Infused Olive Oil Recipes

Infused oils are prepared by adding herbs and spices to cooking oils, so as to enhance their flavor. These oils are mainly used for cooking and sometimes for massaging too. Infused oil is very commonly used in salad dressings, dipping, for stir frying and sauteing. Even though, there is a vast range of infused oils available in the market, you can prepare it on your own. It is very easy to prepare infused oils, provided, you know the right methods.

Preparation

As mentioned above, making infused oils is one of the easiest culinary tasks. As olive oil is widely used for cooking purposes, it can be used for making infused oils. The remaining ingredients include the herbs and spices of your choice. Before starting with the preparation, you have to decide the herbs and spices you need, whether to use dry or fresh herbs and the type of storage container. You can opt for your favorite herbs or spices or a blend of both. While fresh herbs can add more flavor to the oil, it is prone to get spoiled. Dry herbs may not bring the strong flavor, but, the oil prepared with it will be long-lasting, as compared to the former. As far as storage is concerned, sterilized glass bottles are mostly used.

Procedure

Basically, there are three methods to prepare infused olive oils. The most common and simplest method is to place the herbs/spices and olive oil in a sterilized bottle. The bottle is sealed and left at room temperature for a month or more, so that the flavor of herbs get infused in the oil. Once the desired level of infusion is achieved, the oil is stored in the refrigerator. The next method of preparing infused oil recipes is hot oil infusion. In this method, The oil and the herbs/spices are combined in a pan, which is heated to a temperature of around 82 to 90° Celsius. The heating process helps in the release of flavorings to the oil, which is then cooled, strained and stored (refrigerated) in glass containers. The third one is the cold method, in which the oil is blended in a food processor along with the desired herbs and spices. The blended mixture is refrigerated after straining (optional). This method is mostly used in case of dry herbs and spices.

Garlic-Infused Olive Oil Recipe

In order to prepare this recipe, you need half a cup of extra virgin olive oil and four to five cloves of garlic, which are thinly sliced. All you have to do is heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the garlic slices, when the oil becomes warm. Cook garlic in the oil, so that the flavor is released, but, remove the pan from heat, before the garlic changes color. It takes around three to five minutes for the oil to get infused with garlic flavor. Let the oil cool and after that, strain and store. You can use the oil within a day or store it in the refrigerator.

Olive Oil Infused With Lemon

Lemon infused oil recipe requires only two ingredients. One is extra virgin olive oil and the other is a whole lemon. One large lemon will be sufficient for a cup of olive oil. Clean the lemon and let it dry completely. Once the lemon is dry, remove the yellow part of the lemon rind with a sharp knife. Combine olive oil and lemon peel in a pan and heat it over medium heat for at least eight to ten minutes. After that, remove the pan from the stove and let the oil cool. Strain the oil and store in a sterilized glass jar in a cool, dark place or in the refrigerator. You may also combine lemon zest and olive oil in a sterilized jar and store it at room temperature for a few days. Once the oil get the desired levels of flavor, strain and use it or store in the refrigerator.

Herb-Infused Olive Oil

In order to prepare a herb infused olive oil recipe, collect the desired herbs and spices. Clean and dry the herbs and spices and slightly bruise them, so as to release the flavors. Now, put these herbs and spices in a sterilized glass jar and fill it with warm olive oil. Keep the jar in a cool, dark place for around ten to twelve days. After ten days, check the flavor of the oil. If the oil has the desired levels of flavor, strain and store it. Otherwise, add a little more of herbs and spices and keep it for another five to eight days, before straining and storage.

In short, preparing infused olive oil is very easy and it is always a better option to make such products on your own, rather than buying the ready-made ones.