Marinades

Our olives are packaged for sale in red or white vinegar, sometimes with a little olive oil. Fruit may be sold in this way or we may marinate it for a further period.  Our standard table olive marinades include:  

• Herbs and garlic. This works well with most fruit, either black or green. Herbs used include bay, oregano, basil, fennel & sage.
• Chilli and garlic. This marinade appeals to people who like a little “bite” in their fruit. Our standard marinade has a moderate amount of chilli, but we can ramp up the degree of chilli on request.
  For people who like the chilli extra hot we suggest you grind fresh chilli to taste in a little olive oil and add this to our olives. The extra chilli will be taken up within about 24 hours.  
• Lemon, herb and garlic. This works best with green fruit complementing their more austere flavours. This fruit is particularly suited as a pre-dinner appetiser.

From time to time we release special marinades to suit a particular fruit. Keep and eye out for these or contact us to suggest your own ideas.  

 Storage

Once opened olives will keep for many months if covered with brine, marinade or olive oil and kept in a cool dry place. They do not need to be refrigerated. If they have been stored with olive oil this will solidity in a refrigerator. Returning the jar to room temperature will reverse this process.  

Olives and Cooking

There are many recipes in all Mediterranean cuisines in which olives play an important part. Unless the recipe says otherwise, only plain black olives should be used for cooking. Manzanillo is particularly suited to cooking as it has plenty of flesh and comes away cleanly from the pit.

Green or black olives work well in salads or antipasto dishes. If the olives have been marinated this can enhance the over all result.

Stuffed Olives

Stuffed lives look good, but to the "died in the wool" olive lover the taste of the olive can be lost, (or it may never have been there.) Rather than pay for stuffed olives why not make use plain or marinade olives with sun dried tomatoes, roasted capsicum and a firm cheese as part of a traditional antipasto dish.