October 2023
‘Contrary to popular belief olive oil was fairly common in many colonial kitchens … While olive oil was sold, used and marketed for medicinal purposes by chemists it was predominantly used for culinary purposes, and sold in local grocers’ shops.’ Philippa Vaughan, The Cook and the Curator 2019.
I put my hand up as one of those, and a self-professed Australian food historian at that, who bought the line that olive oil was not available outside of chemists till after the arrival of Italians and Greeks post World War Two. So Vaughan’s statement brought me up short and piqued my interest.
I set out to investigate, my particular interest being in how olive oil was presented in the public arena through press and cookery books.
