Curing Fresh Olives
Freshly picked olives are rock-hard and intensely bitter. Curing is the patience required to transform them into something that holds the snap and salt of the grove.
Pick them at the right stage
Green olives provide a firm, crisp bite, while black olives yield a softer, oilier result. Ensure your olives are free of bruises or insect holes, as any damage will lead to spoilage during the long soak.
- glass jars with tight-fitting lids
- paring knife
- clean kitchen towel
- weight or fermentation stone
What goes in.
- 5 lbfresh, unwashed olives
- as neededcoarse sea salt
- as neededcold filtered water
- optionallemon zest or fennel fronds
Maintaining the Seal
Olives must remain fully submerged. Exposure to air invites mold, so use a weight to keep them pressed beneath the surface of the brine.
The method.
Prepare the olives
Use a paring knife to make two shallow vertical slits in each olive, or gently crack them with a wooden mallet. This allows the brine to penetrate the flesh.
Begin the soak
Place olives in a glass jar and cover completely with cold water. Change the water daily for 10 to 14 days. Taste one after the first week; when the bitterness is reduced to your liking, move to the brine.
Mix the brine
Dissolve 1 part sea salt into 10 parts water. Pour this over your drained, soaked olives until they are submerged.
Seal and wait
Add aromatics if desired. Secure the lid tightly and place the jar in a cool, dark cupboard. Check after three months for the final texture.
Other turns to take.
Dry Salt Cure
Layer uncracked black olives with coarse salt in a cloth bag or colander, rotating them daily for 4-6 weeks until they shrivel and become concentrated.
When it doesn't go to plan.
Always use non-reactive containers like glass or food-grade plastic; metal will taint the flavor.
If you see a white, cloudy film on the brine surface, it is often just harmless yeast, but fuzzy mold requires discarding the batch.
If the olives remain too salty after curing, soak them in fresh water for 24 hours before serving.
The ones that keep coming up.
How do I know when they are ready?
The flesh should be uniform in color and lose that raw, astringent sting. Test one; if it still feels like it is pulling the moisture out of your mouth, give it another two weeks.
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