Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants)

“Drizzle on as a finishing oil for salads and roasted vegetables.”

Ingredients: Extra virgin olive oil, fresh Sicilian lemons

This was a new fall product at Trader Joe’s which got a little buzz around it. A nice extra virgin oil with a hint of lemony flavor.

LIMONE PREMUTO – a “cold pressed extra virgin olive oil with whole fresh Sicilian lemons” ($7.99 for about 8 oz)

This is for the real foodies. These types of oils are called “agrumato”.

Agrumato olive oil – “simultaneously crushing olives with fresh herbs or fruits together for exceptional flavor, distinct aromatics.”

It just says “Product of Italy”, so unclear to me if the oil is also from Sicily but I would assume it probably is. Other vendors of this type of (agrumato oil) usually say something like “this distinctive product is made by crushing fresh olives and Sicilian citrus fruits together. This unique process results in an extra virgin olive oil with a vibrant, bright citrus finish. The combination of olives and citrus fruits creates an oil that not only adds a refreshing twist but also brings an authentic taste of Sicily to your kitchen.”

This olive oil has a lovely flavor with that little bit of bitterness that hits the back of your throat, which is a sign of a high quality extra virgin oil that is fresh. There’s no visible lemon pulp or rind, its been filtered out but the oil looks a little cloudy from the pressing with the citrus. The lemon flavoring is subtle, just a hint in the background, its not strong at all. You want to taste this oil and you do.

When I’ve used this I’ve found that if I squeeze on some fresh lemon juice as well, it really improves everything, so suggest trying that. This is good as they say on salads and roasted vegetables, but you could drizzle it on practically anything, such as a pasta, or as a dipping for bread.

Trader Joe’s LIMONE PREMUTO costs $8 for just over 8 oz. In contrast TJ’s sells a 17 oz bottle of excellent SICILIAN EVOO for about $12 (which used to cost $10!) That Sicilian oil is double the size of this bottle. If I add a squeeze of fresh lemon and perhaps even a little lemon zest on my dish and get a similar effect, albeit my lemon is not Sicilian! Therefore though I like this oil, it’s a “specialty oil”, a little splurge. Still, you would be drizzling on just a bit of this. On a budget I would probably buy the bigger bottle of their Sicilian EVOO and add my own lemon, or garlic as desired.

Just for comparison, here’s a similar item on amazon, same size, $20 https://amzn.to/4kXGv8Z

Worth trying if you are into olive oils and can afford it for a small bottle. Otherwise I’d say go for the bigger bottle of the SICILIAN oil at TJ’s.