We give you all our tips to keep your olives!

How to keep your olives freshly harvested as long as possible? Discover our tips for tasty olives!

During harvesting, olives often arrive in large quantities. But how can you keep them to savor them over time? Here are all the disomency techniques to remove bitterness and take advantage of delicious olives all year round.

First step: Dismeritization

Dismerization is essential to make olives pleasant in the mouth, in particular green olives. Unlike other fruits, the olive cannot be consumed directly after harvest, even when it is ripe (black olive), because it is still too bitter and inedible.

Discover the main methods of disomency which, although having varied durations and techniques, each bring a distinct flavor and texture to olives:

1.

This natural and simple method is to immerse your olives in a large volume of clear water, changing the water every day. For black olives, a soaking 10 to 14 days is enough, while green olives often require up to 20 days. Although this method takes time, it is easy to implement and gives soft and subtle results.

2. The "salt stings"

The coarse salt conservation method, called "salt stings", has been used for a long time, especially for black olives, which are naturally less bitter. Here's how to proceed:

• Prepare a suitable container : Choose a container allowing the flow of water, like a perforated crate, and alternate layers of olives and coarse salt, starting and ending with a layer of salt.
• Let stand 4 to 6 weeks : During this period, the salt extracted water and the bitterness of the olives, while seasoning them slightly. Stir regularly and add salt if necessary, because the water extracted dissolves part of the initial salt.
• Taste and rinse : From 4 weeks, taste the olives to check the taste. Once the bitterness is at your convenience, rinse them quickly in clear water, then let them dry.

This technique gives olives a concentrated and intense taste, with a slightly wrinkled and firm texture due to the loss of water, which makes them unique.

3. Soda laundry

Soda laundry is a quick and effective method, particularly used for green olives. However, caustic soda is corrosive and requires specific precautions: wear gloves, protective glasses, and use a HDPE or borosilicated glass container.

Here are the steps of this method:

• Preparation of the solution : For first use, opt for a concentration of 1 % (10 g of soda per liter of water). Add the soda to cold water (never opposite) to avoid splashes.
• Olive soaking : Place the olives in an adapted container and cover them completely with the soda solution.
• Duration control : Soak between 8 and 12 hours. To check the progression, cut an olive in two after 8 hours: the solution must penetrate about two thirds of the flesh. If necessary, extend the soaking without exceeding 12 hours.
• Intensive rinsing : After soaking, rinse the olives several times to eliminate the soda. Make a 4 hour first soaking, change the water, then repeat this cycle a second time. Finally leave the olives in the water overnight. If the water remains troubled, make a last rinse of 4 hours.

Once well rinsed, olives are ready for preservation in brine or olive oil with herbs.

Second step: olive conservation methods

1. Conservation of olives in brine

Conservation in brine, used for centuries, consists in diving olives into a bath of salt and water to preserve their freshness. Immersed in brine, olives are protected from air and outdoor bacteria, while continuing to develop rich and intense flavors.

👉 Find our brine recipe here.

2. Cook your olives to keep them longer

If you prefer to diversify the flavors, cook your olives in tapenade! In addition to extending their conservation, this guarantees you to be always ready for the aperitif. Tapenade is a delicious way to keep the olives while creating a tasty preparation.

👉 Discover our tapenade recipe here.

3. Storage in olive oil

For a method of practical preservation and ready to taste, opt for olives in olive oil! Here's how to do:

• Drain the olives and place them in a clean jar, covered with olive oil.
• Add aromatic herbs (thyme, rosemary) or garlic to flavor.

Trick : Olive oil solidifies cold. Remember to take out the jar 15 to 30 minutes before consuming so that it finds its fluid texture. After tasting the olives, reuse the oil for your dishes or salads! This method helps keep olives between 2 and 3 months in the refrigerator.

4. Olive freezing

For those who prefer ultra-simple conservation, freezing is an ideal option. Place the olives in hermetic boxes or wrap them under vacuum to avoid cold burns.

Note : Olives can become slightly softer after defrosting, but remain delicious in tapenade or to enhance your dishes. This method helps keep olives for about 6 months.

Another big question, should we keep with or without nuclei? 

There is no need to pit the olives before keeping them, but it depends on how you want to use them later. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of the two options:

Keep olives With nuclei:

• Benefits :
  • Olives with nuclei tend to better keep their texture and flavor.
  • The nucleus acts as a natural barrier which prevents olives from softening too quickly.
  • They keep longer, especially in brine or in oil.
• Disadvantages : They require a bid before consumption.

Keep olives pitted :

• Benefits :
  • Practical if you intend to use them directly in dishes (salads, tapenades, etc.).
  • No need to handle olives before use.
• Disadvantages :
  • The underground olives tend to lose their texture more quickly and can become cleaner over time.
  • They can also lose a little of their flavor, because the nucleus contributes to keeping part of the aroma.

In summary, if you want a longer conservation and olives with a better texture, it is better to leave them with their nuclei. If you need speed of use, you can pit them before storage, but the shelf life will generally be shorter.