I Asked 6 Food Experts To Name the Best Everyday Olive Oil, They All Said the Same Brand

With so many olive oil options on grocery store shelves, how does one even choose? There are affordable store private label bottles, really expensive options, and a lot more in between. What brand of olive oil is worth buying for everyday cooking, and which should you pass by?

To find out which olive oil you should buy for your every day kitchen needs, including cooking, dressings, and even marinades, I asked six cooking experts—chefs, chef instructors, food editors, and recipe developers—to tell us which bottle should be in your cart.

The Pro Chefs and Food Experts I Asked

• Chef Albert Nguyen: Chef Instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education New York City campus
• Toby Amidor: Registered dietician and author of 10 cookbooks, including The Healthy Meal Prep and Up Your Veggies
• Grave Vallo: Recipe Developer and Owner of Tastefully Grace
• Lauren Randolph: Senior Recipe Editor for Simply Recipes, cookbook author, and award-winning baker
• Sarah Crowder: Art Director for Simply Recipes and formerly a farmer and food photographer
• Haley Scarpino: Newsletter Editor for Simply Recipes, recipe tester, chef, and chef instructor

The Best Everyday Olive Oil, According to Food Experts

Chefs, cookbook authors, and food experts agree that California Olive Ranch is the best bang for your buck when it comes to everyday cooking olive oil.

“California Olive Ranch global blend is my go-to for sautéing, pasta, and any other dish where you don’t want an assertive olive oil flavor,” says Vallo. “You can get a big bottle for a reasonable price, and the flavor is mild, buttery, and fruity.”

Sarah agrees, “We go through it so fast because it’s an ideal everyday olive—peppery enough to round out a homemade salad dressing or finish a soup but mild enough to cook everything else.”

Laurel says, “California Olive Ranch olive oil is so consistent and great to cook with. I use it for everyday cooking, dressings, baking, and drizzling. I love their new squeeze bottles, too.”

The olive oil comes in gorgeous green glass bottles, aluminum bottles, and plastic squeeze bottles for squirting into a pan for sautéing or drizzling on top of a big salad, and a bag-in-a-box.

Haley says, “I love buying California Olive Ranch olive oil by the box—like boxed wine. It makes it more affordable per ounce, and I only have to restock a few times a year [rather than buying the bottles more frequently.]”

Chef Nguyen says that when it comes to buying olive oil, he cares about the quality as well as the cost. He says the type you use—regular olive oil vs. extra virgin olive oil—also matters when choosing which bottle to buy.

“[Extra virgin] works well when sautéing vegetables and proteins and cooking items that have a good amount of moisture to prevent them from smoking,” he explains. “When it comes to roasting, searing, or grilling, I would use a blended olive oil or one that is not extra virgin. I also use olive oil as a base to develop flavorful components for dishes such as soups and rice. Starting off with a healthy layer of olive oil in the pan or pot before adding in a mixture of sofrito or mirepoix is the base flavor for my rice dishes and soups.”

Amidor adds, “I use good olive oil to cook stovetop, while I use extra virgin olive oil in dressings and to drizzle on cooked dishes like veggies.”