The Savvy Gourmet

Producers in the Spotlight – Sociedade Agrícola do Conde (Portugal)

The centuries-old Quinta Vale do Conde property is located in the upper Douro region, district of Bragança, northern Portugal.

Ancestral traditions combined with modern technologies result in the production of an exceptional olive oil.

The aromatic characteristics and quality of this olive oil have been recognized in some of the most prestigious international oil competitions all over the world.

Awards

2011. Gold Medal - 1st prize, Mario Solinas Award – Spain.

2011. Honours with distinction in the Intense Fruity category, 7th China International Exhibition Olive Oil & Edible Oil – Shanghai

2010. Gold Medal, XI Olivomoura (Moura) – Portugal.

2010. Gold Medal, Prestige at Terra Olivo Award – Israel.

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Winners of the Olive d’Or 2012 Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition

On May 9, the winners of the Olive d’Or 2012 extra virgin olive oil competition were announced. 100 olive oils from 15 different countries were part of this competition organized by SIAL Canada.

SIAL Canada is part of the SIAL international network of annual professional trade shows held in Buenos Aires, Paris, Montreal and Toronto (in alternating fashion), and Shanghai.

The olive oils are divided into three categories: mildly fruity, medium fruity and very fruity. The winners of each category are rewarded with the following prizes: “Goutte d’Or”, “Goutte d’Argent” and “Goutte de Bronze”.

The Goutte d’Or winners are Ottobratico from Olearia San Giorgio – Italy (Mildly Fruity), San Pietro from San Pietro Foods – Chile (Medium Fruity), and Rincón de la Subbética Alamoda from Almazaras de la Subbética – Spain (Very Fruity).

The Goutte d’Argent winners are Olave Organic from Valle Grande S.A. – Chile (Mildly Fruity), Olio Oliva Titone D.O.P Valli Trapanesi Biologico from Azienda Agricola Biologica Titone – Italy (Medium Fruity), and Melgarejo Gourmet from Aceites Campoliva, S.L. – Spain (Very Fruity).

The Goutte de Bronze winners are San Pietro from San Pietro Foods – Chile (Mildly Fruity), Sofra from Sarra Huiles – Tunisia (Medium Fruity), and Extra Virgin Olive Oil Tradizionale from Planeta – Italy (Very Fruity).

Kitchen Myths – Searing Meat to Seal in the Juices

To minimize the lost of juices when cooking, sear the meat quickly. True or false?

This idea, introduced by Justus von Liebig around 1850 and later embraced by contemporary cooks and cookbook authors, is not true. Simple experimentation showed that seared roasts lost the same amount of moisture or more.

Nonetheless, it remains an essential technique in cooking meat for several reasons:

• High temperature browning of the surface creates desirable flavours through caramelization and the Maillard reaction.  

• The appearance of the food is usually improved with a well-browned crust. 

• The contrast in taste and texture between the crust and the interior makes the food more interesting to the palate.

To learn more on this subject:

von Liebig, Justus. 1850. Researches on the Chemistry of Food.

McGee, Harold. 2004. On Food and Cooking (Revised Edition). Page 161, "The Searing Question".

Searing in Wikipedia.

Does Searing Meat "Seal In" Juices? More controversial materials in About.com Culinary Arts.