Olives from a tree cannot be consumed directly as they are too bitter. They need to be cured to remove the bitterness before they can be eaten or used to make olive oil. Here are some ways to use olives from a tree:
-
Harvesting: Olives can be harvested by hand or mechanically. Hand-harvesting involves picking the olives off each branch, tree by tree, while mechanical harvesting increases the speed in which olives are harvested.
-
Curing: Olives can be cured using different methods such as water, brine, dry salt, or lye treatments. During these curing processes, the water-soluble oleuropein compound is leached out of the olive flesh.
-
Making olive oil: Olives can be milled to make olive oil. Depending on the ripeness of the fruit, it takes about 80-100 pounds of olives to make 1 gallon of olive oil.
-
Eating: Cured olives can be eaten as a snack or used in various dishes. They can be stuffed with various fillings such as pimentos, almonds, anchovies, jalapenos, onions, or cheese.
When harvesting olives, it is important to pick them at the right time. Olives can be harvested when they are green and unripe, fully ripened to black, or any stage in between.
