Peace Oil in Your Kitchen and on Your Plate.

First: Peace Oil on Your Palate.

In 2006 when I started Olive Branch Enterprises to import, bottle and distribute Palestinian olive oil I was concerned about the quality of the olive oil and what many referred to as its bitter taste. I did find that the SAHA/Green Action olive oil had a very strong burning sensation as I swallowed. I learned from Dani Livney, an Israeli olive farmer and friend, that this is what anyone familiar with olive oil expects from a high quality, intensely flavored oil.

The burning sensation, referred to as a “peppery finish”, is caused by oleocanthal, one of many healthy anti-oxidants in olive oil. This is the main pain-reducing compound in ibuprofen and may be associated with a reduction in Alzheimer’s. The presence of anti-oxidants literally reduces oxidation, extending the useful lifespan of vegetable oils.

I purchased a very expensive brand of Italian Tuscan olive oil (Coltobuono) to compare with the Palestinian oil. I was surprised that this too had a very strong peppery finish and overall intensity similar to that of the SAHA/Green Action olive oil.

Nevertheless, Palestinian olive oil, nearly all of which is made from the Nabali cultivar, is so unique in aroma and flavor that Palestinians I met in Seattle as I began to market Peace Oil could, with one whiff, immediately recognize it as the real deal from their homeland. It is hard to describe, but I know I have not tasted another olive oil like it.

The aroma has a distinctive flowery quality and the taste is officially categorized as “fruity” by the experts. But you’ll have to try it yourself to see what you think. In many tastings I’ve provided over the years, I've heard everything from “tastes more like olives than anything I've tasted” to “light and smooth with a nutty flavor”.

Tasting olive oil is a very individual experience.

There are now three varieties of Peace Oil, with two new ones introduced in August 2009. Two of the three are mostly or entirely Nabali, but the third is mostly made of a modern Israeli cultivar, the Bernea, a whole different animal. See Which is Which and What is That? to learn more.  

How Do I Use Peace Oil?

I am frequently asked how to use Peace Oil in food preparation. The answer is simple: as you would any gourmet, extra virgin olive oil. I prefer not to use Peace Oil as a cooking oil. It is much tastier and retains more of its healthy qualities when it is not heated. I recommend using as a salad dressing, for dipping bread, as a sauce on everything from pasta to meats after they're cooked.

But some do prefer to cook with olive oil, even the more expensive extra virgin, as the flavor more fully blends with whatever you are cooking. If you do cook with Peace Oil, don't go over 300 F (medium or less in a frying pan). If it does smoke, throw it away and start over.

Peace Oil and Za'atar (Sung to the Tune of “Soup and Sandwich”)

In Palestine, a traditional breakfast dish consists of a mixture of za'atar and olive oil (more details below). Za'atar is a wild growing herb that is found all over the Mediterranean with a taste somewhere between thyme and oregano (or perhaps even sage). Many think it is the hyssop referred to in the Bible. The za'atar is mixed with salt, sesame seeds, sumac (for a lemony zing) and a touch of olive oil.

The resulting mixture is also often referred to as za'atar or za'atar mix. If you can't find za'atar mix in a store, you may find the separate ingredients in the bulk herbs and spices section of your neighborhood natural foods grocery. Buy the ingredients and mix to taste. Sindyanna and Canaan Fair Trade both sell za'atar mix ready to use. Someday I will sell Sindyanna’s za'atar at peaceoil.net.

The traditional Palestinian breakfast is simple enough:

1) take a small dipping bowl and fill with Peace Oil

2) pour in za'atar mix to taste and stir

3) dip bread or pita and take a bite, and another, and another …

I have this dish at least once a day now.

For a fancier version:

1) slice of fresh-baked bread, pita or even a rice cake

2) spread plain organic, non-fat yogurt thickly on the bread (Nancy’s Yogurt is my choice)

3) drizzle Peace Oil over the yogurt (as much as you want)

4) sprinkle za'atar on top

When I told my friend Amer Ahmad, a Palestinian resident of East Jerusalem, that I was eating olive oil in this manner, he was surprised that a native of the USA would know about this Middle Eastern secret. I thought I had invented it!

My Israeli cousin lives on a kibbutz on the northern-most border of Israel and picks wild-growing za'atar right outside his front door.

He recommends this absolutely delicious treat with za'atar:

1) slice of fresh-baked bread

2) smear Peace Oil on liberally

3) sprinkle with za'atar

4) use a toaster oven or even the broiler in your oven to toast to a golden brown (3 to 4 mins.)

You'll know it’s done when your kitchen fills with a heavenly aroma. Could be a good appetizer next time you have guests over.

While we're on the topic of heavenly aromas: a brilliant young Gazan named Sami who was an exchange student in nearby Olympia told me this kitchen tale from his homeland. His mother makes bread dough and just before it goes in the oven, sprinkles za'atar on the dough. I can still see his eyes light up as he recalls the aroma of the baking bread and za'atar filling his home.

Peace Oil Fan Mail Suggestion

Who would think of olive oil and chocolate in the same sentence? This one is from Ms. Solomon, a neighbor of a good friend here in Seattle.

Solomon’s Royal Buffet:

1) Ingredients: BASE - thin crackers. TOPPINGS - hummus, tapenade of black olives ( kalamata or Middle Eastern olives marinated), sea salt, grated unsweetened chocolate, goat cheese and Peace Oil.

2) Place all the toppings in appropriate containers on a large platter with the crackers.

3) Guests make their own appetizers combining any of the toppings using the following suggested amounts: thin layer of hummus, ½ teaspoon of tapenade, ½ teaspoon of goat cheese, sprinkle some grated chocolate, sea salt and finally drizzle Peace Oil.

According to Ms. Solomon, “… they all work beautifully together. An explosion of tastes!”

I also recommend for those of you who avoid chocolate (as I do) to substitute with carob powder, readily available at most natural food stores. Carob is another Mediterranean indigenous food and is sold in syrup form by Sindyanna of Galilee. Unlike chocolate it is free of saturated fat (even unsweetened cocoa powder contains saturated fat!). By “goat cheese” I think Ms. Solomon is referring to goat feta, but maybe other forms of goat cheese as well. I highly recommend goat or sheep feta.

Where to Find More … Lots More …
Recipes With Olive Oil (You Guessed It - Amazon):

		Olive Trees and Honey, A Treasury of Vegetarian Recipes from Jewish Communities Around the World Gil Marks Wiley Publishing, Inc. Hoboken NJ, 2005
		The Best 50 Olive Recipes Catharine Pagano Fulde Bristol Publishing Enterprises San Leandro CA, 1998
		Olive Oil Sauces, Appetizers & Entrees Maxine Clark, Clare Ferguson, Clare Gordon-Smith, Laura Washburn Ryland, Peters & Small New York NY; 2007
		The Flavors of Olive Oil, A Tasting Guide and Cookbook Deborah Krasner, Simon & Schuster New York NY, 2002
		The Mediterranean Diet, Olive Oil Cookery Maher A. Abbas, M.D. and Marilyn J. Spiegl Book Publishing Company Summertown TN, 1995
		Extra Virgin, Cooking with Olive Oil Clare Ferguson; Ryland, Peters & Small New York NY, 2000
		The Essential Olive Oil Companion, Recipes, Varieties, Histories, Cultivation Anne Dolamore Interlink Books Brooklyn NY, 2000