I found four old unopened gallon metal cans of Napoleon brand Pomace Olive Oil in storage. It has been stored outside in a sealed shed and has been through multiple temperature changes, etc, throughout the seasons. The tops of the cans are little rusty. I dont know what to do with it, hate to throw it out, maybe its still good for cooking or something else, I dont know and am not a cook. any suggestions?

 

You should be able to tell by smell or heat some in a pan and smell it then. If the cans were still factory sealed, the heat wouldn't be a problem and I wouldn't think cold would either. Decant one into a clean clear container and check for sediment or contaminates.

I saw some pretty nasty looking cans (on the outside) in little places in Italy, but they had no problems making some great dishes with them.

 

Yeah, you can tell right away from the smell if it's good or not. Olive oil (or any oil for that matter) has an awful smell when it goes rancid. Problem is, even if it's good, unless you're going to use it quickly, once it's open, it can go bad pretty fast, especially if the temp is warm.
FYI, olive oil is not the best oil to use for frying.

 

Hey...I never said anything about frying...lol. I just said heat it a bit.

But you are right..the smoke temp(?) is too low. I finally started using safflower oil..think thats the highest temp commonly available.

I do saute carrots and cut squash in olive oil..but regular dark..not extra virgin..better flavor.

Anyway...yeah, squll, don't let anyone use it in a deep fryer or anything..no matter what you wind up doing with it.

 

How old is it anyway?Maybe it's a collectible antique.People will buy anything on eBay.

You could always give her back to popeye.

 

If I opened a can and smelled the oil, how is it supposed to smell, how do I know whether it smells like good or bad olive oil?

 

I've smelled old motor oil (from unopened containers) and it smells pretty much the same as new motor oil, didn't necessarily smell rancid. If I do open one of the cans of the old olive oil, where's a good place to store it where the temp won't be too warm to make it go bad fast? Also, what is "pomace" olive oil, anyway? How is different from any other olive oil, if at all?

 

Gunguy perhaps you would care to buy this olive oil? If you don't use it to saute your carrots and cut squash, maybe you could sell it on ebay it may be a collectors item. But whatever you do, don't use it in a deep fryer or anything.

 

No idea how old it is, nobody knows. I'll research, though, to find out if may just be a collector's item.
I checked with popeye but he said he wants Olive Oyl, not olive oil (and especially not old olive oil in rusty cans).

 

Per wiki
Olive-pomace oil is refined pomace olive production oil possibly blended with some virgin production oil. It is fit for consumption, but may not be described simply as olive oil. Olive-pomace oil is rarely sold at retail; it is often used for certain kinds of cooking in restaurants.

Veg oils and mineral oils (motor oil) are 2 different animals. If you ever smelled an old can of bacon grease or a bad piece of leftover meat in the back of the fridge, you'd know the smell. An old package of bacon maybe?

Motor oil has to perform at sub-zero temps and 200 degrees...temp doesn't affect it.

I'd try to give your old olive oil away to someone..or at least find a place you can dump it in their used grease tank.


EDIT...lol...no thanks...I'm a good cook..only make myself sick every couple of months.

 

Okay thanks for that interesting wiki info, and the other info as well (mineral vs animal oil).

I've been offering to give the oil away, but so far no one is interested. Can't understand why...

 

I know what you meant, just clarifying to sgull.
Sounds as appetizing as the other thread, LOL!
Well...........I can take a guess.

 

I was doing a little investigating about this pomace olive oil. I found an interesting discussion here: pomace olive oil?????? - Home Cooking - Chowhound
Apparently it does have a high flash point and can be used for deep frying. Or you can use it to make soap, or to put in the crankcase of your motorcyle, clean your barbecue grill, all kinds of cool stuff.

 

Well now I KNOW I wouldn't want to eat it, YUK!
Scary thought that some restaurants use it for deep frying. I'll have to think twice before ordering french fries again.

 

Oh come on, it's probably okay. Maybe the reason I found it out in storage was because somebody was saving it for special occasions but simply forgot about it. Here's some more more discussion from those more knowledgeable than us about the stuff. Pomace olive oil - Cooking Recipes Forums

 

no one wants it for there bio fuel vehicles that run on french fry grease.

 

Nope, no one wants it for anything. So I threw it out.

 

Guess that was the best decision - at least cooking with it would have been a disaster

 

What is wrong with using olive oil for frying? That is what I normally use and have never had a problem with it even when making frying pan popcorn.

 

Olive oil is of course generally okay for frying and cooking, but there seems to be a consensus regarding "pomace" olive oil that it is undesirable for such for various reasons in the way it is processed (see link shown in post #13 this thread).