Green olives or olives. Olives and olives, the benefits and harms of how they grow, how they differ

The olive is a tree known to mankind since time immemorial. It is mentioned many times in the Bible. Wreaths made from its branches were awarded to the winners of the Olympic Games in Ancient Greece. Its branch is the first plant that the dove brought to Noah after the Great Flood.

Although the Mediterranean is the birthplace of the European olive, it has taken root in America and Africa. The fruits and oil are exported all over the world. Living in Alaska, Iceland or in the north of the Eurasian continent, you can easily enjoy the original dishes of the Mediterranean cuisine, which is simply impossible to imagine without olives or olive oil.

Where and how do they grow

The homeland of the olive is the southeastern Mediterranean. The tree was first cultivated in ancient Greece, from where it spread throughout the world. The tree begins to bear fruit about two decades after germination. The fruit of the tree in the botanical classification is called a drupe.
The olive is known as a long-lived plant. The lifetime of some individual trees is not even measured in centuries.

Residents of modern Israel claim that in Gethsemane, the place where Jesus was captured, eight olive trees still grow, which were already bearing fruit in those distant times.

There is an olive tree in the Nikitsky Botanical Garden, which is 2000 years old.

Did you know? The fruits of the black olive tree are called "olives" only in the territory of the post-Soviet space. Throughout the rest of the world, a drupe of varying degrees of maturity is called an olive, adding a clarification - color.

The olive tree blooms once every two years. Depending on the specific climatic conditions, the tree blooms from early May to late June. Fruits ripen 120-150 days after flowering.

Difference between olives and black olives

There is no difference as such between an olive and an olive. We can say that olives are the fruits of the olive tree that have reached their full degree of maturity.

Conversely, olives are not fully ripened olives. The green fruit (olive) has a firmer texture but contains less oil.

change color when preserving only olives of the Halkidiki variety. Other varieties do not change color during processing and conservation. It should be understood that the familiar “black” color of olives is obtained as a result of processing with preservatives before they go to jars.

Those olives that ripen on the tree on their own have different shades - from brown to purple, almost black.

How olives are made

From the entire harvest of olives harvested in the world, produce:

• oil - 90% of the crop;
• pickled olives and olives - 10%.

A fresh olive, just plucked from a tree, has a not very pleasant, bitter taste. Therefore, they are eaten only in canned form.

If you have a jar of pitted black olives in front of you, then these are oxidized olives - black oxidized olives. The fruit of this variety was harvested green, but changed color in the process of preparation, salting and conservation.
With the help of caustic soda, olives get rid of bitterness, while oxidation occurs - enrichment with oxygen.

A drupe that has ripened naturally on a tree can be of a different color, even red. In such olives, the stone is not removed during conservation. Their flesh is too tender.

Important! Olives grown in Greece are salted for a period of six months to a year, as a result of which they have a sharp taste. In Spain, the fruits are harvested green, treated with alkali and oxidized olives are obtained.

Types of olives

All varieties of olives can be divided into three main categories:

• oilseeds - olive oil is pressed from such fruits;
• universal - suitable both for eating and for obtaining oil;
• table (canning) - this type of olive is used for canning, pickling and eating.

In turn, canned olives can be:

• Whole - whole fruits with a stone;
• Pitted - pitted olives;
• Cracked - crushed;
• Sliced ​​- cut;
• Stuffed - stuffed with various fillers.

Depending on the color and time of collection, the fruits are divided into:

• green and light yellow - the collection is made just before ripening;
• combined (from slightly red to brown) - harvested before full ripening;
• black - collect fully ripe fruits;
• black oxidized - harvested unripe, black color is obtained after chemical treatment.

Another characteristic of olives is the caliber, or indicator of the size of the fruit.

In accordance with accepted standards, olives are:

• especially large - from 70 to 110 pieces. in 1 kg;
• large - from 111 to 160, respectively;
• medium - from 161 to 260;
• small - from 261 to 380 pieces.

There are also varieties of olives depending on where they are grown.

Composition and energy value

The fruits of the olive tree contain the following substances:

• water: olives 60-80%; olives 50-70%;
• fat, respectively: 6-30%; 10-29%;
• sugar: 2-6%; 0%;
• protein: 1-3%; 1-1.5%;
• : 1-4%; 1,4-2,1%;
• ash content: 0.6-1%; 4.2-5.5%.

Minerals contained in 100 g of olives:

• - 740 mg;
• - 9 mg;
• - 85 mg;
• copper - 250 mcg;
• - 3.2 mg;
• - 4 mg;
• - 20 mcg;
• - 3 mg;
• - 1 mcg;
• - 0.21 mg.

Green pitted fruits have a calorie content of 113 kcal / 100 g. The pit contains many different fatty acids. They account for more than half of the total chemical composition of the bone.

Did you know? The olive tree came to the New World in 1560, where it is successfully grown to this day, mainly in Peru and Mexico.

The calorie content of canned pitted olives is about 130 kcal. The energy value of a fruit that has reached its maturity on a tree is 155 kcal.

But the same mature olives, but pitted, have a slightly lower calorie content - 130 kcal.

Beneficial features

• Antioxidants contained in the olive tree prevent the oxidation of fat and cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, including heart attack.

• The fatty acids found in olives are monounsaturated. Such fats have the ability to break down intracellular fat, which helps to get rid of excess weight.

• Eating the fruits of the olive tree daily helps to quickly satisfy the feeling of hunger without overeating.
• Antioxidants and significantly reduce the negative effects of free radicals, neutralizing oxidative processes in the body. As a result, the likelihood of developing oncological processes decreases markedly.
• Anti-inflammatory substances and antioxidants can have an analgesic effect. The reason is oleocanthal, a substance whose action is similar to that of non-steroidal analgesics. 2-3 tbsp. tablespoons of oil in their action are similar to the action of the Nurofen tablet.

• Vitamin E contained in fruits perfectly protects, nourishes and regenerates the skin and hair.
• Olive oil is a natural blocker of histamine receptors, reduces allergic reactions of the body. The oil is used in anti-allergic diets. The anti-inflammatory properties can increase blood circulation and make it easier to breathe in asthma.
• Beneficial effect on the gastrointestinal tract. 250 g of olives contain 1/6 of the amount of fiber needed for proper intestinal motility. The same fiber creates favorable conditions for the development and vital activity of the necessary microflora.

• The iron contained in olives is necessary for our body for oxygen metabolism. And as you know, all the processes of our life are connected with oxygen.
• Vitamin A prevents the formation of age-related degenerative changes in our eyes. A jar of olives (300 ml) contains a tenth of the required daily allowance of retinol (vitamin A).
• Glutathione has a beneficial effect on the immune system, prevents toxins from entering the cell, improves the quality of lymphocytes.
• Linoleic acid has a healing effect, helps regenerate the skin.

Warnings, harmful properties

There are some restrictions on the use of olives. One of them is cholecystitis and other manifestations of gallstone disease.

Important! The bark of the olive tree is used instead of cinchona, the oldest remedy for malaria, and the infusion of the leaves normalizes blood pressure and respiration.

The high fat content of olives can have a laxative effect.
And, of course, you should not get carried away with olives with individual intolerance and allergic reactions. As you can see, there are very few restrictions and contraindications.

Man has been cultivating the olive for a very long time, eating its fruits, crushing the oil. In the countries located on the eastern and northeastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, a kind of cult of honoring the olive tree has developed over several millennia. There, the attitude to the olive is similar to our attitude to bread.

And although the bread on our tables is indispensable and more familiar, let's join the culture of the ancient civilizations of Rome and Greece, sometimes pampering ourselves with the fruits of the noble olive.

Now a very popular product on the market is olives and olives. How are olives different from olives? On this point, people's opinions differ. Some believe that olives differ from olives in color, others - in taste. But, contrary to all judgments, disputes and conversations, one tree.

How are olives different from olives? The answer to this famous question is very simple. Olives and black olives grow on the same tree. What distinguishes olives from olives is the degree of ripeness and fat content.

From the moment the harvest begins until the ripening process, the fruits turn yellow or green. When the ripening process takes place, the fruits become dark red or chestnut in color, and when fully ripe they turn black. There are varieties whose fruits are able to ripen after they are collected from the bush.

Now about how olives differ from - green fruits that are just beginning to ripen. However, they are usable and very useful. And already fully ripe fruits of juicy black color are called olives.

