Olive Oil Bread Dip

This Olive Oil Bread Dip is the perfect thing to serve that feels slightly elevated but is so easy to put together. Put it on the table at a dinner party, serve with warm crusty bread as an quick appetizer with other dips or small plates – it’s really versatile and so flavorful, reminiscent of your favorite Italian restaurant. 

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Ingredient substitutions 
• Step by step instructions 
• Tips and tricks
• Recipe additions
• Understanding the terminology of olive oil 
• Storage 
• FAQs
• 📖 Recipe

Ingredients

Some staple ingredients are used to make this simple olive oil dip, many of which can be easily found in your local grocery stores, if not in your pantry. 

• Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO): use extra virgin olive oil not olive oil – since this recipe doesn’t involve cooking or high heat, you want to use a high quality EVOO with the best flavor. 
• Balsamic vinegar: a splash of balsamic vinegar is a classic pairing with EVOO that brings a ton of flavor.  
• Dried oregano: the more concentrated flavor that comes from dried oregano is delicious. 
• Red pepper flakes: for a bit of spice. 
• Fresh parsley: a hint of fresh herbs round everything out and softens the flavors. 
• Olives: chop up some of your favorite olives and add them to the dip, my personal favorite is castelvetrano green olives.
• Garlic: one clove of fresh garlic – when grated it packs a bunch of flavor. 
• Parmesan cheese: grated parmesan cheese adds a bit of a salty kick and nutty flavor. 
• Salt: kosher salt. If you need to use table salt, use a little less because it is naturally saltier. 

Ingredient substitutions 

• Balsamic vinegar: to be a bit more mild, a white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar would be a good alternative, or simply use less.
• Dried herbs: you can use any of your favorite herb combinations here, or even an Italian seasoning would be great. If you don't have fried herbs you can substitute for all fresh herbs and use fresh oregano minced. 
• Fresh herbs: aside from parsley, fresh basil or fresh rosemary would be delicious. 
• Red pepper flakes: I’d suggest aleppo pepper flakes for a more mild, sweet heat but if you are completely adverse to spice I would suggest omitting this ingredient altogether. 
• Garlic: roasted garlic would also be delicious. If you don't have fresh garlic on hand, garlic powder is also fine. 

Step by step instructions 

This is an incredibly easy recipe, the only instruction is to combine everything in a bowl. Full ingredient quantities can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post. 

Tips and tricks

Check out the tips and tricks below to help make sure you have no issues making this recipe. 

• The olive oil and vinegar won’t completely combine to become homogeneous, that’s ok! That’s part of the beauty of the recipe. 
• The best way to serve olive oil dip is with fresh bread – always use your favorite bread but my suggestion would be sourdough bread, focaccia, olive bread, ciabatta, or a baguette. Bonus points if you serve warm bread or homemade bread.
  • This is a trusty recipe for homemade by Recipe Tin Eats.
• To make this in advance, store it in an airtight container in the fridge – the olive oil will solidify, so make sure you take it out to get to room temp 1-2 hours before serving. 
• Use an EVOO that you like the flavor of because it is the base of this recipe. 
• Serve with a teaspoon on the side for people to scoop the olives and herbs onto their bread. 
• If you have leftover dip, this makes a fantastic salad dressing! On an Italian chopped salad, yum. 

Recipe additions

If you'd like to add more ingredients to this dipping oil below are some suggestions:

• Minced sundried tomatoes.
• If you'd like more acid than the balsamic vinegar provides, a squeeze of lemon juice or the zest of some lemon would be great.
• Chopped roasted red peppers. 

Understanding the terminology of olive oil 

• “Extra virgin olive oil” is the least processed form of olive oil and has the lowest smoke point from there – virgin olive oil – olive oil – etc., it gets more and more processed and therefore less robust in flavor. Keep in mind, extra virgin olive oil has a shelf life of 12-18 months once bottled. 
• DOP (Protected Designation of Origin) – an italian label which means it is a product certified from Italy. 
• Cold pressed – means the oil was extracted at temperatures below 80°F. 
• Unfiltered – means gravity was used to remove the solids and therefore some sediment may remain. 

Storage 

• While this olive oil dip is best eaten same-day, you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Let it come to room temperature before you serve it so the olive oil can de-solidify. 

FAQs

📖 Recipe