Contents
Olives cure characteristics and ways to cure them
CHARACTERISTICS OF CURED OLIVES
Why to cure olives?
Most olives are toxic when consumed raw, so they should undergo a cure and fermentation process to destroy the bitter substance they contain.
How is olive cure carried out?
Olives cure process differs depending on the point of fruit ripening:
- If you plan to cure green olives, this is done with water, oil, salt and caustic soda or lye. Caustic soda or lye is applied for green olives to lose their acidity.Upon completion of this process, they are deposited in oil or brine for cure process can take place for some period of time.
- If we want to cure black olives, it is not necessary to apply bleach or caustic soda, since, because of his greater maturity, they are not acidic. To do so, they are deposited directly in brine (salty water) and oil and they are left to cure.
- After the cure process to which they are subjected to, they are not only suitable for human consumption, but they also taste delicious, depending on the variety and type of dressing that they have been submitted to.
Methods of olive cure
Green cured olives
- How to cure green olives: Green olives cure require olives to be subjected to a basic substance as sodium hydroxide or lye, prior to dressing, to remove their acidity.Subsequently, they need to be dressed. Dressing olives is done by adding vinegar together with other possible ingredients such as lemon, spices, herbs or even hot spices. Later, they are allowed to stand for a short period of time to absorb the aromatic properties and taste of the added ingredients.
- How to cure black olives: Black olives are subjected to three or four weeks of soaking in brine (salty water) Then, the aforementioned dressing is added. Black olives undergo soaking with water only, for more than one week. This water should be changed daily.After the soaking period, black olives must be submitted to a boil, drained and cooled. This process must be done three consecutive times. The boiling water must also be changed.To complete the preparation you only have to add some acid product and some seasonings, such as vinegar and / or lemon, some species, herbs, spices, etc.
Then, you can cover them with oil to enhance conservation and let them stand for a few days to absorb the aromatic properties of the added ingredients.
How can you eat cured olives?
Black cured olives
No matter if they are black or green, we can find the following edible olives in the market:
- Whole and seasoned.
- Boneless seasoned.
- Boneless rolled.
- Boneless with food added as filler, such as anchovy, red pepper, garlic, cucumber, etc..
* More information: classes of cured olives, canned olives with herbs
More information on olives.
This article was endorsed by Elisenda Carballido - Dietitian nutritionist. Postgraduate in Phytotherapy and master in Nutrition and Metabolism.
