Two extra virgin olive oils, two different jobs. Here's how to use each one.
In an Italian kitchen there's usually more than one bottle by the stove. One is for cooking, poured without thinking twice. The other is kept for the end, for the moment a dish goes to the table.
Piro and Cucino are made for those two moments.
Piro: the oil you finish with
Piro is our organic Tuscan extra virgin olive oil, made from Olivastra Seggianese, Leccino, Moraiolo and Frantoio olives grown on Monte Amiata. The olives are picked green and crushed the same day.
The result is an intense, high-antioxidant oil: grassy and green, with a bitter note and a peppery finish. Those flavors are at their best raw, so Piro goes on at the end.
Use Piro for:
- A thread over soup, beans or risotto just before serving
- Burrata, mozzarella, ricotta or a sharp aged cheese
- Raw vegetables, salads and crudo
- Grilled fish or a sliced steak, after it rests
- Warm bread, with a pinch of salt
- Vanilla gelato, for something unexpected
Piro comes in a dark glass bottle that protects it from light. Keep it closed, away from the stove, and on the table.
Cucino: the oil you cook with
Cucino is our organic, heat-friendly extra virgin olive oil, made for everyday cooking. It's an Italian blend that includes Olivastra Seggianese, Peranzana and Coratina olives, with a rounder, gentler flavor that holds up at the stove.
It comes in a 750 ml aluminium bottle, a size made to be used generously, and aluminium keeps out light completely.
Use Cucino for:
- Sautéing greens, onions and garlic
- Roasting vegetables and potatoes
- Searing fish and meat
- Sauces, soffritto and braises
- Baking, in place of butter in olive oil cakes
- Everyday dressings
How to use them together
The simplest rule: Cucino goes in the pan, Piro goes on the plate.
Take a weeknight pasta with broccoli rabe. Cook the greens and garlic in Cucino. Toss the pasta, plate it, and finish with a spoonful of Piro. The first oil carries the cooking. The second brings the dish to life.
The same goes for a holiday table:
| Dish | Cucino | Piro |
| Roast squash | Roast in it | Drizzle over with flaky salt |
| Braised beans | Start the soffritto | Finish each bowl |
| Roast chicken or turkey | Rub the skin before roasting | Spoon over the sliced meat |
| Potatoes | Roast them crisp | Toss with herbs at the end |
| Olive oil cake | Bake with it | Serve a slice with a few drops |
Can you cook with Piro?
Yes. Extra virgin olive oil is stable at normal cooking temperatures, and Romain explains why in Should you cook with extra virgin olive oil?. Piro's most delicate flavors, though, come through best when it isn't heated. That's why we made Cucino: so you can cook with olive oil every day, and save Piro for the moment it shines.
Find your pair
Most people start with Piro, fall for the flavor, and then want an oil that's just as honest to cook with. The Piro + Cucino set brings the two together.