Olives and olives are enriched with minerals, proteins, pectins, sugar, vitamins B, C, E, as well as P-active catechins, iron, phosphorus and potassium. The bones also contain nutrients and high-value substances.

Another question arises: are olives and black olives harmful? There is a category of people to whom this product is contraindicated. These products can harm people who are sick with cholecystitis, as olives produce a strong diuretic effect in the human body, which can be fatal. They are not recommended for people with pancreatitis. Don't stand up

add olives or black olives to your diet for people with liver disease due to their high fat content.

Olive varieties are divided into more than ten different types. The most popular of these are:

1. Kalamata - famous Greek olives. These are fruits with a pointed tail, having thin skin and juicy pulp. Collection occurs when fully ripe, the color is black-violet.

2. Halkidiki - a large green olive fruit with an oblong shape and a pointed tip. Ripens at the earliest time of harvest.
3. Throumbes Thasos - These olives look like dried Greek prunes due to the fact that these fruits are harvested last. These are late fruits, and when dried, they taste great.
4. Gold is the rarest variety. The fruits of this variety, compared with the rest, are simply gigantic. They are juicy and crispy, with amazing pulp. The shape is oblong.

It is interesting that it is customary only for Russians to divide into olives and olives, guided by the number of fruits. All over the world it is customary to use the word "olives". And, if it is necessary to clarify the color of the fruit, the definition of "green" or "black" is simply added to the name.

You can have an endless conversation about olives, some varieties are grown for pickling, others for canning, and others for the production of oils. It is impossible to eat fresh olives, they taste very bitter. Even in ancient times, the Greeks learned to get rid of bitterness by soaking, and then pickling olives.

How are olives different from olives? What are the benefits of olives and black olives?

It is believed that the olive is a tree that is responsible for the mystical connection of earth and sky, and that says it all. Oliva was idolized and revered at all times. This mighty beautiful tree is still considered a symbol of nobility, maturity and wisdom. The ancient Greeks hoisted wreaths woven from olive branches to the winners of the Olympic Games. It is believed that olives and olives began their journey around the world from Greece. Thanks to the guests of Greece, who took away and planted this tree at home, it appeared in America, Africa and other continents.

In religion, the olive is recognized as a symbol of rebirth, since the dove brought the branch of the olive aboard Noah's ark, announcing the end of the flood.

Difference between olives and black olives

If we evaluate the olive from a practical point of view, this beautiful tree gives people magnificent fruits called olives. What tree do olives grow on?
Olives grow on the same tree - on the olive. These fruits differ quite a bit: the difference is only in the degree of maturity and oil content. Of course, we are talking about olive oil. There are oil varieties of olives, which contain up to 80% oil and pickled varieties.

The olive is a very tenacious tree, and can grow from a small root left after uprooting an old tree. The olive is a long-lived tree. There are legends that there are still olive trees under which Christ prayed.

Where do olives come from

In the spring, during flowering, this wonderful tree is decorated with white graceful flowers, later in their place you can see poisonous green fruits. As the olives mature, they turn grassy green, purple, and then only black. In addition, the black color of olives can have different shades: purple, brown or reddish. And also olives can be, depending on the variety, brown and red.

Local gourmets may well afford a trip to another village to purchase a particularly favorite variety of olives. And there are many varieties of olives, their difference, in other words, in oiliness, fleshiness, taste and color. Green olives are firmer but do not contain much oil. As they mature, they become softer and their oil content increases. That is why they are called olives.
From 15 to 50 kg of fruits can be harvested from one tree, and 5 kg of olives are required to obtain one liter of oil.

Olives are only eaten canned because they are very bitter when raw. The preparation of olives and olives is a rather laborious and lengthy process, however, as well as the production of oil. This is the reason for the considerable cost of the resulting products.

Olive oil

You also need to know about the varieties of olive oil. When talking about the benefits of olive oil, it refers only to the extra virgin ("Extra Vergin") and second ("Vergin") oils. The second grade oil is obtained after heating the cake, and the cheapest third grade is a mixture of the first grade and refined oil. It is advisable to use only the highest quality oil for salads.

The use of olive oil has a beneficial effect on the entire body. Thanks to the oil, blood is cleansed, blood vessels are strengthened, immunity is increased, the digestion process is normalized, and the aging process of cells is suspended. The use of olive oil contributes to the prevention of heart attack, diabetes and even cancer.

Benefits of olives and olives

Olives and black olives are very rich in vitamins and minerals. They include pectins, proteins, vitamins C, E, B, sugars, P-active catechins, as well as macro and microelements: phosphorus, iron and potassium salts. Due to the high content of unsaturated fatty acids, olives are very desirable products on our table. True, do not forget that canned olives contain a large amount of salt.

Let's try to figure out how the beneficial substances contained in olives and olives work.

Pectins are active helpers that remove various toxins from the body, up to salts of heavy metals. Therefore, pectins are necessary for people living in conditions of poor ecology. Thanks to pectins, the intestinal microflora improves.

Proteins are known to be the building blocks of the entire body.

The complex of vitamins contained in olives is a classic example of proportion and benefit. Vitamin B calms the nervous system, gives vigor, helps the skin and hair to keep a fresh and young look for a long time. Vitamins C and E are antioxidants, they help prevent various body failures, including preventing cancer.

However, the residents of the country have little idea of ​​the difference between these concepts.

It is not surprising - this curiosity does not grow in Russian regions.

Some are sure that these are the fruits of different trees that are not related to each other, others consider olives to be unripe olives.

But neither one nor the other point of view is completely correct.

In fact, we are talking about the same tree.

In Europe, the word "olives" is not used at all - the designations "black olives" and "green olives" are used there.

The latter are indeed collected from trees at an early stage of ripening and have a color characteristic of young fruits.

However, mature and even overripe olives will still not be blue-black, like those that we used to call olives. This color is achieved as a result of a special chemical treatment.

Gifts of the Mediterranean

There is a famous legend about the appearance of the olive tree in Greece. According to her, the sea god Poseidon and the goddess of wisdom Athena argued over whose honor the Greek capital would be named.

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The inhabitants proclaimed that they would choose the one whose gift for the city would be considered the most necessary. Poseidon cut a source of fresh water in the rock, and Athena grew an olive tree.

The residents liked the gift of the goddess, and the city acquired the name Athens, familiar to all of us.

The gesture of the goddess was by no means overrated. "European olive" and to this day is considered one of the most useful and valuable plants, and in some countries even sacred.

Thanks to the cultivation of the crop, the Mediterranean diet, which invariably includes olives, has been recognized as important for the body.

Often the use of the product is also characteristic of the peoples of the Caucasus, who are famous for their good health and physical fitness.

The fruits of the tree are used:

For the manufacture of olive oil, spicy sauces;

• as a standalone dish.
  Olives are considered a suitable appetizer for expensive wines, in addition, they are stuffed with vegetable or meat fillings, which will become the crown dish of your table;
• as an addition to salads and hot dishes:
  • Greek salad,
  • hodgepodge,
  • filling for pizza;
• in the medical and cosmetic fields.

How olives are made from olives

The ripe fruits of the tree are used to make oil and are rarely eaten. They also have a dark color, but uneven, and close to brown.

The remaining fruits will either remain green or turn into olives. Both types will be processed, only the method differs.

The fact is that fresh olives are harmful to eat, yes, and they are not pleasant to taste - they are too bitter.

In order for the unpleasant aftertaste to disappear, the fruits were kept for a long time in a special solution based on soda. Later, this process was learned to accelerate with the help of special technologies.

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After soaking, green olives are ready to eat - it remains only to place them in brine and add spices.

But in order to become black, their counterparts have to additional oxidation. It lasts 8-10 days, after which the fruits change color and become softer, and the taste acquires an "oily" hue.

In green olives, it is more pronounced: they are sour-sharp.

At home, in the countries of southern Europe, olives are sometimes sold without brine - they look hard and wrinkled, but taste bitter.

In our country, both products are sold only in canned form. To distinguish processed olives from overripe olives, look at the ingredients on the can.

If the list of additives includes ferrous gluconate (E 579)- in front of you are fruits whose color was obtained by oxidation.

What helps

One ancient doctor called this plant a cure for all diseases - and this was not an exaggeration.

By eating 6-10 olives a day, you will insure yourself against a list of diseases, as this gives us the rate of amino acids and minerals that we need.

