More than just a condiment, extra virgin olive oil is the ideal ingredient for making accompanying sauces that enrich every dish. On meat, fish or salad, a sauce can bring out the flavors of the other ingredients.
There are several types of accompanying sauces — here are some of the most famous recipes and the best pairings.
Citronette, a fresh, quick sauce
An excellent dressing for seafood, but also for boiled vegetables and salads, is citronette, a cold emulsified sauce typical of French cuisine. The ingredients in its original recipe are lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper.
Ingredients:
- 60 g extra virgin olive oil
- 40 g lemon juice
- a pinch of salt
- black pepper, to taste
After squeezing the juice of a lemon, strain it and pour it into a bowl. Add the salt and whisk until the salt is completely dissolved. Then add the pepper too and keep mixing.All that's left is to add the oil in a thin stream: keep whisking quickly to emulsify the ingredients until you get a smooth, slightly thick citronette.If you want to add a twist to this EVO oil-based sauce, feel free to experiment with herbs and spices. A tip? Try mint or ginger!
It's important to remember that citronette is an unstable emulsified sauce, so it should be used right after preparing it. If left to sit, the oil and lemon juice that make it up will tend to separate.
Vinaigrette: simple or complex sauce?
A close relative of citronette is vinaigrette. This too is an emulsion typical of French tradition, which can be prepared in two versions.
Ingredients:
- 120 g extra virgin olive oil
- 40 g vinegar
- a pinch of salt
- black pepper, to taste
- mustard, to taste (to stabilize the emulsion)
The simplest recipe is an emulsion of 2/3 oil, 1/3 vinegar, salt and black pepper, to be used immediately to dress your dishes.If instead you plan to use it later, you'll need to stabilize your emulsion with a bit of mustard. This addition will change the texture and give your accompanying sauce a more intense, bolder flavor.
Vinaigrette is excellent for bringing out the flavors of salads, meats, seafood, cheeses and eggs.
Salmoriglio, a must for grilled dishes
From French cuisine, let's cross back over the Alps to explore recipes from Italian tradition: among the accompanying sauces made with extra virgin olive oil, we find Salmoriglio.
This is a very popular recipe between Sicily and Calabria, and it's excellent for accompanying both fish and meat grills.
Ingredients:
- 200 g extra virgin olive oil
- 2 lemons
- a bunch of parsley
- a tablespoon of hot water
- a pinch of salt
- oregano, to taste
- pepper, to taste
Pour the oil into a mixing bowl and whisk it vigorously, gradually adding the strained lemon juice, a tablespoon of hot water, the chopped parsley, oregano, salt and pepper to taste.To use it as an accompanying sauce for meat dishes, it's advisable to replace the lemon juice with a bit of vinegar.
Aioli sauce, a Mediterranean recipe
Aioli sauce as we know it today, both in name and ingredients, originated in southern Spain. The Catalan and Valencian communities both claim to have invented it, but its origins belong to the whole Mediterranean.The earliest traces of a garlic-and-oil combination date back to ancient Egypt, where it was used to fortify soldiers and athletes. Later, the Romans spread the "moretum" — made with garlic, oil, vinegar, cheese and herbs — throughout all their provinces. Another variation of this ancient sauce is Lebanese toum, which has a more intense garlic aroma.
Ingredients (for traditional aioli):
- 5 large cloves of garlic
- 3 egg yolks
- 300 g extra virgin olive oil
- a lemon
- a pinch of salt
- ground white pepper, to taste
The method for making this accompanying sauce is very similar to that of mayonnaise.First, squeeze the lemon, strain its juice and set it aside. Peel the garlic cloves and crush them in a mortar until you get a thick paste.Then separate the egg whites from the yolks and use the latter, blending them into the garlic paste: mix the ingredients together and add the extra virgin olive oil in a thin stream.Finish the recipe by adjusting the salt, sprinkling in the white pepper, and finally adding the lemon juice.
This accompanying sauce can be paired with fish, meat, boiled vegetables, but also with the classic Spanish patatas bravas.
In all of these extra virgin olive oil-based sauces, the choice of ingredients proves essential. Among our products you'll find a selection of extra virgin olive oils that differ in flavor and intensity. For your sauces, we suggest the Fruity and Mild, the Light Peppery, or the Unfiltered, with its bold flavor.
When preparing an accompanying sauce, choose your extra virgin oil based on this general rule: the more flavorful the dish, the more flavorful the oil you should use — for everything else, trust your instinct and, even at home, allow yourself the luxury of choosing between two or three different oils. Flavor and creativity rule the kitchen!
