val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 11, 2016 21:38:00 GMT
OK all you cooking mavens, talk to me about specialty oils or whatever they're called. Walnut oil, lemon infused olive oil, grapeseed oil, etc. I'm looking for some new oils to try in oil/vinegar dressing and I have no clue beyond canola (ick in dressing) and olive. Also, spill what you know about vinegars. I do use apple cider vinegar, but that's about as far out as I've gone. I need to spice up salads, marinades and veggies and commercial dressings have too much sodium. I'd rather waste that sodium allotment on a good bread or hard boiled eggs on the salad. Tips, anyone? ETA: updated title to give spices a shout out, to keep it all in one place.
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Post by titus730 on Nov 11, 2016 22:42:54 GMT
I've heard, on various cooking shows, that grapeseed oil is flavorless. It hard to find too. I bought a small bottle on Amazon but haven't used it yet. I'm not a fan of most vegetable oils such as corn or canola. I would buy safflower oil. Only problem is the bottles are so big for one person. The walnut and other nut oils can be used for dressings and other cooking but they're expensive and you might want to cut the richness with a plain oil.
As for different vinegars, yes! The plain white distilled I use for cooking and cleaning. I use it to make cucumber and onion salad and in potato and pasta salad, along with some mustard. It's versatile because there isn't a particular flavor so it can be used to sour milk for baking. My all around favorite is red wine vinegar. I use it in salad dressings and as a wine substitute in stew or spaghetti sauce. I like the flavor and the acidity. Yes, I'm a sourpuss.
Speaking of acidity, you can definitely used lemon juice in place of vinegar in most dressings.
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Shirley U Geste
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Post by Shirley U Geste on Nov 11, 2016 23:14:42 GMT
Walnut oil is nice for salad dressings. And you can make your own flavored olive oils, much cheaper then buying them. Just put some olive oil in a bottle and add what you want to it, I have some that I put chili flakes in for heat, and some with rosemary sprigs.
I love vinegar, but many aren't GF so I cut back to just using apple cider vinegar and balsamic vinegars. I just started using rice vinegar, and I really like it. I found a brand (Nakano all natural) that has no sodium and no sugar. I do miss the malt vinegar for on fish though.
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Post by zoesam on Nov 12, 2016 0:40:36 GMT
I use so many different vinegars I wouldn't know where to start. Tons of balsamic, tons of red wine & white wine, some champagne, lots of rice vinegar. I only use white vinegar for cleaning.
As for flavored oils, they are yummy, but they go rancid fast & they are expensive, so I pretty much gave up on them. If you can make a commitment to using them quickly, it's worth it, but I tended to throw away much of what I bought. I do love walnut oil though. We use so little oil, that our everyday oils go rancid too. The only thing we use a ton of is olive oil.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 12, 2016 0:42:30 GMT
Oooo I forgot all about hot chili oil! There's a place here that makes a non-mayo tuna salad, puts it on flat bread, and it's divine with some chili oil sprinkled (ok, doused!) on top. Bet I could get sodium free tuna and the chili oil and make my own. The tuna in chili oil has too much salt in it. Cool Lunch for the weekend!
Titus, grocery store I shop at has a lot of the specialty or exotic oils in smaller bottles.
THis is for salads, zoe, so it should get used up before it goes rancid. I'll have to try walnut oil. WHat vinegar goes best with it?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2016 0:53:01 GMT
You can refrigerate a lot of them. Some, like peanut and coconut will solidify though.
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Post by SA on Nov 12, 2016 0:57:43 GMT
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Post by SA on Nov 12, 2016 0:59:59 GMT
Oh, and I was gifted some vinegars that I love. Red Apple vinegar is our favorite. Not as sweet as it sounds. Not as harsh as balsamic.
TJs also has a pretty good lemon infused olive oil that I like too.
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Post by zoesam on Nov 12, 2016 1:27:20 GMT
BTW, you can infuse your own vinegars at home too. I find it easier than making oils at home, cuz you can leave the stuff in the jar & it won't go bad LOL. I haven't had walnut oil for a long time (I bought it for salads too, I just didn't eat enough salads I guess), but I would pair that with something light, like a shallot or white wine vinegar or as an everyday staple, a rice vinegar. Walnut oil is pretty strongly flavored, so you just need something light for it, not something with a lot of flavoring.
Rice vinegar is used mainly in Asian cooking, but I use it in a lot of salads b/c it is very light & doesn't have a strong flavor, so can go with almost anything. Walnut pairs well with lemon too, I've never had a lemon vinegar, though I'll bet it'd be ez to make at home.
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Post by zoesam on Nov 12, 2016 1:29:32 GMT
Oh, also, chili oil is super ez to make at home. Either with the whole chilis or you can just saute a bit at a time with red chili flakes out of a spice jar or since you live where you do, off your ristra.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 12, 2016 1:30:39 GMT
I'm looking for flavor, because it will be replacing salt I had the oil & vinegar on my salad at Subway and it was yucky. No flavor to speak of. Boring bland salad.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 12, 2016 1:31:12 GMT
LOL. What ristra?
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Post by zoesam on Nov 12, 2016 1:35:17 GMT
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Shirley U Geste
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Post by Shirley U Geste on Nov 12, 2016 1:36:23 GMT
You don't have a ristra? You need to be deported from the state!!! I don't have one either, too darn messy and the cats tear them apart.
