With olive oil prices soaring, here are recipes that focus on less-is-more

livemint.com:

₹700-800. The price of one litre of extra virgin olive oil from Spain is now ₹1,300-1,800. I make pure olive oil soaps around this time each year, so they cure for five-six months and are ready by peak winter in December.

It seems unlikely that I will be making them this year. Given the prediction that prices will only go up further, is it wise to stock up on olive oil? In regular times, it is always advised to buy olive oil in smaller batches, and keep it away from heat and light to prevent it from degrading. It is the reason why good brands of extra virgin olive oil come in dark-coloured glass bottles.

If you buy a litre of the oil, always decant a small quantity and keep it on the countertop and store the rest of the bottle with a tightly sealed lid in a cool, dark place, inside a cabinet, to prolong its life. If you consume a healthy quantity of olive oil at home, then it’s worthwhile buying a few extra bottles (dark-coloured glass bottles) and storing them correctly. Ideal temperatures are 13-16 Celsius so refrigerating is not a good idea.

Keep the bottles in a cooler part of your home inside a cabinet and use within two years or so. If you are not someone with a hoarding tendency, here are a few tips to make a bottle last longer. · Add a mix of olive oil and butter while making pasta sauces.

· Use tahini or Greek yogurt to replace part of the extra virgin olive oil in salad dressings for a creamy texture. You can also use other cold-pressed oils. · When making basil pesto, use other cold-pressed oils as the flavour of basil is strong enough to mask the flavour of any other oil.