Storage

Once you have started a bottle, use it up; it’s not an heirloom to keep, no matter what it cost you. Keep it tightly closed when not using it, and away from the heat of the stove or the light from a sunny kitchen window. You may note from the photographs of my kitchen that I do keep my oil near the stove, but I use up a bottle in less than a week. Nonetheless, when I am not cooking, I cover it with a corrugated sleeve taken from a wine carton.

Unless you have a pizza shop, do not transfer the oil into one of those picturesque cans with a spout. They cannot be closed tight, so they accelerate rancidity. Do not keep olive oil in the refrigerator, because condensation will produce drops of water that contaminate the oil and make it rancid. Do not buy oil from a shop that keeps it in a show window or on a shelf under hot lights.