Margini

New oil and the time that stands still

How to capture the sharpness of freshly pressed oil and transform it into a bridge between seaweed and citrus.

New oil, that which is milled within the first seventy-two hours of harvest, has a pH and polyphenol load that make it as unstable as it is precious: oxidation begins the moment it meets air and light, so the first rule in the kitchen is to treat it like a living ferment, not an inert condiment. I keep it in dark bottles at 14°C, and portion it into small daily amounts: every extra transfer means losing that note of raw artichoke and green pepper I seek. In Japan, oil does not hold this centrality, but the concept of shun — the exact moment of an ingredient — taught me to treat new oil as I would a freshly caught fish: with urgency and respect for its biological time. The technique I use to fix this volatility is a cold emulsion with light dashi, in a proportion of 70% oil to 30% dashi filtered at 60°C, whipped together with an immersion blender for exactly 40 seconds.

The dashi, rich in glutamate from the kombu, softens the bitterness of the oil without masking it, and the low temperature of the dashi prevents the oil from heating up and losing its aromatic terpenes. The result is a sauce that remains stable in the refrigerator for three days, no longer: beyond this limit, the emulsion breaks and the oil begins to oxidize faster than it would on its own. To enhance the sharpness of the new oil, I always work with a decisive acidic contrast: homemade yuzu kosho, fermented for 15 days at 18°C with 3% salt by weight of the chili and yuzu zest. This condiment, spread in a thin veil over scallops seared for 45 seconds per side over high heat, creates a direct bridge between the vegetable bitterness of the oil and the fermented oriental umami.

The scallop must remain translucent in the center: prolonged cooking would disperse the juices that otherwise dialogue with the oil in the mouth. With seasonal vegetables, especially roots like sunchoke, I use the new oil raw only after steaming at 90°C for 12 minutes: the low temperature preserves the starch that then binds the oil in the mouth, creating an almost creamy texture without the addition of animal fats or butter. A drizzle of oil poured hot over the freshly cooked vegetable, in direct contact, momentarily activates aromatic compounds that would otherwise remain closed: it is a reaction similar to that obtained by slightly heating toasted sesame before pressing it. My practical advice: if you have new oil at home, do not wait for winter to use it on heavy soups.

Use it within the first four weeks on delicate raw seafood — a hamachi carpaccio, for example — at room temperature, not refrigerated, because the cold anesthetizes the very spicy notes that justify its purchase. After a month, time will have already changed it: at that point, it is best to reserve it for more robust cooking, where its mutation becomes an asset rather than a loss.

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