Thread: Olives

Yes olives give a good crop every 2 years the year is average crop wise. This year my tree (Kalamata) went berserk not only because its its good year but with all the rain we had the olives were huge.

Since mid-April I've processed about 15kg of Olives.
I've given about 1/3rd away and we've eaten few kgs but now the back fridge is stuffed with olives that should keep us going for quite a few months.

So, I have now turned my dehydrator to something else, Eggplant.

It's dead easy, slice thinly, steam for 4 minutes and into dehydrator on 50-60ºC for 4-6 hours.
Thats the steamer on the RHS and the dehydrator on the left.
One large eggplant fills the 5 trays in the dehydrator
EPlant1.jpg

End product looks like potato chips.
Without any added slat they even taste like lightly salted potato chips
If completely dry and stored in a sealed airtight container they are supposed to last for at least 12 months.
You can of course now soak them in yummy flavoured oil but we've decided to keep them dry like this as they make good healthy snacks
I will try some flavoured oil versions next time ROUND
EPlant2.jpg

The down side is by the time they dehydrate out you don't have much left.
And I've already eaten about 1/3rd of the proceeds.

Originally Posted by Simplicity

... Like Bob, olives are gift from the Gods,an I’m an atheist, that’s how good Olives are.

Cheers Matt.

Who said atheists cannot be pragmatists? Matt will accept gifts of olives from the Gods.

Great idea re the oven heating. I have a shop and over the years have collated olive brineing recipes from various customers. For those who would like to try some other methods, I attach a recipe sheet.... <Olive Recipes20211005_18222768.pdf>