Italy is synonymous with the olive tree. As you move further south, these ancient trees reach up higher and higher, their trunks becoming larger and more twisted.
Over the centuries, each unique form has witnessed so many stories of hardship, pleasure, companionship, treachery, honour, love, hate, family struggles and successes. They tell us the whole history of Italy through the ages and under different masters.
On visits to Italy, I have walked through the groves in my parents’ village in Varapodio and tried to imagine what it was like for my mother and father before they emigrated to Australia, working almost as slaves under the feudal system, not knowing from one day to the next whether they had work, and always under pressure to feed their ever-growing family in a beautiful but totally unforgiving countryside.
Wherever Italians have migrated, you will find olive trees – admittedly, there are no olives in the Arctic and Antarctic but we are working on that! All over Australia, Italian homes are distinguishable by their unique blend of beauty and pragmatism – the white balustrades, the brightly coloured rendered fences, the shutter blinds, the fruit trees out in the front garden and, always, the olive tree in the nature strip.
There are some basic rules for preserving olives
Always use fresh, hard and unbruised fruit.
Make sure all your utensils are clean. Do not use copper, brass, iron or galvanised utensils, as this will cause a chemical reaction with the
olives and taint the flavour.Make sure your containers for brining are clean, unchipped and made from non-reactive materials: glass, stainless steel, enamelware, stoneware, porcelain, earthenware, terracotta or plastic.
Always clean jars and lids before use.
Always fill your jars evenly and make sure the olives are completely submerged in the brine. If any olives are above the brine, they will
turn brown and soft and taste mouldy.Always wipe the rims of the jars well to ensure that the seals are as
tight as they can be.The basic ratio for preserving olives in brine is 1kg of olives, 1L of water and 100g of salt.
Olives can be prepared for preserving in a number of ways. The most common are as follows.
Curing in caustic soda
The curing of green olives with lye (a dilute solution of caustic soda) is popular in central and northern Italy. There are many varieties and sizes of olives, each of which has a different oil content.
The best varieties to use for this method are the sevillano (Spanish queen), ascolani and manzanillo. Manzanillo takes longer to cure with lye. You need to be attentive to the concentration of the lye because if it is too strong, the skin of the olive is liable to blister. The ideal temperature for this process is 18C to 29C, with the rate of curing increasing with temperature. Once the olives are cured in this way, they can be placed in brine (see below).
Salt and water
The brine needs to be 100g salt per 1L of water. Traditionally, you add enough salt to the water to make an egg float – this can still be a useful way of gauging if the water is salty enough, though the measurements above should have you on the right track.
To preserve olives in brine you also need acid (lemon or vinegar). The pickling time will vary depending on the olives’ size (longer for larger), ripeness (green take longer than black) and variety: kalamata take up to three months and will always remain slightly bitter, while verdale, frantoio and leccino take less time and will taste nuttier and less bitter.
Note that all olives preserved in brine (salt, water and lemon or vinegar) will ferment in the jars – this is the curing process. So when you open a jar after six to 12 weeks it will fizz, like a bottle of soda water. This is the carbon dioxide that has formed during the fermentation process – the olives have not gone off! Once opened, the olives can be stored in the fridge for months.
Vinegar and oil
Acid can be added by using vinegar rather than lemon, which is typical of Greek-style olives. Add 250ml of white wine vinegar for every 1L of brine and continue as above. Once cured, store the olives in the brine or drain and completely cover in extra-virgin olive oil, to which you can add flavourings such as dried oregano, chilli or fennel seeds.
Olives cured with caustic soda, the Abruzzi way
Olive all’ Abruzzese
7 tbsp caustic soda
10kg hard, fresh green olives (ideally the Spanish queen variety)
500g table salt
Special equipment
3 litre plastic bucket
20 litre plastic bucket
In the 3 litre bucket, slowly and very carefully mix one litre of water with the caustic soda. The caustic soda will heat up, so stay well away. Dilute the caustic soda solution by pouring it into the 20 litre bucket with another 14 litres of water.
Add the olives and mix well. The olives need to be stirred every hour for the first couple of hours. After a period of 10–24 hours, the olives will settle on the bottom of the bucket and there will be none floating on the surface. The olives are now cured. Very carefully pour off the caustic soda solution, then fill the bucket with fresh water.
A reddish pink liquid will come out of the olives. Keep changing the water daily for
a further six to seven days until the water becomes clear and is no longer pink.
At this stage, the olives are ready to place in brine. If the olives are not washed properly of caustic soda solution, they are likely to have a slightly soapy taste to them. Distribute the olives among clean jars.
In a large stockpot, mix the salt with five litres of water and bring to boiling point, then remove from the heat. Boiling the brine sterilises the water and prevents any mould from forming that would spoil the olives. Pour the hot brine over the olives, ensuring they are completely submerged but there is still a 2cm gap at the top of the jars.
Seal; the jars will seal hermetically as they cool. Store in a cool, dark place for six weeks before eating. The olives will keep for up to two years unopened. Once opened, store in the fridge, where they will keep for up to six months.
Olives in brine
Olive in salamoia
This is my compare Frank’s recipe, following the more traditional method for green olives in southern Italy, which is to pickle them in brine. Ensure your olives are perfect – hard and green all over. The best variety to use are Spanish queens, if you can get them.
100g table salt
1kg hard, fresh green olives
2 garlic cloves, peeled and left whole
2 small green jalapeno chillies, left whole
2 slices of lemon
1 tsp fennel seeds (or wild fennel flowers, if you have them available)
Make a brine by bringing the salt and 1 litre of water to the boil in a large stockpot. If you need more brine, add 100 g of table salt for every 1 litre of water.
Distribute the olives between two large clean jars. Add a garlic clove and chilli to each jar, then place a lemon slice on top. If you have access to wild fennel flowers, place a few of these on top too. They not only add flavour but also help to keep the olives submerged in the brine, thus preventing discoloration. Alternatively, you could add fennel seeds for the same flavour.
Pour the still hot brine over the olives, ensuring they are completely submerged but there is still a 2cm gap at the top of the jars. Seal. As the brine cools, it will seal the jars hermetically to prevent the brine from developing a mould and to keep the olives firm. Store in a cool, dark place for six months before eating. The olives will keep for up
to two years unopened. Once opened, store in the fridge, where they will keep for up
to six months.
Variation
Some recipes recommend you first soak the olives in a bucket of water, changing the water daily for three days. This produces a slightly sweeter end result. You can also add sliced celery or extra lemon slices to vary the flavour. I personally like the original recipe.
This is an edited extract from Preserving The Italian Way by Pietro Demaio, Published by Plum, RRP $39.99, Photography by Chris Middleton
