I am an olive convert.
Less than six years ago( has it really only been six years ?) I did not like olives. I always believed I should like them, since I have loved all things pickled and brined since I was an infant( not an exaggeration, there is photo evidence ). But olives always just seemed to smell weird, and any time I tried to like them I discovered them too salty. I blame the weird, canned supermarket varieties, those round, black , non-olive entities that can be found haunting nacho platters everywhere.
Like all childhood aversions to food that persist longer than they should, all it took to change my mind about olives was trying the right kind: these ones were not too salty, with a firm flesh, and brined in wine and herbs. Call me a believer.
Now I'm addicted. I often have at least two different varieties in my fridge, and the olive bar at Sahadi's in Brooklyn, NY, constructs me embarrassingly giddy. It's like I'm making up for lost day, because now I'm known as the person who brings olives to the party.
Choosing the right olive depends as much on mood as it does on what you're using the olives for and how you plan to eat them. Here's a guide to help.
Choose Your Olive
The more you know about what you're serving your olives with , the more you'll know about which ones to pick. Kalamata olives are generally saltier than their green cousins, so their flavor is much more intense. Both Kalamata and Ligurian olives work great in a Summer Bolognese alongside torn basil leaves and salty parmesan. They also shine atop a grilled flatbread with sardines and caramelized onions--just make sure to pit them first!
Green olives, on the other hand, tend to be much milder, and therefore work great as background music in dishes that have bolder foreground notes. Pitted and chopped Castelvetranos add a buttery, somewhat salty component to pasta tossed with briny capers, parsley, dill, and lemon zest. They're also not too showy to be stuffed with pork and beef, then deep fried like these Fried Stuffed Olives.
But my favorite route to enjoy olives is all on their own, preferably with a glass of wine. Whole Kalamatas, which are meaty and briny, are great alongside a block of feta--as are most things--while many green olive varieties are enhanced by a simple marinade. Consider these Green Olives Marinated with Wild Fennel or Lemon and Coriander Marinated Olives. Cracked, but not pitted olives, work well here, as they allow the flavors in the marinade to actually get in there.
Watch: How to Make Tapenade
