Fratepietro Bella de Cerignola Green Olives in Brine
330 gram jar - Cerignola, Italy
Olives are old. Cultivated olive trees spread from Asia Minor to the Mediterranean basin 6000 years ago and predate written language.
Many of us grew up knowing olives by color or by being either pitted or stuffed. And we knew them as this delicious soft vegetable placed on salads or pizza.
As our culinary knowledge expanded we learned that olives, by the time they arrive in the palm of our hands, come in many colors.
These colors are based in part on when they are plucked from the tree: green is sooner, black is later, or riper. Riper is not better, just different. There is no such thing as a green olive tree - or a black one for that matter. Like humans, olives all start the same, same structure, they just look different when they ripen, and depending on the brining, taste different too.
And then there is variety. The big four - green, black, pitted, and stuffed, are not varieties. In fact there are over 2000 varieties of olives grown in warm climates around the world.
We have learned that the mighty olive is a drupe, a fruit (not a vegetable) with a single pit like a peach, or a cherry.
Unlike their sweet brethren, olives contain a compound called oleuropein. This is the bitterness that fills the olive. Olives off the tree are not filled with joy, instead they are filled with bitterness from the oleuropein. To achieve the desirable love you know, you have to cure them. A fermentation of sorts.
Curing removes the yucky taste of oleuropein and phenols from the olives, resulting in quite a tasty treat!
Understanding the curing process may result in knowing which olives you prefer. The curing of olives can happen in the sun, in salt, in lye, water or brine. Lye is the fastest and water takes the longest, and brine-curing can take up to a year.
In the end, olives should never be mushy; soft can be okay, firm is good, and color will vary. Stuffed olives are delish and have a dedicated shaken and stirred following.
These large green Italian olives are from Cerignola, Italy and have recently been crazy super popular!
They are big and beautiful!
If you have a small mouth you might have to bite a little off at a time.
The pit itself is as big as some olives are. The saltiness of the brine and soft firm flesh is delicious and satisfying, so much that one olive, plus sucking on the pit, lasts longer and is more satisfying than a bag of potato chips!
This is one of my all-time favorite olives. The big, mouth-filling olive is firm, with a great crunch, lots of meat to eat, and just the right brine; they are soooo gooood! Get some giant green olives here!