Tuyya Olive Oil: You Have to Try It.

Experimenting With Pizza and Tuyya Olive Oil

I am by no means an olive oil expert. I use it all the time for cooking but up until now I have just bought the cheaper grocery store versions. Recently I was given a bottle of Tuyya Olive Oil. The specs on the oil are as follows:

 

2011 Vintage - Organic Single Estate Moroccan Extra Virgin Picholine Ollve Oil.

- From olive trees over 100 years old in Fkih Ben Saleh, Morocco.

- It is unfiltered, first cold pressed on a granite mill and bottled within 7 hours after manual picking and sorting.
-Available in Natural and Thyme and Bay Leaf
-Thyme and Bay Leaf - 80 kg of each per 10000 kg of olives.
-The picholine olive is very high in polyphenols which means a longer shelf life and has a proven antioxidant effect.  (US National Library of Medicine - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20209466)

In addition to the effects of the mono-unsaturated fatty acid oleic acid, olive oil and olive extracts contain polyphenols with remarkable health benefits. Of these, extracts concentrated for oleuropein have been shown to lower blood pressure (BP) and cholesterol levels. Michael T. Murray MD 2013-03-18 http://www.naturalfactors.com/caen/blog/2013/03/18/Olive-Polyphenols-Promote-Heart-Health-by-Affecting-Gene-Expression

So I thought I would try out a new recipe for pizza dough that called for olive oil to see if it would improve the taste of the dough.  An online friend of mine and pizza maker extraordinaire David Cavanagh said that this was kind of a waste of good olive oil. I have not really used olive oil much for pizza dough but this is what I found online about the use of olive oil in pizza dough.

 

Reasons to Use Olive Oil (from http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php?topic=864.0

1) it makes the dough easier to stretch (improved extensibility) by lubricating the gluten and starch molecules; 2) it captures and holds the nice flavors released during baking, and also contributes its own flavor components; 4) it helps to provide a better rise to the dough during baking, as it traps gasses; 5) it produces a good mouth feel when the crust is eaten; 6) it contributes to the browning of the crust, through heat transfer (and oxidation) at high temperatures; and 7) when used on top of the dough, it provides a barrier to migration of liquids from the sauce into the dough, thereby preventing or minimizing a gum line (which is a no-no for professional pizza operators).

Here are my observations:

I really don’t think it would have made much of a difference which olive oil I used in the dough making process. The dough did have a nice flavour, and very nice texture and the crust was a beautiful brown. But I probably would have achieved this with a much cheaper olive oil. So why use Tuyya? Well let me tell you. I made up a small dipping sauce using Tuyya,  added some oregano, a little balsamic, a little garlic and salt. I used it to dip the pizza crust. PURE HEAVEN. Maybe the best part of the pizza tonight.

 

I compared it to the grocery store version. First the smell is fantastic. Wonderful smell of fruit. Smooth velvety taste in the mouth. Definitely worth the extra dollars. I do agree with David though that these olive oils should be used in such a way that you can get the full taste. Save the cheaper stuff for the dough and use Tuyya straight up. I guarantee you will love the taste!

 The Arrogant Chef