Olive oil gets bitter in blender?
I read somewhere -- maybe a James Peterson cookbook? -- that putting olive oil in the blender for more than a few seconds will make it bitter. However, many recipes for hummus, aioli, and other things call for blending olive oil. At times I've felt that making hummus without the oil, and then stirring it in at the end gives a better flavor, but I can't say for sure.
Does anyone have any advice about this?
Best Answer
Well, this is a common confusion between "sour" and "bitter".
The better your olive oil is, the lower its acid value - extra virgin olive oil has the lowest acid value, it is pressed in ways that reduce contact with atmospheric oxygen. Contact with oxygen increases the acid value of olive oil.
Whizzing olive oil in a blender aerates it, and the resultant oxidation increases the acid value, ie it gets more acidic and tastes "sourer".
Lots of people can discern the change, but they don't use the right word to express it ...
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Quick Answer about "Olive oil gets bitter in blender?"
Extra-virgin olive oil contains bitter tasting polyphenols coated by fatty acids, which prevent them from dispersing. If the oil is emulsified in a food processor, these polyphenols get squeezed out and the liquid mix turns bitter.Does olive oil turn bitter in blender?
Conclusion. Does making mayonnaise in a blender with olive oil lead to bitter results? Yes, it can, but it's not guaranteed to be unpleasantly so.Why does my olive oil taste bitter?
One possibility is the presence of free fatty acids in olive oil, which, depending on the type of fatty acid, can taste bitter and even pungent. Depending on the variety of olives used and how the oil was extracted, one can expect different levels of these free fatty acids in oil.How do you fix bitter olive oil?
The polyphenols responsible for producing bitterness in emulsions made with mustard oil or extra-virgin olive oil are water soluble, and so mixing boiling water with either oil will remove them.Can you make olive oil in blender?
To make olive oil at home in a semi-practical way, you'll need some sort of blender or food processor. I used a heavy-duty food processor, but you can use any sort of blender you have. If you're using a heavy-duty food processor as I did, you won't need to remove the pits from your olives.The Olive Oil Sommelier - How to Take the Bitterness Out of Olive Oil
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Answer 2
Hammering extra virgin olive oil in a blender or food processor allows astringent ("bitter") tasting polyphenol compounds to be detectable by the tongue.
Cook’s Illustrated explained it in their March & April 2009 issue, page 30:
Extra-virgin olive oil contains bitter tasting polyphenols coated by fatty acids, which prevent them from dispersing. If the oil is emulsified in a food processor, these polyphenols get squeezed out and the liquid mix turns bitter.
Answer 3
The Olive Centre suggests that; other factors can also affect the quality of your oil which include air, light, heat, water and too much sediment. Light speeds up the oxidation process which shortens the shelf life of the oil.
Also, there was research carried out which confirmed that dark glass (preferably browner) Antique Green was one of the best ways in which to miminise oxidation compared to other types of packaging.
For further reading here are come suggested links:
Effect of Storage Containers on Olive Oil Quality: https://rirdc.infoservices.com.au/items/09-160
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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