Olives are easily absorbed by the body and have a positive effect on all processes occurring in it.

They contain dozens of useful substances:

• calcium,
• vitamins of several groups,
• proteins and fats, phosphorus,
• iron.

The use of olives favorably affects the following areas:

The cardiovascular system

The vegetable fats contained in olives do not contain harmful cholesterol and remove the already existing one.

Thus, they protect blood vessels from atherosclerosis, improve heart function, and prevent early aging.

Oncology prevention

The fruits give an antioxidant effect, which prevents the formation of tumors.

Studies have shown that frequent consumption of olives greatly reduces the risk of cancer of the breast, skin (read about the properties of black elderberry in oncology here), prostate and digestive tract.

Musculoskeletal system

Joint pain is relieved by the abundance of calcium and manganese in the composition of the plant.

Strengthening immunity

The acids that make up the olives restore cells and keep the body in good shape.

reproductive function

The fight against excess weight

If you are on a diet, be sure to include one more element in it:

• fruits regulate water-salt metabolism in the body, and will help you on your way to a slim figure.

Healing cuts, wounds and swelling

By the way, not only fruits, but also leaves of the olive tree are used to create useful solutions.

It is curious that in countries where olive trees are grown, there is a custom to eat at least 5 olives along with the pits.

This part of the plant is also extremely useful.

The assumption has not been scientifically proven, however, and there is nothing wrong with following the precept of the southerners - the bones are digested by the stomach.

But the benefits of this part of the fetus for the treatment of pinched nerves have even been confirmed by doctors and are successfully practiced.

Application in cosmetology

For a long time, the fruits have been used in the creation of cosmetic preparations, from creams to soaps. Now olive extract is part of skin care products.

But in order to improve the condition of the skin and hairline, you can simply eat olives - according to some cosmetologists, this has an equally strong effect.

You can make your own face mask based on 1-2 teaspoons of oil and rub it into the skin every time after taking a bath.

Masks for hair treatment

The most accessible of them is the use of pure oil.

Apply it on your hair and distribute it along the entire length.

After the procedure, cover your hair with a warm towel.

There are no restrictions on exposure time:

• ideally, it is better to leave the mask on all night, it is only more useful.

But, if time is limited, a couple of hours will suffice.

Is there any harm

As with other foods, eating olives is not without a downside. Do not abuse this delicacy with diarrhea:

• it has a slight laxative effect,
• people with the opposite problem, intestinal obstruction, should be careful with the bones.

By themselves, they are harmless, but can be the last straw in the formation of a bezoar.

Such a disease is fraught with serious consequences, up to intestinal obstruction.

In addition, you should not eat the bones of a pointed shape or with sharp edges. They will hurt the mucous.

It is difficult to answer the question of which is more useful: olives or olives. The properties of both product forms are the same. But still, it should be borne in mind that olives are obtained by chemical processing, even if they are safe, which means they are less natural.

Be that as it may, the harm from the use of these products is insignificant and incommensurable with the benefits.

People who prefer a healthy lifestyle, as well as those who like to add a new touch to their favorite dishes, should pay close attention to the symbol of Greece.

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Olives have long taken pride of place in the national cuisines of many peoples of the world. In our country, olives appeared relatively recently, so disputes around them do not subside. They have an interesting spicy taste that is difficult to describe even for an experienced taster: they simultaneously contain bitterness and sweetness, sour and salty notes. The mystery of this product has long divided all food lovers into big connoisseurs of olives and their ardent haters.

Even more fueling interest in this product is a question that few people can answer: “Olive - what is it? Is it a fruit, or a vegetable, or a berry? The answers to this question are as controversial as the taste of the product. Some argue that it is a berry or fruit, as it has a bone and grows on shrubs or trees. Others claim that it is a fruit or vegetable because it requires additional processing, after which it acquires its unique taste.

To find out what olives are, you need to remember the school course of botany. In botany, there is no such thing as berries, vegetables or fruits - this is only a consumer name for the fruits of flowering plants, which are intended for seed dispersal. There are juicy (berries, drupes) and dry fruits (boxes, nuts, pods, achenes, grains). Olives, botanically speaking, are drupes, not berries, fruits, or vegetables.

Olives vs Olives: What's the Difference?

In the domestic market, consumers know not fresh fruits of olive trees, but canned products with black or green fruits. This is the reason why there is a myth among ordinary uninitiated buyers that explains why olives are black and olives are green. In their opinion, the difference between olives and black olives is that they are the fruits of different types of trees. But it's not.

In fact, the words "olives" and "olives" are Russian-language synonyms. To make sure that there is no difference between olives and olives, it is enough to find out which family the trees on which they grow belong to. Olives, they are olives, grow on trees of the olive genus, the olive family. The word "olive" has Eastern European roots. Throughout the rest of the world, the fruits of these trees are known as "olives".

It is likely that this confusion with the names of the fruits of olive trees arose due to the current GOST for olives. GOST R 55464-2013 in Russian is called “Olives or black olives in a filling. Specifications". At the same time, in the English translation, the names of GOST and olives, and olives sound the same - olives (olives), however, adjusted for color. Perhaps that is why in Russia green fruits of olive trees are called olives, and black olives are called olives.

What determines the color of olives

The difference in the color of the fruits appears during their processing before canning. The fruits of the olive tree for preservation are harvested while still green. To preserve them green, it takes several weeks to soak the olives in brine. To reduce the time of harvesting olives, this process is accelerated: they are saturated with oxygen. This process is called oxidation. After that, the olives acquire a jet black color, to stabilize which a preservative is used - ferrous gluconate. After such processing, producers receive black oxidized olives, which are preserved.

After we figured out what black olives are painted with, the question is quite logical: “Are there real black olives?” The color of untreated olives depends on their degree of maturity:

• yellow-green, yellowish, white olives are harvested at the very beginning of their ripening. They are inherently immature;
• pink, red, brown, brown, chestnut color of fruits indicates their partial maturity. These olives are harvested later than green olives, but earlier than ripe ones;
• the dark color of olives is a sign of their ripeness and can have various shades: red-black, purple-black, dark chestnut, purple. But there are no jet-black olives on trees.

The main difference between self-ripened olives is that they are always sold with a stone. This is due to the fact that it is impossible to remove the stone from their mature pulp without damaging the pulp itself.

How olives grow

Olives grow on evergreen olive shrubs or trees. In botany, up to 60 species of olive trees are distinguished, but only half of them are of industrial importance.

The main industrial species of olive trees is the European olive (olive), one plant of which can produce up to 30 kg of fruit per season. Plants of this species are resistant to high temperatures, and mountain varieties have frost resistance.

Trees of this species are covered with dry hard gray bark. On their crooked branches grow narrow gray-green rough leaves. The leaves of the olive tree do not fall during the cold season: they change gradually on the tree.

Olive trees bloom in April-July. How do olives bloom? Flowers of oil trees are collected in panicles, which consist of 10-40 white fragrant flowers. After flowering, fruits similar to small plums appear on a branch of an olive tree. The olive is an oval-shaped drupe up to 4 cm long and up to 2 cm in diameter. The color and weight of the fruit depends on its variety and degree of maturity. Fruit color can vary from light green to dark purple. The pulp is elastic, oily, the skin is dense, with a waxy surface. For the first time, olive trees begin to bear fruit after 20 years, bearing fruit once every two years.

Olives are harvested 4-5 months after the flowering of the trees. Olives ripen between November and January. But the harvest time often depends not on the time when the olives ripen, but on the variety and method of harvesting and processing the olives. If they are used for canning or making butter green, then they are harvested 1-2 months before they ripen.

Green fruits are usually harvested by hand because they do not fall off the stalk themselves. Ripe olives are often shaken off on a pre-spread net under the trees. Once harvested, the olives are sent for processing as soon as possible. Any delay in this process negatively affects the quality of the final product.

Where do olives grow

Today, olive trees are cultivated:

• in the Mediterranean countries (in Spain, Italy, Greece, France, Turkey);
• in the Maghreb countries (in Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya);
• on the Black Sea coast (in the Crimea, in Bulgaria, Georgia, in Abkhazia);
• in the countries of Asia Minor and the Middle East (in Israel, Iran, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan);
• in northern India;
• in Australia;
• in Mexico and Peru.