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Post by kat on Nov 12, 2016 2:02:19 GMT
Salad with oil and vinegar is pretty much a daily thing in our house. I used to use olive oil until I discovered avocado oil. I buy Chosen Foods cold pressed. The bottle is big, but I use it for cooking and in baked goods too. I also make my own flavored oils in little batches. They just take a few days in the fridge to infuse.
Like Zoe, I have a variety of flavored vinegars. I don't know why I keep buying them, they pretty much are plain or balsamic mixed with fruit juice or jam. I tend to reach for my standby of the red wine vinegar with garlic. It's the one in the bulb bottle.
My dressing is 2:1 oil to acid, but without salt I'd probably add some extra acid. My favorite combos (oil is avocado plain or infused):
Basil oil with fig balsamic Oil, cilantro and lime juice Garlic thyme oil with garlic vinegar
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Post by allikat on Nov 12, 2016 2:22:38 GMT
This is a store near me, you can go in and taste all the different oils and vinegars. They sell smaller bottles and both their oils and vinegars are fantastic. I didn't know if you had anything like it near you. I love their rosemary olive oil and their peach balsamic vinegar. I like the tasting aspect because then you aren't stuck guessing in the store. I also thought their flavors might give you some ideas if you want to make your own. www.loveoliveoilvinegar.com
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Shirley U Geste
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Post by Shirley U Geste on Nov 12, 2016 2:28:34 GMT
Their Blood Orange Olive Oil sounds fantastic.
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Post by SA on Nov 12, 2016 2:36:50 GMT
Blood orange oil is really good I forgot I have some espresso vinegar. I'm sure it's bad now
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Shirley U Geste
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Post by Shirley U Geste on Nov 12, 2016 2:38:47 GMT
That sounds good Liz, what kind of vinegar is the base?
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 12, 2016 3:29:50 GMT
I go by this shopping center all the time (it's by the westside Savers) and never noticed they were here. I'll have to check them out. I like the idea of sampling first. www.abqoliveoilco.com/index.php
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Post by allikat on Nov 12, 2016 3:46:16 GMT
That's great, it looks like the same kind of store with even a larger inventory of products.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 12, 2016 3:47:12 GMT
It didn't occur to me to even look until you posted your store link, allikat. Thanks!
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Post by 57roses on Nov 12, 2016 5:06:00 GMT
We have a local store also. Their oils and vinegars are soooo good. My favorites are the blood orange oil with cranberry pear balsamic vinegar. They have a fresh basil oil that is good on tomatoes. Whole Foods sells a fig balsamic vinegar that's really good. Trader Joes sells an orange vinegar that is really good and more affordable than the specialty stores. Orange vinegar
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Post by 57roses on Nov 12, 2016 5:10:51 GMT
I don't know if you have ever tried sesame oil, but it is very flavorful and sold in most grocery stores. I noticed when looking up the Trader Joes orange vinegar that someone recommended combining the two for an asian flavored dressing. I think I'm going to try it.
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Post by zoesam on Nov 12, 2016 8:26:16 GMT
I don't know if you have ever tried sesame oil, but it is very flavorful and sold in most grocery stores. I noticed when looking up the Trader Joes orange vinegar that someone recommended combining the two for an asian flavored dressing. I think I'm going to try it. I forgot about my huge jar of Sesame oil, I just get it at the Asian store, as it's much cheaper & is actually true sesame oil, where a lot of grocery store ones are not. It's really good but very strong, so I have to use it sparingly or just in certain dishes. I love noodles flavored with sesame & chili oils, but I'm trying not to eat straight carbs lol. Love that idea of combining it with an orange oil!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2016 15:39:12 GMT
I use a lot of sunflower oil, olive oils and if frying (sometimes you just have to) either vegetable of peanut oil.
But, my go-to for sautéing is sunflower, very light, flavorless, and it must be lower in fat content since it does not solidify refrigerated the way olive oil does.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 12, 2016 18:35:47 GMT
I found some taragon infused vinegar and basil oil (safflower oil, sunflower oil and basil). I thought they might go well together. And I got some red wine vinegar too, that should go with the basil oil or even just olive oil, right?
I'm headed to Trader Joes later for some things, so I'll pick up the Vinaigrette you posted, Liz (if it's in stock that is). I like that it's 0 sodium and has fat too. I know, sounds weird to want to add fat, but I'm trying to balance out my diet and I'm actually not getting enough fat (especially the good fats). Fancy that! Never thought I'd be saying that!
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 14, 2016 0:36:39 GMT
OMG. The basil oil is to die for. Smells divine too! I used it to brown some meat and in a rice dish that called for oil.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Dec 5, 2016 22:25:04 GMT
Okey dokey. Tried the honey thyme balsamic vinaigrette, it was too bland for my taste. Also I didn't like how it thickened up and would not pour once it was refrigrated. I think it would be good on a salad that had fruit on it, seems like it would compliment the fruit without the bite that a raspberry vinaigrette seems to have. I LOVE the TJ's balsamic vinaigrette though! Nice taste and low sodium, about 60 mg or so per 2 Tblsp serving (so if you like dressing you can use a little more than 2 Tblsp, LOL!).
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Post by SA on Dec 5, 2016 23:29:20 GMT
Oh. Are you supposed to put it in the fridge? LOL! I never do.
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