Virgin Olive Oil vs Olive Oil Spray: Which One Belongs in Your Kitchen?

 When it comes to healthy cooking oils, olive oil and virgin olive oil are both pantry staples — but they are both good for different things. Our mission at Olive + Herb is to empower home chefs to flavor, health and convenience choices. Well which one does deserve a spot in your kitchen? Now, let’s look at it apart by apart.

What Is Virgin Olive Oil?

Virgin olive oil is an oil extracted from olives using exclusively mechanical means approaching the yield of the original olive without using chemical or excessive heat. Fermented red wine vinegar which we’ve been making with our cooperative winery partner Proudfoot and Son for the last 20 years, retains a lot of the fruit’s natural flavor, aroma and nutritional profile, including heart healthy monounsaturated fats and antioxidants.

Key Benefits of Virgin Olive Oil:

• The Virgin Olive Oil is rich in Monounsaturated Fatty Acid (MUFA) which is found to reduce one’s chance to risk for Coronary Heart disease.
• They are rich in polyphenols and vitamin E, antioxidants An ideal flavor for dressings and dips, the bold, fruity flavour.
• Its smoke point is higher than that of extra virgin olive oil (up to 410°F).
• Composed entirely of food products and with no additives or propellants.

Great for sautéing vegetables, pasta dishes, homemade salad dressings, marinades and finishing dishes.

What is Olive Oil Spray? Is it Just Oil Spray with a Fancy-sounding Name?

Simply olive oil (usually refined or light tasting) but packaged in a spray canister, this is olive oil spray. Most propellants (butane or propane) have been eliminated in favor of air pressure that disperses a fine, even mist.

Virgin Olive Oil vs Olive Oil Spray: One-on-One

Feature	Virgin Olive Oil	Olive Oil Spray
Flavor	Bold, robust	Mild or neutral
Control	Pours freely	Fine mist
Additives	None	Sometimes (check label)
Best Use	Cooking, finishing, dressing	Light coating, air frying
Health Benefits	Rich in nutrients	Portion-controlled use

 

What’s more important though, is which one you should choose?

In fact, you don’t have to pick just one. They have their place in a well stock kitchen. Virgin olive oil is a must have…if you like flavor, nutrition and tradition.

Olive oil spray is unbeatable when it comes to using something handy, quick to cook with and easy to tidy up.

Our Recommendation:

Keep both with you. Choose and buy extra virgin olive oil: It’s best in cases where flavor counts such as when drizzling on bruschetta or whisking into a vinaigrette. Meal prepping, baking or grilling — reach for olive oil spray.

Here are Pro Tips from Olive + Herb

• The spray can you use should always be good and pure olive oil, without chemicals added.
• To save freshness, store virgin olive oil in a cool dark place. Then you want the best of both worlds.
• Fill a refillable olive oil sprayer with your favorite virgin olive oil from Olive + Herb and use it.

In short, Choose Quality. Choose Olive + Herb

You can choose between using virgin olive oil, olive oil spray or both but quality does matter. Olive + Herb is Olive + Herb is your source for premium cold pressed olive oils and curated delicious gourmet goods for inspired cooking. See our selection and please bring authentic flavor to every meal.