The cultivation of olive trees in these countries is carried out by both large producers and small farms.

In Russia, olive trees are not grown on an industrial scale, but small olive groves grow on the Black Sea coast of the Krasnodar Territory.

Olive varieties

Up to 250 varieties of a cultivated species, the European olive, have been bred by the selection method. The fruits of its different varieties differ in color, size, taste and oil content in them. Olive varieties are:

• canteens, which contain a lot of pulp, so they are used for pickling, canning and other harvesting methods;
• oilseeds, which contain a lot of oils, so they are used to make olive oil;
• universal.

On modern shelves you can find many varieties of olives with a variety of origins. On an industrial scale, olives are grown in Spain, Italy, Greece, France, Turkey, Cyprus, Tunisia, Morocco, Israel.

Spanish olives

Spain is the leader in the production of olives and olive products in Europe and the world. About 50% of all exported olives worldwide come from Spanish producers.

The most popular variety cultivated in Spain is Picual, which translates as "nipple". This is a versatile variety of olives, but more often it is used to make oil. Olive trees of this variety are grown in the mountains and on the plains, while the fruits grown in different areas differ significantly in taste.

Varieties of Ojiblanca and Casareña are famous for their black small fruits with soft juicy pulp, from which the stone is easily separated. These are the best olives for canning.

Italian olives

In Italy, olives are one of the main ingredients in many dishes. The world's most popular giant Italian table green olive is the Vittoria variety. Olives of this variety have juicy, fleshy, aromatic flesh. No food additives are used for their preparation.

On the southern Italian island of Sicily, the well-known variety of bright green olives Michio Le Olive is grown, which is famous for its fruity taste with a fresh aftertaste. To preserve their color, these Sicilian olives are stored in a special brine, the recipe of which is kept secret and passed down from generation to generation.

Greek olives

More than a hundred different varieties of olives are cultivated in Greece. Often Greek olives are named after the area where olive trees of this variety grow.

The best Greek olives are the fruits of the Kalamata variety, which got its name from the town of the same name in southern Greece, near which they are grown. Ripe olives of this variety are medium in size, purple-black in color. They have juicy flesh with a tart taste and a pronounced aroma.

Halkidiki is a variety of large green olives grown in northern Greece. Due to their large size, these fruits are used for stuffing with fillings (paprika, onion, garlic, gherkins, capers, almonds, cheese).

The most numerous olive groves in Greece are located on the island of Crete, where the Koroneiki oilseed variety is grown. The yield of these Cretan olives per year exceeds the total yield of olive fruits in the rest of Greece. A fragrant olive oil is made from these olives.

French olives

Olives are called Nice, collected in olive groves growing near Nice. These are fruits of small size, purple or black, have oily flesh with a pleasant delicate taste.

French small black olives from Provence have a slight tangy bitterness. Olives of the Nion variety are round, small, red-brown in color and also slightly bitter. The French variety Picolini is represented by green, crisp fruits with a fresh, salty taste.

The vast majority of varieties of French olives are universal and are used for making oil and in cooking, in canned or pickled form, in the form of pastes, pates, dressings. They are used to make cosmetics.

Israeli olives

In Israel, mainly oil-bearing varieties of olives are grown, so olive production in this country is mainly aimed at making oil.

One of the popular Israeli varieties is Suri. It is believed that the real homeland of this variety is the Lebanese city of Sur (Tyre). These fragrant olives produce a spicy green oil with hints of honey and pepper. Israeli Suri oil is well suited for cooking Jewish cuisine.

Another popular variety of olives grown in Israel and used to make olive oil is Barnea. Oil is pressed from them with a delicate aroma of fresh hay and fruity notes. Israeli green olive oil has a very useful property for children - its daily intake on an empty stomach is effective against worms in them.

The chemical composition of olives

The fruits of oil trees contain proteins, fats, carbohydrates (BJU), which are energy and plastic material for the human body. The ratio B:L:Y per 100 grams of olives differs from their degree of maturity and variety: in unripe small fruits, their content is lower than in ripe large ones.

The taste of fresh olives is bitter-tart or bitter, so they are not eaten raw. For the consumer, the nutritional content is not in raw olives, but the amount contained in the finished product. Considering that olives are more often on the domestic market in canned form, below are data on the nutritional value and chemical composition of the canned product.

Olives are a source of vegetable fats. A noteworthy fact is that with a high fat content in olives, they are not harmful: more than 90% of the fruit pulp fats contain mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids. The peculiarity of unsaturated fatty acids is that in the human body they are not synthesized on their own and are practically not deposited (accumulated). For the normal functioning of the human body, daily consumption of foods rich in such fatty acids is important.

Olive protein consists of amino acids, many of which are essential, that is, those that are not formed in the human body.

Olive carbohydrates are 50-85% composed of indigestible dietary fiber (fiber), so these carbohydrates do not represent an energy burden on the body. In addition, the glycemic index of olives is low and is only 15 units per 100 g, which allows them to be consumed by diabetics.

The pulp of olives contains phenols (oleocanthal), which have powerful antioxidant properties. These substances are rapidly destroyed during the cooking of olives, but are preserved in the first cold-pressed oil.

The pulp of the fruit of the olive tree is rich in vitamins and minerals. These substances, unlike proteins, fats and carbohydrates, do not contain calories, but are biologically active substances that affect many processes in the human body.

The chemical composition of olives differs significantly from their variety, place of growth, time of harvest, method of processing.

Olive oil

More than 2 million tons of olive oil are produced annually in the world. It is used in many cuisines of the world, but for our country, olive oil is still classified as exotic.

The benefits and harms of oil depend on many factors:

• varieties of olives and where they are grown;
• the method of their collection (manually or mechanically);
• what olives make oil (green or black);
• how oil is made (first or second pressing, cold or hot);
• conditions and period of storage.

How olive oil is made

Olive oil is made from olives of varying degrees of maturity. Most often, these are ripe olives, but some varieties of olives are grown for pressing in an unripe form, for example, Israeli green oil Barnea.

The process of making oil from olives consists of several successive stages:

• fruit sorting;
• cleansing them from leaves and stalks;
• washing in warm water;
• first extraction of oil;
• crushing pulp and bones;
• second oil extraction.

Most oil producers try to create a complete production cycle: from growing a crop to making oil. It is worth noting that the production of products from olives is practically waste-free: biogas is made from olive oil cake, and briquetted environmentally friendly fuel is made from olive pits.

Olive Oil Types

Depending on the method of collection, extraction and thermal or chemical treatment, olive oils are divided into several types.

Extra virgin (extra virgin)

This unfiltered oil is obtained by first cold pressing. In the process of its manufacture, no heat treatment or chemicals are used. In a laboratory study, the oil should contain less than 1% acids. Such a product contains all the vitamins, trace elements and essential fats that are found in the fruits themselves, as well as the antioxidant oleocanthal.

Virgin (virgin)

This oil is made in the same way as extra-virgin oil, so the content of useful substances in it is preserved. The difference between virgin oil is a higher allowable acid content in it - up to 3.3%. Due to this acidity, virgin oil has a milder taste.

Refined olive

It is obtained by refining from oil, which has an acidity of over 3.3%. The taste of refined oil is neutral, it also does not have a special aroma. This is a product that contains almost only fat and does not have those useful substances that olive oil is so famous for.

pure olive

Such a product is obtained by mixing virgin and refined oils to improve the taste and aroma of the latter. Accordingly, the beneficial properties of this oil are something between virgin oil and a refined product.

Light and extra-light

In the process of manufacturing these oils, various technologies are used (separation, deodorization, bleaching, heat and chemical treatments), resulting in a product with a "light" fat composition, and at the same time with a reduced content of all other substances.

Extra virgin and virgin oils contain many nutrients and are the most expensive, while refined and light oils are the cheapest.

In addition to cost and usefulness, the choice of olive oil is influenced by its purpose:

• unrefined oils are not suitable for frying, because during heat treatment they form carcinogens;
• refined brands of oils are not suitable for dressing salads, because they lack the expected olive flavor and aroma.

How olives are harvested

Olives are eaten cooked. They are prepared for consumption in different ways:

• dry;
• dried;
• salt (dry salting method);
• marinate;
• canned.

How to remove bitterness from olives

Olives for preservation after harvest are washed and immersed in barrels with brine for several months. Thanks to the fermentation of this brine, olives lose their bitterness, become soft and sweetish. After that, the fruits are sorted, the stalks and leaves are removed, sorted by size.

