Marinated Green Olives With Oregano Food

MARINATED OLIVES

Steps:

• Warm the olive oil in a frying pan with the rosemary sprigs, garlic, bay leaves and oregano and cook gently, stirring for 5 minutes to infuse the oil.
• Add the olives and toss well to coat in the spiced oil, then cook gently, stirring occasionally, for 5 - 10 minutes until soft and shiny.
• Use a slotted spoon to transfer olives, garlic, bay leaves and herbs to a rustic serving dish and serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

MARINATED GREEN OLIVES WITH OREGANO

Steps:

• Rinse olives thoroughly under cold running water. Drain well. Pat olives dry with paper towels. Transfer olives to medium bowl. Add remaining ingredients and toss to blend. Let stand 2 hours at room temperature to blend flavors. (Can be made 1 week ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving.)
• *A thick syrup available at Middle Eastern markets and some supermarkets.

MARINATED OLIVES WITH ROSEMARY, RED CHILI, ORANGE AND PAPRIKA

Steps:

• Combine garlic cloves, fresh rosemary, orange slices, red chili flakes, paprika, and extra- virgin olive oil in a saucepan and set over low heat. Slowly warm up to infuse the oil and soften the garlic - do not let it fry. Once hot, about 5 minutes, pour in olives and steep until cool. Serve at room temperature.

MARINATED MIXED OLIVES

Steps:

• If olives are in brine, drain and discard liquid. Toss all the olives together in a bowl. Toss with a generous amount of olive oil, lemon zest, red pepper flakes, rosemary sprigs, salt, and slivers of fresh garlic. Let marinate at least overnight and up to a couple weeks in the refrigerator - they'll only get more flavorful.

MARINATED GREEN OLIVES

Steps:

• Crush the fennel and peppercorns in a pestle and mortar (or crush with the flat side of a knife and give them a bit of a chop). Chop the chillies into smallish pieces.
• Discard the flesh of the preserved lemon and rinse the skin to remove excess salt. Cut into fine strips (or zest the lemon - but the preserved lemon is so much better!).
• drain the olives and give them a rinse off in water.
• Place the olives in a clean jar and add the remaining ingredients. Cover with olive oil and leave to marinate.
• I have left them as little as a couple of hours and up to a few weeks. Pop them in the fridge, but bring back to room temperature before serving.

MARINATED GREEN OLIVES

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients and allow to sit at room temperature for at least five days before serving.

BRINED AND MARINATED GREEK-STYLE OLIVES

Steps:

• Sort olives by color/ripeness into different bowls. Green, mostly green, half green/purple, mostly purple, purple.
• Clean olives thoroughly by rinsing under water (work in batches).
• Use a paring knife to score/cut an "X" in each olive. This allows the brine to more easily leach the bitterness out of the olive.
• Once a whole color-batch is scored, place in a one-gallon pickle jar with a brine of 8oz sea salt to water. Swish the brine throughly so that all the salt gets dissolved instead of settling to the bottom. Fill with water to almost the top. Use a ziploc baggie with some water in it to weight the olives. It is very important to keep all olives submerged to avoid mold problems. Leave the lid loose and put in a cool, dark place.
• After one week, switch to a stronger brine of 1lb salt/gallon. I like to rinse the olives and sterilize the jars at this point. The smell and sensation of the clean, rinsed olives may blow your mind. I also use a new batch of clean ziplocs at this point to weight the olives. Keep those babies submerged!
• After 2 weeks, replace brine again as above. Close lids firmly.
• Replace brine as many times as necessary to achieve a taste you like (realizing they will be REALLY salty just out of the brine, even rinsed). I usually switch the brine 3 -4 times, 1 -2 weeks apart. Greener olives will take longer than purple olives.
• When they've been brined to your satisfaction, the fun begins! Rinse throughly. Pack in sterilized jars to 2/3 full.
• Add organic lemon slices (3-4 per jar), a whole or minced clove of garlic, and a teaspoon or so or dried oregano. Fill with vinegar (I like white vinegar for green olives and red wine for purples) and one teaspoon of salt to one inch below top of jar.
• Add 1/2 inch of olive oil.
• Seal firmly and agitate the mixture, then store in a cool, dark, place.
• Once opened, these must be refrigerated. Bring them back to room temperature before serving to avoid a weird lumpy oil crud covering your beloved olives. Refrigerate any leftovers.
• Play with the marinades - I like to do the green ones with hot peppers and carrots. Try different vinegars and herbs. A couple of years ago, I did a Thai theme, with ginger, lemon grass, hot peppers, and white vinegar. Delish!
• I have found when I give these as gifts, people do not always use them, and that is a big bummer considering all the work that goes into them and how incredibly delicious they are. Better to bring them to a party to show them off, then tell people about the process. (Plus, you get to enjoy them, too).

ORANGE-MARINATED OLIVES

Steps:

• Mix first 5 ingredients in small bowl. Season to taste with red pepper and salt. Cover and refrigerate overnight. (Can be prepared 4 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.)

GREEK MARINATED OLIVES

Steps:

• Use a zester to remove the rind from lemon.
• Place the olives in a large glass or ceramic bowl.
• Combine the lemon rind, oil, oregano, pepper and bay leaf in a large jug. Pour the oil mixture over the olives and stir to combine.
• Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight to develop the flavours.
• Remove from the fridge 1 hour before serving to bring to room temperature. Transfer to a serving bowl to serve.

MARINATED GREEN BEANS WITH OLIVES, TOMATOES, AND FETA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium heat and drop in the green beans; cook until slightly tender, but still crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Immediately drain the green beans and plunge into ice water to stop the beans from cooking further. Drain the beans and place them in a shallow serving dish.
• Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook garlic in the oil for about 30 seconds. Remove the skillet from the heat. Stir in the olives, tomatoes, vinegar, oregano, salt, and pepper. Pour mixture over green beans. Toss together until beans are evenly coated. Sprinkle feta cheese over the top and garnish with oregano sprigs. Chill at least 3 hours before serving.

OLIVE MARINATE

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Chill in the refrigerator for a few hours to let the flavors mingle.
• Serve chilled or at room temperature as an appetizer or accompaniment to cocktails.
• Variations.
• French (Olives marinées): use black niçoise olives, thyme and a little lavender.
• Greek: use black Kalamata olives and dried oregano and thyme.
• Italian (Olive marinata): use chopped rosemary, thyme and peppercorns.
• North African (Mslalla): use oil-cured black olives and substitute lemon juice for the red wine vinegar. Stir in cumin seeds, coriander seeds, lemon and orange zest and crushed red pepper.
• Spanish (Aceitunas aliñadas): use paprika, cumin seeds and peppercorns.
• Here is a list of the most popular herbs and seasonings mixed with marinated olives. Mix and match to suit your own taste:Bay leaves,Cardamom seed,Cracked black pepper,Crushed red pepper,Cumin seed,Fennel seed,Lavender,Lemon, lime or orange zest,Oregano,Paprika,Rosemary,Sun-dried tomatoes,Thyme.