This Is One Of The Most Essential Kitchen Ingredients, According To Aarón Sánchez

Over the last year or so, we sure have seen an awful lot of food-related trends, thanks to TikTok. On the breakfast front, there was pancake cereal, which, as it turns out, really just defeats the entire purpose of cereal (hello, convenience?). Then there was nature's cereal, which turned out to be nothing more than the story of what happens when you really want a smoothie, but your blender's on the fritz. On the topic of inadvisable things that you can do with cheese, we were treated to toaster-grilled cheese and Mac 'N Hot Cheetos.

We could go on, but today, our focus is on something truly useful that we learned via TikTok, thanks to the MasterChef-ery of the one and only Aarón Sánchez, who shared with fans what he considers to be one of the most essential ingredients in existence, and how to find yourself the best of the best of it. 

If you're in the market for a weird and novel food trend such as how to build your own nacho table, then this might not interest you (although we can definitely recommend a viral feta pasta post that had us scratching our heads, if you're so inclined). On the other hand, if you're into really useful tips from professional chefs, then you might want to listen to what celebrity chef Aarón Sánchez had to say on TikTok as part of his "Tips from a Master Chef" series (via TikTok). But we're happy to break it down for you. In fact, it really all comes down to this: olive oil. 

Olive oil is one of the most essential ingredients you can keep in your kitchen, according to Aarón Sánchez. Drizzle it on top of salads, use it for pan-frying and sautéing all the things, and keep it around, along with "good sea salt and good regular salt," as he told Mashed during an exclusive interview. And as an extra-added bonus, Sánchez offered up that his favorite olive oils come from Spain and South America, but you pretty much can't go wrong if your olive oil is sourced from any place that is known for its wine. Genius!