Olive caliber

On a jar of canned olives, their caliber must be indicated. This depends on their value. To inform the consumer about the size of olives in a jar, symbols are used - two numbers through a fraction. These numbers mean the minimum and maximum number of olives of this caliber in 1 kg. Accordingly, the smaller the numbers indicated in the fraction, the larger the caliber of the olives. There are four calibration categories:

1. Giant, or royal - olives of especially large size (70/90, 91/100, 101/110).
2. Large (111/120, 121/140, 141/160).
3. Medium (161/180, 181/200, 201/230, 231/260).
4. Small (261/290, 291/320, 321/350, 351/380).

Thus, knowing how many grams are in the jar and the caliber of olives, you can find out how many fruits are in the jar.

How to remove the pits from olives

Olives can be preserved pitted or pitted. How are the pits removed from olives? Bones are removed using a special apparatus with knives. All these processes in large industries are carried out on automated lines.

Green olives are often stuffed. Capers, gherkins, anchovies, lemon, pepper, garlic, onion and all sorts of other ingredients can be used as fillings. This process is carried out manually.

Beneficial features

Products from olives, due to the large amount of essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals they contain, have many beneficial effects on various organs and systems of the human body when ingested. The beneficial properties of olives and olive oil make it possible to include them in therapeutic diet menus, as well as in the daily diet for various pathologies of internal organs. They can be eaten with or without the bone. It is difficult to answer which olives are more useful: with or without a stone, because they act on the body in different ways.

For the cardiovascular system

Olives are a leader among foods that are good for the cardiovascular system. Polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are contained in large quantities in them, being absorbed into the human blood from the intestine, show their beneficial properties:

• anti-atherosclerotic action (bind cholesterol in the blood, prevent the formation and reduce existing atherosclerotic plaques);
• increase the elasticity of blood vessels (due to the restoration of damaged vascular endothelium);
• reduce vascular permeability (by strengthening the bonds between the cells of the vascular walls);
• reduce blood viscosity, thereby reducing the risk of pathological thrombosis;
• help lower blood pressure.

Indications for the regular use of olive products in diseases of the heart and blood vessels are:

• atherosclerosis;
• cardiac ischemia;
• arrhythmias;
• arterial hypertension;
• neurocirculatory dystonia;
• varicose veins;
• thrombosis and thrombophlebitis;
• thrombophilia;
• post-infarction and post-stroke conditions;
• angiopathy.

The benefits of the fruits of olive trees and olive oil for the heart are proven by scientific studies. After mass clinical examinations of residents of European countries, they found that residents of the Mediterranean suffer less from coronary heart disease and atherosclerosis of blood vessels than residents within the continent.

For the digestive system

What are the benefits of olives for the gastrointestinal tract? Polyunsaturated fatty acids and vitamins of olive products have a positive effect on the digestive system:

• stimulate the production of digestive juices and enzymes;
• heal defects on the mucous membranes;
• restore liver cells;
• have a choleretic effect;
• prevent the formation of stones in the bile ducts;
• normalize peristalsis (translational movements) of the intestine;
• remove toxins from the intestines;
• restore intestinal microflora;
• help with hemorrhoids.

Olives affect a person's stool, but it is difficult to say unequivocally whether olives strengthen or weaken, because the effect of their use depends on the presence of a stone in them.

Olive pulp, which contains a lot of fat, contributes to the accelerated excretion of intestinal contents. Therefore, with daily intake of olives in food in small quantities, they have a laxative effect and prevent constipation.

And the oil seed, which contains a lot of tannins, fixes, therefore it is useful for digestive disorders associated with diarrhea. Indigestible fiber, due to its spongy structure, is able to absorb toxins and toxic substances and remove them from the body, so activated charcoal can be replaced with olives.

For the genitourinary system

Olive products can reduce the tendency to form stones in urolithiasis. Regular consumption of olive oil helps to get rid of kidney stones.

The inclusion of olive products in the daily diet is beneficial for the health of the female reproductive system, since fatty acids are included in fat metabolism and contribute to the normalization of the synthesis of female sex hormones. For men, olives are useful for their ability to increase potency and improve sperm quality.

For metabolic disorders

Olive products can be used in diabetes. They normalize the level of glucose and cholesterol in the blood in type 2 diabetes, thereby preventing the development of diabetic macro- and microangiopathies.

Olive oil is useful for gout, as it helps dissolve uric acid salts that are deposited in the joints and uric acid kidney stones.

For neurological diseases

Fatty acids and B vitamins contained in olive products normalize the functioning of the central nervous system, increase its efficiency, and improve memory. Scientists have proven that daily use of olive oil improves the condition of patients with multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer's disease, restores cognitive functions of the brain after strokes.

With inflammation

Olive products block the synthesis of prostaglandins - substances that cause inflammatory reactions in the human body. Oleocanthal, found unchanged in extra virgin olive oil, has anti-inflammatory properties mimicking the action of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). This allows you to include olives and products from them in medical nutrition for arthritis, arthrosis, osteochondrosis and spondylosis.

For the body of those who lose weight

Useful properties of olives and their products are successfully used in various diets. However, they should be included in the diet menu in doses, since they have a high energy value. For example, in the Dukan diet, it is allowed to alternate black and green olives, but not more than 4 pieces per day. Their benefit for weight loss lies in the complex effect of the substances contained in olives on the human body:

• binding "harmful" fats and cholesterol in the intestines and blood;
• saturation of the body with essential fatty acids;
• antianemic action;
• increase the elasticity of blood vessels and skin;
• improvement of the condition of the skin and its appendages (hair, nails);
• normalization of the chair;
• mood improvement.

Why do people who lose weight crave olives so much? What is missing in their body? Olives are rich in sodium salts, so the desire to feast on them arises when it is deficient. This desire is especially true in people who are on a diet. To satisfy the desire to eat olives, you should not include them in your diet in canned, pickled and salted form. This cooking makes the olives very salty, and salt is known to retain fluid in the body. It is better to give preference to dried, dried olives or olive oil.

against cancer

According to medical statistics, women in Mediterranean countries suffer from breast cancer several times less often than European women living in other areas. The assumption that the reason for this is a large amount of olives and olive oil in the diet, was confirmed in large-scale studies conducted in Spain from 2003 to 2009. The purpose of the research was to prove the anti-cancer effect of olive fats.

Spanish doctors examined about four thousand women who followed different diets:

1. The first group of women followed the Mediterranean diet with olive oil for a long time.
2. The second is the Mediterranean diet with hazelnuts.
3. The third is low-fat diets.
4. The fourth group was a control group and did not provide for a change in diet.

In the course of medical examinations of women who participated in this experiment, it was found that women in the first group were almost 70% less likely to develop breast cancer than women in the other three groups.

For pregnant women and nursing mothers

The mother's body experiences an increased need for nutrients, vitamins and minerals, especially essential (essential) ones, in order to provide them to her baby in sufficient quantities. If there is a deficiency of such substances, they begin to “wash out” from the organs of a pregnant woman or a nursing mother, leading to a disruption in their functioning. With a continuing deficiency of nutrients in the future, their deficiency also occurs in the child.

Substances of olives have a beneficial effect on the body of a woman during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Their benefits are undeniable both for the female body and for the harmonious development of the child. Olives, especially ripened on their own, are a source of iron, therefore they prevent the development of anemia in pregnant women. Healthy fats in olive oil improve the condition of the placenta and cervix before childbirth.

Regular consumption of olives (except canned ones) and olive oil helps pregnant women and nursing mothers, without compromising their own health, provide their baby's body with the substances it needs for growth and harmonious development.

For children

Olives are useful in childhood, but they must be introduced into the diet of children very carefully. From what age it is better to do this depends on the state of the child's digestive system. Considering that in our country olives are sold in the form of canned food, children over 3 years old can start introducing these products into the menu.

It is better to start with ripe olives, which are sold in glass jars, but no more than 1 piece per day. At the same time, the composition of the product should not contain preservatives, especially ferrous gluconate. This preservative may cause allergies.

For animals

Olive oils for pets (dogs and cats) are also useful: they improve digestion, make the coat smooth and shiny. Therefore, it is not at all surprising why dogs and cats love food flavored with olive oil.

