77 Virgin Olive Oil Benefits A study developed at the University of Granada (Spain) and published in the scientific journal ‘Food Chemistry (2015)’ showed that vegetables fried with EVOO are healthier than when boiled in water. A transfer of the characteristic phenols of the EVOO to the vegetables (potato, pumpkin, tomato, and eggplant) occurs, thus augmenting the nutritional value of these foods in the cooking process despite a caloric increase from the absorbed EVOO. Thus, EVOO by conveying the heat of the cooking process increases the phenolic content of the vegetables when compared to a boiling process in which the heat transfer is by water. Research from a study developed in the University of the Basque Country (Spain) and published in ‘Food Research International’ (2016) examined fish frying by analyzing the effect of fish and oil. Two types of oils were used (EVOO and sunflower oil), two types of fish (carp and sea bass), and two types of processing (microwave oven and frying). Results showed that frying with EVOO was the best option because it was more stable, less oxidizable, and generated fewer quantities of toxic aldehydes. There was also an interchange of lipids between fish and oils, when using EVOO the fish was enriched with polyphenols (Figure 4.5). Figure 4.5. Frying with EVOO, gastronomic culture, and a healthy culinary art. As a popular saying states: “With a lot of oil in the frying pan, anyone can cook well”. Photography: Francisco Lorenzo Tapia. The study which has best scientifically linked health, nutrition, gastronomy, Mediterranean diet, and EVOO is The PREDIMED Study (Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease with a Mediterranean Diet). The PREDIMED was a randomised, controlled, multicentre, clinical nutritional trial focused on the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The participants were 7447 men and women at high CVD risk randomised into three intervention groups. Two of them received advice about following a Mediterranean diet pattern and were supplement-
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