oil.
• Virgin olive oil has an acidity less than 2%, and judged to have a good taste. There can be no refined oil in virgin olive oil.
• Olive oil is a blend of virgin oil and refined virgin oil, containing at most 1% acidity. It commonly lacks a strong flavor.
• Olive-pomace oil is a blend of refined pomace olive oil and possibly some virgin oil. It is fit for consumption, but it may not be called olive oil. Olive-pomace oil is rarely found in a grocery store; it is often used for certain kinds of cooking in restaurants.
• Lampante oil is olive oil not used for consumption; lampante comes from olive oil's ancient use as fuel in oil-burning lamps. Lampante oil is mostly used in the industrial market.

These grades are set by the International Olive Oil Council (IOOC).

I use Extra Virgin Olive because I love it's fruity and earthy flavors. It is the most expensive of all the grades but normal olive oil grade will do just fine too for normal cooking. It is still better than peanut oil, palm oil, or vegetable oil, if you ask me. You don't need a whole lot with Olive oil...it's not the quantity but the quality that counts here.

For me, I would rather spend the money to eat well than spend the money on medical bills. With cancer rates rising, we do need to take care of what we put into our body...olive oil is a good start, eating anti-oxidant filled fruits as well as lots of colorful veggies is another too. These ingredients are expensive but they're not as expensive as cancer treatments if you think about it.