Content
- Olives -aromatic, healthy and versatile
- Over 1000 different varieties are known
- Long harvest time
- Black olives are more aromatic
- How to differentiate dyed from real black olives
- Tips & Tricks
Olives -aromatic, healthy and versatile
Olive trees have been at home in the Mediterranean for at least 3,000 years. The plant, also known as the olive tree, has become an indispensable part of the cuisine and culture of the Mediterranean countries, as the fruits and the oil extracted from them are still an important economic factor today. But in historical times, olive trees played an important role, as did archaeological ones Finds and written testimonies (such as the Bible) prove.
Over 1000 different varieties are known
In Europe alone, more than 1000 different olive varieties are known, of which, however, only a few have a supraregional economic importance. By far the largest producer of olives is Spain, with around 260 varieties of olives alone. These include the thick-meaty manzanilla olive or the aromatic and late-maturing Hojiblanca. Olives, however, are not limited to the European Mediterranean region - ie. H. in Spain, Italy, Greece, Croatia, Israel and, to a lesser extent, France - but also in California, Argentina, South Africa and Turkey.
Long harvest time
The flowering period of the olive tree falls in the spring months between April and June, finally harvested between October and February. The extremely long harvest time can be explained on the one hand with the high yield of an olive tree in the best age - ergo between 40 and 150 years - on the other hand, however, with the fruit harvested in different degrees of ripeness. The commercially available green olives are not their own variety, but only immature fruits. They have a tart taste and a firmer pulp than the ripe, usually black or purple olives.
Black olives are more aromatic
Depending on the variety, olives will become the darker the riper they become. Not only the flesh turns black, but also the kernel. Deep black olives have a soft flesh and are much more aromatic than green, but due to the longer ripening time also more expensive. To save the long ripening on the tree, many olive growers resort to a simple trick: They dye green (ie immature) olives with iron gluconate black and thus deceive a quality that does not exist.
How to differentiate dyed from real black olives
Tips & Tricks
Green olives contain less oil than black and are therefore significantly lower in calories. Green olives contain about 140 kilocalories per 100 grams, black about 350. Rich in unsaturated fatty acids, vitamins and trace elements they are both.