# ISO suggestions for dipping oil



## jabbur (Oct 7, 2008)

DH and I went to a Carrabba's for the first time.  Enjoyed the food.  DH particularly liked the crusty bread with olive oil and herbs for dipping.  I thought about having some on hand here at home but am hopelessly lost as to which herbs to get as well as a good tasting olive oil.  What do you guys use or can suggest?


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## Jeekinz (Oct 7, 2008)

Lio, Bertoli & Filippo Berio are good tasting oils.  Use regular olive oil if extra virgin is too strong for you.  A dish with olive oil, cracked pepper, thyme and rosemary work well.  You could leave the herb sprigs whole to infuse the oil and give a nice presentation.


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## BBQ Mikey (Oct 7, 2008)

I would buy extra virgin and place it in a heated pan with rosemary and minced sundried tomatoes, maybe even a clove of garlic. Let simmer for a while as the flavors infuse then remove and set aside for crusty bread dipping.


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## pdswife (Oct 7, 2008)

Mikey, that sounds wonderful.


I also like just plain olive oil with a little balsomic floating on top.


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## Candeez (Oct 7, 2008)

A good quality olive oil with a little sea salt and some roasted garlic mixed in. Yummy yum.


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## Uncle Bob (Oct 7, 2008)

EVOO, garlic, salt, and fresh cracked black pepper...After that any herb you like.


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## jennyema (Oct 7, 2008)

Just make sure that if you are using fresh herbs that you keep your oil refrigerated and throw it out after a week or 10 days.  Botulism.


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## jabbur (Oct 7, 2008)

Thanks everyone for your input.  I'll be hitting the store later this week and will try some of these.


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## GotGarlic (Oct 7, 2008)

Hey, jabbur. I hit the TJ's near you last week and bought a bottle of EVOO there (among a few other things). I like the light green EVOO - it's nice and fruity, great for dipping. You've gotten some great suggestions for jazzing up the oil. I might add a pinch of red pepper flakes for a little heat.


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## kitchenelf (Oct 7, 2008)

jabbur - it's very dangerous to keep this stuff mixed up and ready in your refrigerator already in the oil.  I have seen some nasty stuff growing on the herbs after a matter of just days...and I washed them too!  What I do is just mix as I need it.  It's simply a bit of basil, flat-leaf parsley, rosemary and/or thyme if you like, kosher salt and cracked black pepper - - - oh, and garlic if you so choose.  Just put some of this mixture on a plate and pour on some olive oil.  MUCH safer!!!!


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## elaine l (Oct 7, 2008)

Although I sometimes put rosemary or roasted garlic in olive oil, my favorite is just salt.

Grated cheese and pepper flakes are pretty good.


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## jabbur (Oct 7, 2008)

kitchenelf said:


> jabbur - it's very dangerous to keep this stuff mixed up and ready in your refrigerator already in the oil. I have seen some nasty stuff growing on the herbs after a matter of just days...and I washed them too! What I do is just mix as I need it. It's simply a bit of basil, flat-leaf parsley, rosemary and/or thyme if you like, kosher salt and cracked black pepper - - - oh, and garlic if you so choose. Just put some of this mixture on a plate and pour on some olive oil. MUCH safer!!!!


 
That was the way I was thinking since that's the way it was done at Carrabba's.  He has to be judicious in his fat intake.  His last cholesterol and triglycerides were high.  I know olive oil is one of the good fats but he still should be careful how much he eats.  I figured if I mix it when we are eating it would be the way to go.


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## kadesma (Oct 8, 2008)

jabbur said:


> That was the way I was thinking since that's the way it was done at Carrabba's.  He has to be judicious in his fat intake.  His last cholesterol and triglycerides were high.  I know olive oil is one of the good fats but he still should be careful how much he eats.  I figured if I mix it when we are eating it would be the way to go.


That's perfect. My little grandson loves dipping so i keep fresh herbs, evoo,roasted garlic, and different salts, all in separate containers and mix a little at a time for him..
kadesma


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## Barbara L (Oct 8, 2008)

Jabbur, the first time we ever had bread with dipping oil was at Carrabba's as well.  I haven't tried it at home, but I will definitely try it soon.  I'm glad you reminded me.

Barbara


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## ChefJune (Oct 8, 2008)

BBQ Mikey said:


> I would buy extra virgin and place it in a heated pan with rosemary and minced sundried tomatoes, maybe even a clove of garlic. Let simmer for a while as the flavors infuse then remove and set aside for crusty bread dipping.



There is no sense in using extra virgin if you are going to simmer it.  EVOO is meant to be used uncooked!

You can steep your herbs in the oil just fine without heating it.

I would buy a REALLY good evoo for dipping, and use it alone.  OR you can use a grocery store evoo and buy a bottle of dried Herbes des Provence and crumble herbs between your palms to release the oils and fragrance right into the oil.  Then let that jar sit overnight.  Your oil will be fragrant and yummy


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## Mr Kram (Oct 8, 2008)

all of the above herbs and combinations are great.  i personally love olive tapenades also.  i think you could tweak this concept to make a nice dipping oil.


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## jabbur (Oct 8, 2008)

Okay, so I picked up some Capelli EVOO and some rosemary.  Already have oregano thyme and garlic at home.  Hope to try this combo tonight at dinner.


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## Jeekinz (Oct 8, 2008)

Sounds good.  Like CJ said, I would try to go by the idea "less is more" so you make the oil and bread shine instead of covering it up.  You could also make a couple different oils with different ingredients.


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## Jeff G. (Oct 13, 2008)

jabbur said:


> DH and I went to a Carrabba's for the first time.  Enjoyed the food.  DH particularly liked the crusty bread with olive oil and herbs for dipping.  I thought about having some on hand here at home but am hopelessly lost as to which herbs to get as well as a good tasting olive oil.  What do you guys use or can suggest?



I like dried tomato, basil and red pepper in oil.. very tasty.


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## Billdolfski (Oct 18, 2008)

How bout parm or romano cheese?


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## Michael in FtW (Oct 19, 2008)

I don't know how close to the real thing this copy-cat recipe is - but you might look and see if it sounds close to what you had:

Carrabba's Herb Oil for Dipping Bread Copy-Cat Recipe

Read down the comments - one person claims they used to work at Carrabba and that the oil also contains anchovies. 

I haven't eaten there in so long I can't remember what it tasted like.


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## snack_pack85 (Oct 25, 2008)

You could warm the olive oil up with some sage in it. I do this with butter for a sage butter dipping sauce. It's very easy to tell when the flavor is fully incorporated, the smell fills up the whole house 

I agree that a good evoo is meant to be tasted uncooked, but not everyone can splurge on a great bottle of evoo, so this might be a good alternative.


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