Skip the Olive Bar and Marinate Olives, Your Way

Do you buy olives at your local grocer’s olive bar? I mean, who can resist those piles of glistening Castelvetranos and Kalamatas? As a person who will buy olives over potato chips any day, this area of the grocery is an absolute weakness.

But is the olive bar really worth it? I began to wonder — why don’t I just make my own marinated olives? It seems so simple!

The olive bar is just too tempting, normally. Swimming in individual pools of olive oil, vinegar, and herbs, these little fellows are practically calling out my name. I layer garlic stuffed green olives with Niçoise and picholine varieties and try to resist the urge to top it off with something spicy that will undo all those flavors. Then, with a miniature mountain of olives in hand, I head to the checkout. Cue inevitable sticker shock moment. At $7 or $8 per pound, the bill racks up fast with each scoop.

So, let’s skip that bill and try something at home instead.

At home, I started with a jar of really cheap and un-fancy olives, turned to the spice rack, added a bit of lemon zest, and drizzled with good quality olive oil.

The results, of course, were fabulous. The flavors only improved with a day or two in the fridge, and if I didn’t eat them all, I’m sure I could tell you that at a week they’d be in their prime. Success! Marinated olives that won’t destroy a budget.

Here are 3 great recipes to try when marinating your own olives at home:

• Citrus Marinated Olives – Bon Appétit
• Marinated Olives with Coriander – Honestly Yum
• Gin Marinated Olives – 101 Cookbooks

While we’re on the topic, what’s your favorite type of olive? And have you ever marinated them at home?

(Image: SergeBertasiusPhotography/Shutterstock)