Preserving olives

Mrs Fuzzywig · Post by **Mrs Fuzzywig** » 05 Sep 2008, 20:54

Hi everyone, I wonder if any of you can help. I bought a lovely little olive tree today, it's about 4ft high and festooned with ripe black olives, I'd love to preserve them in brine and bottle them but I can't find a recipe, do any of you know of a tried and trusted method?

Many thanks in advance
Carol-Ann

4 french hens · Post by **4 french hens** » 05 Sep 2008, 21:31

You could always try a search in Google.
Mike

Mrs Fuzzywig · Post by **Mrs Fuzzywig** » 06 Sep 2008, 05:41

That was my first port of call but I couldn't find anything about bottling in brine, I guess I'll just have to keep searching. Thank you anyway.

Daz · Post by **Daz** » 06 Sep 2008, 06:58

is this the sort of thing your looking for ?

http://www.earthlypursuits.com/wargarv/homecan1919/HomeCanDryVE30.htm

Daz

ma larkin · Post by **ma larkin** » 06 Sep 2008, 18:31

You are so lucky! I have had an olive tree for two years now, and not a single olive in sight.

Mrs Fuzzywig · Post by **Mrs Fuzzywig** » 06 Sep 2008, 19:23

Thank you Daz for taking the trouble to look that up for me but olives have to undergo a different treatment, I finally found a method from an Austrailian site, the olives are ripe and ready to drop so I'll have to start on the process in the next few days.

Ma Larkin, my tree may be full of fruit at the moment but next year I might not be so lucky, I don't think I would have bought it if it wasn't for the hundreds of shiny black jewels hanging temptingly from the branches, I just saw them and couldn't resist :-D

I love my little tree and have been out to talk lovingly to it many times already )hlp>

Daz · Post by **Daz** » 07 Sep 2008, 07:40

but olives have to undergo a different treatment,

sorry i didnt know that :oops:

i must do a bit more ^b:

sharon the chauffeur · Post by **sharon the chauffeur** » 08 Sep 2008, 13:48

i wouldnt be able to preserve them i would just have to eat them all, i do so much like olives

Mrs Fuzzywig · Post by **Mrs Fuzzywig** » 11 Sep 2008, 23:22

Started the preserving process today, I didn't have as many olives as I at first thought but still enough for a couple of bottles. I'm tempted to pick my crap apples now and make some jelly but not sure what you eat it with, what does it taste like? The apples are quite big and very red so would look really pretty as a jelly.

bluebell · Post by **bluebell** » 25 Oct 2008, 11:16

I tend to make jars of Olives up for part of the Christmas Hamper idea. I tend to sterilise the jars in normal way, add olives, some good quality olive oil, crushed black peppercorns and some pieces of thyme. Seal and leave in a darkened cupboard.

montenegro · Post by **montenegro** » 03 Nov 2008, 16:20

I live in Spain and we have lots of olive trees, my neighbour Carmen showed me how to do olives. First she split them (bashed with a stone but I use a sharp knife) then soaked in water for 24 hours, then in a brine solution changing it every day for about a 3 - 4 weeks. No specific salt to water ratio, but it's right when the olives float! After about 3 weeks, taste an olive and bottle in sterilised jars when they taste almost ready. Use a 5% brine solution this time. Try and leave them for a few weeks, we are still eating last years, and are brining green ones now and about to do black ones as they are nearly ready to harvest. Hope this helps!

Meanqueen · Post by **Meanqueen** » 03 Nov 2008, 16:28

Welcome to DTL, Montenegro, thanks for the info, what better place to get advice about olives, Espana por favor. )t'

Hasta la vista

Ilona