But sometimes it also happens that animals are “pulled” to eat olives from the owner’s table or drink the brine in which they were. Owners have quite natural questions: “Are they harmful to animals? Can a dog or cat be given them?

It is not known for certain why cats love olives. They probably instinctively feel the usefulness of this fruit. Fresh, dried or dried olives can be given to animals, but in a limited form. As for canned olives, it is not recommended to give them to pets, as they contain a lot of salt and preservatives.

The benefits of bones

Many olive lovers are wondering if it is possible to eat olive pits? What are olive pits good for?

Olive pits dissolve in the stomach, enveloping its walls, which is useful for erosions and ulcers of the gastric mucosa. In order for their anti-ulcer effect to manifest itself, it is enough to swallow 4-5 seeds on an empty stomach.

Swallowing whole olive pits is often difficult and sometimes dangerous (some varieties of olives have large and sharp pits). In order not to harm your health, for the treatment of stomach ulcers, it is better to grind the bones and eat them in powder form.

Olive pits are useful as absorbents after alcohol abuse. The bone is partially digested in the stomach, enveloping its mucous membrane, and the rest of it dissolves in the intestine, absorbing toxic substances on itself.

For face and body

The rich chemical composition of olive oil has a good cosmetic effect, improving the condition of the skin and its appendages (hair, nails). On its basis, a variety of homemade cosmetics for women are made (creams, ointments and body balms, face and hair masks, nail baths). It is also included in industrial cosmetics.

Cosmetics based on it are recommended for use every day, because they have practically no contraindications. But before using them, especially with problematic skin, it is necessary to conduct skin allergy tests. To do this, a little money is applied to the bend of the elbow joint and after 30 minutes they look at the reaction of the skin in this place. An allergy test can be considered negative if there is no burning sensation, itching, redness or irritation at the site of application.

Restrictions and contraindications for use

Canned olives, like any other canned food, are saturated with salty marinade, so it is not recommended to eat them daily. This is especially true of oxidized black olives, which contain ferrous gluconate as a preservative. One can of oxidized black olives contains more than 20 mg of ferrous gluconate at its maximum daily dose for an adult of 10 mg, so it can cause food poisoning. This preservative makes olives an allergenic product.

• children;
• pregnant women, especially in the early stages;
• women with HB (breastfeeding);
• with gastritis with high acidity;
• with pancreatitis and cholecystitis in the acute phase;
• with gallstone disease;
• with kidney stones;
• with cystitis.

Contraindications to the use of canned olives are also individual intolerance and allergies.

How to use

Canned oxidized olives are tasty, but they cannot be a medicinal product: they should be considered solely as a delicacy that should be included in the diet only occasionally.

How many olives can you eat and which ones? In order for olives to show their healing properties to the full, they must be consumed daily in dried, dried, pickled form in the amount of 5-7 pieces per day.

Fruits can be replaced with olive oil. Preferred is the daily use by adults for medicinal purposes of high-quality unrefined vegetable oil, best of all - extra virgin or virgin, 1-3 tablespoons. It should be remembered that 1 tablespoon of olive oil contains 200-220 kcal.

How to choose olive oil

Recently, Chinese entrepreneurs have begun to produce olive oil from fruits purchased in bulk from olive farmers. Transportation of fresh olives adversely affects the quality of the oil from them, so it is better to refuse such a purchase.

In today's market, according to the University of California, about 80% of olive oil sold is counterfeit. Counterfeits often have bottles and labels similar to the original, so it's very easy to make a mistake. How to distinguish fake olive oil from real?

To protect yourself when buying this valuable product, you must follow simple rules:

1. It is advisable to buy a product in specialized or branded stores, which is better than buying it on the Internet or in the market.
2. It is better to prefer oil of well-known brands.
3. Before buying, you need to study on the Internet (preferably on the manufacturer's website) how the original packaging and label differ, and what is its estimated market value.
4. Carefully inspect the packaging and label on the selected product container for compliance with the original.
5. The label must contain information in Russian about the manufacturer, type and method of oil extraction, storage conditions, container volume, expiration date.
6. The price of the original product should not differ significantly from the average market price.
7. Do not purchase expired olive oil. Not only will it be bitter, but it can also cause food poisoning.

Arriving home, you should put the container with oil in the refrigerator. At low temperatures, natural olive oil becomes cloudy and flakes appear in it. At room temperature, the oil becomes clear again and the flakes dissolve.

How to choose olives

It is best to buy olives in the regions where they are grown. It is there that you can buy the most delicious and healthy fruits that are difficult to find with us.

The cost of harvested olives depends on many factors:

• where and how trees grow;
• how the crop is harvested;
• caliber;
• preparation method (salted, pickled, canned);
• the presence of a bone (with or without stones);
• intact fruits (whole or cut);
• type of filling.

In order for the purchased olives to be tasty and healthy, you need to be able to choose them. Today, these fruits can be purchased by weight (in barrels or polymer containers) and individually packaged (in cans or vacuum-packed). Which are more useful?

Bulk purchase

When buying olives by weight, you need to pay attention to:

1. Container with olives. The container must be plastic and have a lid. If olives are sold from an open tin container, such a purchase should be discarded. When opened, tin containers quickly oxidize and release toxic substances into the product.
2. Label. The label must be available to the buyer so that he can read the manufacturer's information and clarify the date of manufacture and expiration date of the product.
3. temperature and storage conditions. Storage of pickled olives without brine is unacceptable. The fruits must be completely covered with it. The storage temperature of an open container with pickled olives in brine should not exceed +6°C.
4. Brine color. The brine should not be cloudy and dark. It is desirable that the brine be covered with a layer of olive oil on top, which prevents it from spoiling.
5. Kind of olives. Crumpled, weathered and shriveled fruits among fresh ones should not come across. If any, this indicates that the seller mixed the unsold remainder of the product with the fresh one.
6. Fruit taste. Try one stone. Its flesh should be soft and well separated from the bone. Foreign smell and taste should not be felt.
7. Pay attention to how and how the fruits are taken out of the brine and what devices are used for this. The safety of the released product depends on the purity of these devices.

But, no matter how careful and careful the buyer is, he is not immune from unscrupulous sellers. To avoid fraud and forgery, you can buy olives in individual packaging.

Purchase of individual packaging

What are the individual packages? How to choose canned olives? On the shelves of stores, the consumer is offered olives in different types of packaging: in glass, cans and vacuum packaging. Which ones are better? Choosing from the proposed options, it is better to give preference to olives in a vacuum or a glass jar. So you can see how the drupes look, what color and size the fruits are.

The label must indicate how much the product weighs without packaging (net weight). Be sure to pay attention to the shelf life of olives. Expired fruits can cause food poisoning or intoxication with salts of heavy metals.

How to store the product

Canned olives in an airtight container are stored for 3 years. After opening the original packaging, the shelf life is greatly reduced. How long open canned olives are stored depends on the material from which the container is made.

It is strictly forbidden to store olives in an open tin can. The inner surface of this container is not designed for contact with air, therefore it quickly oxidizes. Toxic oxidation products pass into the brine, and from it into the olives. The use of such olives is fraught with severe food poisoning and intoxication. How to store open olives from a tin so that they do not cause poisoning? Immediately after opening a can of olives, the product must be transferred to a glass or ceramic container.

How to store open olives? In a glass or polymer container, open canned olives in brine can be stored for up to 3 days.

It happens that after opening the canned olives, the brine was drained, and the whole product was not used. How to save the rest of the olives without brine? Is it possible to freeze them? It is impossible to store olives without brine: the product quickly weathers, loses moisture, and shrinks. Freezing olives without brine or with it should also not be. Frozen olives after defrosting become very soft and tasteless.

Use in cooking

Whole olives with pits or stuffed olives are used as a separate snack. Sliced ​​and pitted olives are used to decorate dishes, added to salads, soups, casseroles, stews. They are mashed and made into olive paste. Thanks to their spicy taste, olives add spicy notes to drinks.

Olive oil is used in cooking for dressing salads, making sauces and marinades, and baking. Can you fry in olive oil? Only refined olive oil is suitable for frying. Extra virgin oils are eaten raw.

Are olives eaten raw?

Raw olives have a bitter taste, so it is not customary to eat them raw. Everywhere, except for their homeland - Greece. For example, in one of the central Greek regions of Magnesia, ripe olives are eaten without any pre-treatment. This is a special local variety of large dark cherry olives with easily peelable skin and juicy oily soft flesh. These olives have a tart, bittersweet flavor with a savory aftertaste.

