An olive oil cooking sprayer is a container which is designed to dispense olive oil in a fine mist. It is possible to buy olive oil in such containers at the store, and cooks can also purchase empty sprayers and fill them with an olive oil of choice. This cooking utensil can be extremely useful, especially for cooks who are health conscious, and concerned about the amount of oil they use in cooking. Many kitchen supply stores sell empty sprayers and nozzles for people who want to use their own olive oil as a cooking spray.
A cooking sprayer is designed to create a thin layer of oil in a pan or on a dish. By using an olive oil cooking sprayer, cooks can lightly coat a pan for sauteing food, or mist pasta and other dishes before serving. The amount of oil used in the dish is greatly reduced by using a sprayer, which controls the amount of oil dispensed. When more oil is needed, people can pour it directly from an olive oil dispenser or bottle.
Several companies manufacture an assortment of cooking sprays, not all of which are healthy. Some contain trans fats and other materials which have proved to be detrimental to human health, and many include stabilizers to keep the oil from going rancid and to keep it thin enough to be easily sprayed. A good olive oil cooking sprayer just contains olive oil, which may be processed to reduce the fat content or left as-is. The taste of dishes cooked with olive oil from a sprayer tends to be fresh and clean, without any of the strange flavors sometimes associated with cooking sprays.
Because olive oil can potentially go rancid, it is important to store an olive oil cooking sprayer in good conditions. Many people keep their oils in the fridge to keep them from going rancid, but this is not a workable solution for sprayers, as the oil can congeal too much to be sprayed. The best place to keep an olive oil cooking sprayer is in a cool, dry place like a kitchen cupboard, and make sure to wipe the sprayer and nozzle down periodically to remove oil. If the sprayer is designed to be refilled, you might consider only partially filling it to ensure that you use the oil quickly.
You may also hear an olive oil cooking sprayer called an olive oil atomizer or just an atomizer. These sprayers can be used for more than just plain olive oil; they also lend themselves well to flavored oils, vinegars, and an assortment of other ingredients which you might want to dispense in a fine mist. They may be made from metal or glass, and the sprayer typically has a flexible plastic tube to collect the oil, attached to a metal or plastic sprayer housing. All of these parts should periodically be washed, ideally every time the sprayer is refilled.