How to Cure Table Olives

Cure your own table olives
We are often asked how to cure the olives. Here is the simple traditional brine curing method we use:

1) select a container that can be sealed airtight (eg bucket or jar with lid)
2) prepare a 10% salt brine. (ie add 100g of salt per 1L of water, do not use iodised salt).
3) hand pick olives and place into the brine (take care not to bruise).
4) ensure olives are fully submerged in brine (eg place dinner plate on top)
5) leave lid loose at first, then seal airtight once most of the bubbling has stopped.
6) wait patiently for the natural fermentation process to occur
7) after 6 months, taste test. If they are still too bitter, leave for longer. 

Riper olives will cure more quickly than green olives. Our green verdale olives take 12 months to fully cure!

8) enjoy :)

You can pick olives green or black. To know if green olives are ready, check if you can squeeze out the stone, if so they're ready. If the flesh sticks to the stone, they need more time. After that it's just personal preference whether you leave them to ripen longer and turn purple/black. The more colour they get, the sweeter they will be but also texture may be softer.