But this use of olives in food is an exception to the rule. Most olives in cooking are used in processed form. For culinary purposes, they are dried, dried, salted, pickled, preserved.

What do olives go with?

The specific taste of the fruits of the olive tree goes well with:

• spicy herbs;
• lemon
• pickled garlic and onions;
• vegetables (cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers);
• greenery;
• nuts;
• pickled cheeses;
• fish;
• seafood;
• lean meats;
• alcoholic beverages (wine, liquor).

Black olives are more suitable for meat dishes, and green olives are more suitable for fish and seafood.

What do olives eat with?

Different people have different taste preferences. Very often they depend on the peculiarities of national cuisine. In Greece, they prefer to eat olives with feta, cheese, tomatoes, eggplants. In Spain, olives are usually served with sweet peppers, meat dishes, and seafood. In Italy, olives are added to pizza, lasagna, eaten with mozzarella, cauliflower and tomatoes.

But, as they say: "There is no friend for the taste and color!". Where to add, with what and how to eat olives, everyone is free to choose at their discretion. The main thing is that it was delicious!

In Mediterranean countries, flavored olive oil is used as a salad dressing. How is homemade flavored olive oil made? To do this, for 15-20 days, light or refined olive oil is insisted on:

• spices (cinnamon, cardamom, coriander, cloves, star anise);
• herbs (thyme, basil, marjoram, rosemary, oregano);
• zest and fruits of citrus fruits;
• vegetables (garlic, celery, horseradish, paprika);
• dried berries.

In recent years, it has become fashionable in Mediterranean European countries to decorate the table with olives, which are dyed with natural food dyes in red, orange, emerald colors.

Helpful Hints

Sometimes it happens that you need pitted olives to cook a dish, but in the refrigerator there are only fruits with pits. To get the pits from olives at home, you can use a machine to remove pits from cherries.

There is another secret to pitting olives: with a wide blade of a knife, lightly press the olive to the work surface. If the olive is ripe, then the bone in it will begin to move. After that, it can be easily removed with tweezers.

To extend the shelf life of open canned olives, you need to drain the brine, and pour the rest of the product with olive oil. You can store these preserves for up to 2 months.

Interesting about olives

In the history of mankind, the branch of the olive tree has always been considered a symbol of peace among many peoples.

Greece is considered the birthplace of the olive tree. In ancient Greek mythology, there is a myth about the appearance of the olive tree. According to this myth, once there was a dispute between the goddess of wisdom, crafts and knowledge, Athena Pallas, and the ruler of the seas and oceans, Poseidon, over the possession of Attica. Competing with each other, Poseidon presented the people of this region as a gift with a source of sea water, and Athena, sticking a spear into the ground, presented an olive tree. The judges recognized Athena as the winner in the dispute, since they considered her gift more useful, and gave her this land under protection. The people of Attica, in gratitude for such a generous gift, named the city of Athens in her honor.

The Olympians of Ancient Greece were awarded a wreath woven from olive branches if they won the Games. Its image can be found on ancient Greek vases and amphorae, from where the culture of worship of this plant passed to Ancient Rome. There also appeared the first descriptions and characteristics of olive trees and their fruits in the literature.

But not only the Greeks and Romans revered olive trees. There are also references to this tree in the Bible: during the Flood that land was nearby, Noah was notified by a dove that brought him an olive branch. And the Virgin Mary was informed that she would give birth to the Savior of the human race, by an angel who brought her a branch of an olive tree.

In the Middle East, the olive tree was considered a symbol of love and passion, where there is a legend about the appearance of the olive tree. Once Princess Maslina fell in love with a shepherd named Olivo, but her love was not mutual. Then the Olive Tree got angry and killed the shepherd on a dark night. At the place of his death, a tree with narrow leaves and small, tart fruits grew. This tree in honor of the shepherd was called olive, and the fruits ripening on it - olives or olives.

The olive tree in Muslim countries is considered the Tree of Life and the symbol of the Prophet.

The olive branch today is a symbol of peace and is present on the coats of arms of many countries: Italy, Cyprus, Serbia, Portugal, France, Zaire. The white olive branch is featured on the emblem of the United Nations (UN).

These interesting facts testify to the importance and reverence of this plant in many countries of the world.

For many centuries, olives and olive oil have been the basis of the economy of many countries. Today they have not lost their popularity. They are valued not only for their taste, but also for their health benefits, low calorie content, and high amounts of healthy fats, fiber, and iron. Knowing how olives are useful, it becomes clear why you want to eat them.

Fresh olives are not edible until they have undergone certain cooking. They are consumed salted, pickled or canned. Green olives are stuffed with a variety of fillings, ranging from onion and garlic to gourmet blue cheese. Olive oil is equally popular in cooking.

Useful properties of olives and oils from them are successfully used in clinical nutrition for diabetes, gout, cardiovascular diseases, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, urolithiasis, and sexual disorders. Even the stone of the fruit of the olive tree is useful.

Despite all the useful properties, olives have a number of limitations when consumed. So that these fruits do not harm health, you need to know how much and how to eat olives correctly for a particular ailment. Before taking them as a preventive or therapeutic agent, you should consult your doctor.

Olive trees with their juicy fruits have been cultivated by people for so long that scientists still cannot decide whether this is a miracle specially bred by breeders or a slightly cultivated wild species of a plant from the olive family. One way or another, but the benefits of olives were widely known in ancient Hellas. Moreover, the Greeks believed in the divine origin of the olive and knew about its miraculous properties.

Olives and black olives - similarities and differences

The oblong fruits of the olive tree are widely eaten all over the world. At the same time, in Russia they are called both olives and black olives. What is the difference and is there one?

Juicy black olives are simply fruits taken from a tree in the phase of biological ripeness. At the same time, olives can be harvested from the same tree, but before they are fully ripe. That is why olives are green. As they mature in natural conditions, they darken from light pink to blue-black. However, the difference between these fruits is not only in color.

Due to the fact that olives have been on their native tree for longer, they can be larger and grow to the size of a small plum. But with regard to the chemical composition and effect on the human body, here the benefits of olives and olives are almost the same.

Variety of canned olives

Buying a jar of juicy canned olives, you might be surprised that there are no fresh olives from the tree anywhere on sale. And the thing is that freshly harvested fruits are bitter in taste and very hard, regardless of their ripeness. Therefore, they are always soaked first to remove bitterness, and then pickled or salted to give softness. Often the pits of the olives are removed. The benefit of this is that you can put the filling in their place.

Today, olives are offered for consumption with additives, which can be tuna, anchovy, lemon or even cucumber. You can also often find fruits with and without seeds on sale. At the same time, gourmets prefer olives with pits, pointing to their special taste and softness.

What is so “magical” about plain olives?

Since these berries have been eaten by people for a very long time, the benefits and harms of canned olives are well known and studied. Today, scientists say that they are all extremely useful, because:

• They contain antioxidants, which means they help get rid of depression and reduce the effects of severe stress.
• Replenish in the body such elements as calcium, chlorine, sodium, magnesium, iron, iodine, potassium and phosphorus, as well as many others.
• They contain various amino acids and numerous vitamins, including vitamin E.
• Their chemical composition includes special natural substances - polyphenols, which, in turn, help improve memory and better brain function.
• They contain oleic acid, which is so important for those who want to preserve youth. Because of this, regular consumption of olives reduces the appearance of wrinkles by 25%.
• Reduce blood cholesterol levels and promote its withdrawal.
• They reduce appetite due to the monounsaturated fatty acids they contain, which leads to rapid saturation with this product. Nutritionists advise eating 7-10 olives before meals. Such a simple rule of nutrition leads to the normalization of weight. In addition, thanks to the same acids, after eating, fat burning processes are launched in the body, which last for 5 hours.

And what are the benefits of olives for men, women and children?

The benefits of olives and olives for male intimate health have already been proven. Regular consumption of these fruits in food enhances potency. In addition, men appreciate canned olives for their other quality - the removal of a hangover. Olives are recommended for women not only as a unique dietary product, but also for the prevention of such a terrible disease as breast cancer. Studies have shown that it is on the territory of the Mediterranean coast, where olive fruits are part of the daily diet, that malignant tumors of the mammary glands are less common than in the rest of the world.

And what is the use of canned olives for children? And here are the positives. But it would be much better if, instead of a canned product, olive oil enters the child's diet.

Olives can also be eaten by people of different ages with problems of the digestive tract. The low acidity of olives makes them easy to digest, and the oils they contain improve stomach function. But at the same time, you need to be careful with too spicy canned food, since the brine in which the olives are marinated can cause exacerbation of gastritis and ulcers.

Harm from olives - myth or reality?

Harvested from the tree and processed olive fruits, regardless of their ripeness, are always useful. The oil obtained from them is considered one of the most valuable food products. However, there are situations where caution in their use does not hurt.

Of course, if you are allergic to them, which is quite rare, this product becomes forbidden for a person. And if there is a disease such as cholecystitis, olives can cause damage to the body. The thing is that they have a choleretic effect, and although in other conditions this is also the benefit of olives, in the case of this disease it is harmful.

It is worth beingware of eating olives and those who are undergoing a course of treatment in which retinol is used. After all, vitamin A is found in olives, and with its excess, various side effects characteristic of hypervitaminosis can appear. In this situation, the benefits and harms of canned olives depend only on the amount eaten, but it is better to avoid such risks.

But the most dangerous product today may be green olives, which are dyed black with ferrous gluconate for marketing purposes. Despite the fact that these canned olives are nutritionally safe, the dye itself can cause acute allergic reactions and, if consumed in large quantities, can cause stomach ulcers.

How to recognize fake olives?

Colored olives, which are sold under the guise of olives, can be distinguished from the natural product by the following features:

• They are almost always rolled up in tin cans. This also determines the price category of the product. Natural olives are always slightly more expensive than green olives.
• The color of fake fruits is uniformly black, while the berries themselves are the size of grapes. But ripened olives can be the size of a plum, and their color is not so perfect. In this case, most often the bones are not extracted from such fruits.
• The composition, which is always indicated on a jar of fake olives, contains a dye - iron gluconate E-579. A natural canned product may contain citric acid and spiced olive oil in the brine, but no colorants.

Choosing the right olives for the table, you can be sure of the quality of your food. But in any case, olives are an excellent prevention of a whole list of diseases, including diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, atherosclerosis, depression and obesity.

The fruits of the olive tree are loved all over the world. But in our country they have two names. In this regard, the question arises: “What is the difference between olives and olives?” Do they grow on the same tree or not? It is easy to answer these questions. We will reveal all the secrets of the olive tree and its fruits, as well as the benefits of eating them.

Black olives or olives

It is erroneously considered that olives are black fruits, and olives are green. In fact, there is only one name in the world - olives. So what is the difference between olives and olives? Only in the level of fruit maturity. If harvested before they are fully ripe, they will be green to yellow in color. Black olives are harvested when the fruit has reached full maturity. There is another type, which is called combined olives. They are pink to brown in color. They are harvested at maturity. But why are canned olives green, black olives? Initially, when harvesting, the fruits are sorted. Black olives that have reached full maturity are used for oil production. Green olives are canned. But since we see two types of product on the shelves, a reasonable question arises: “What is the difference between olives and olives?” It all depends on the technological process of conservation. As a result of processing, green olives turn black. This is due to oxidation, which gives the color to the fruit, makes them softer and changes their taste. This is the difference between olives and olives.

Beneficial features

Raw fruits have a slightly bitter taste. Therefore, in order for them to acquire the form in which we are accustomed to seeing them on our tables, it is necessary to salt them. They are soaked in a saline solution for 5 months, and after that they are weathered for a day in the fresh air. The next step is the conservation process. When cooking black olives, it lasts longer. Sometimes the fruits are stuffed or spices are added. What is healthier - olives or black olives? There is practically no difference here. The fruits of the olive tree contain proteins, antioxidants, unsaturated fats, phosphorus, iron, potassium and a group of vitamins. Olive oil has a beneficial effect on the entire body. Unlike animal fats, it does not increase cholesterol levels, but strengthens the heart and blood vessels. It reduces the risk of cancer, heart attack and diabetes. Therefore, the cost of high-quality cold-pressed oil is very high. It is used as a salad dressing. In this case, all the benefits of this product are preserved. One tablespoon of olive oil, drunk on an empty stomach, reduces the effect of alcohol. It takes 5 kilograms of olives to produce one liter of this valuable product. The presence of a large number of useful properties and richness of taste, the fruits of the olive tree owe their popularity. Even in ancient times they were used in cosmetology. Soap was made from them, mixing with ash and talc. Today, many cosmetic preparations contain olive extract, which gives all the beneficial properties accumulated by nature. Modern cooking is already impossible to imagine without this product, which is added to salads, first courses and sauces. These are such healthy and very tasty olives.

People quite often add olives to salads when preparing various salads. Some recipes call for green olives, while others call for black olives. Based on this situation, many begin to think about whether it is necessary to buy olives of exactly the color indicated in the recipe, because, despite the color differences, this is the same fruit, and accordingly the taste should also be the same. But everything is not so simple, because, despite the similar shape and the same name, these fruits have a lot of differences.

What are black olives?

Black olives are fruits that grow on trees such as the olive or black olive. These fruits acquire black color only when they become ripe or overripe.

All over the world, this fruit is called black olives, but on the territory of the Russian Federation there is a separate name - olives. Since when black olives got their second name is not known for certain. It is worth noting that not in all cases black olives are ripe fruits, for a faster sale of this product, the olives are “blackened” by oxidation.

They have a mild and rich taste. They are eaten only in canned form, because in their raw form their taste is incredibly bitter.

In their condition, they are quite soft and oily. It is from this type of olives that olive oil, known for its beneficial properties, is created. People who suffer from diarrhea are strictly forbidden to consume black olives because they have some laxative properties.

Features of green olives

Green olives are fruits obtained from trees such as olive or olive. As a rule, these fruits have a green color during the period of incomplete ripening. Olives are grown only in countries where there is a mild climate. These olives are sharp and pungent taste. Like black olives, they are eaten only in canned form.

According to their condition, they are quite elastic. For the manufacture of olive oil is not used.

What do black and green olives have in common?

Black and green olives have both common elements and differences. It is worth noting that there are much fewer common elements than differences:

1. Both types of olives grow on the same tree.
2. Black and green olives are divided into six groups according to their size - small, medium, large, extra large, giant and colossal.
3. Both types of olives contain a large amount of minerals - sodium, iron, potassium, magnesium, iodine, vitamins A and others.
4. Black and green olives in their raw form have a very bitter taste, so it is recommended to eat them only after pre-canning.

It is these similar elements that make people think that black and green olives are interchangeable, and when cooking a dish, it is not necessary to buy olives of the color indicated in the recipe.

Main differences between black and green olives

Despite the fact that black and green olives are very similar in shape and composition, they have a number of differences:

1. Despite the fact that these types of olives grow on the same tree, there is a difference in their condition. Black olives are already ripe and overripe fruits, green olives are fruits that have not yet reached the state of maturity.
2. Green olives do not have any other name, but black olives in the CIS countries are called "olives".
3. Black olives have a very mild and quite rich taste, but the taste of green olives is more pungent and bitter.
4. Green olives are firmer and firmer, while black olives are softer.
5. Due to their lubricity, black olives are used to make olive oil. Green olives are unsuitable for making olive oil, so they are used only for canning.
6. When preparing olives for sale, they are processed in completely different ways. Green olives are soaked in an alkaline solution and then kept in brine for 6 to 12 months. The longer green olives are aged in brine, the less bitter they will be. After soaking in brine, green olives are (most often) pitted and stuffed with pieces of garlic, anchovies, peppers, and other foods. Black olives, in turn, are also subjected to wetting in an alkali-containing solution, but then they are not aged in brine, but pickled or preserved in oil.
7. Because of the difference in taste, different types of olives are used in different dishes. For example, black olives are mainly used for both salads and main dishes. But green olives are most often used as a snack.
8. Calorie difference. Green olives are lower in calories than black olives.

Having studied all the differences between green and black olives, it will be very difficult to confuse them. It is also worth noting that they are not interchangeable. It is not recommended to use green olives for salads and main dishes, because they will betray the dish with a certain bitterness, which is not always good. But if a person wanted some kind of snack, then green olives are ideal, because they are low in calories, but at the same time satisfying.