The Real Skinny on Sun-dried Olives
You don’t have to speak Greek or come from the Middle east to know that when it comes to oils Olives are the staple go-to. So versatile, so easy to adulterate, so misunderstood – let's dive a little into the skinny of this fatty fruit.
Preservation
Olives have been prized through the earth’s history for their food, medicine, beauty, and even role in the Olympic games. Today, let’s start at the beginning, with the way olives are typically preserved. The average olive orchard farmer will allow for enough time to elapse that the fruit may come to a substantial size. However, being prematurely picked, the olives are then sent for processing.
They are cured in a brine made of some sort of vinegar-base or lye solution and given time till its final perfection of ripening over several months. The problem? Acetic acid! This is the key component of vinegar that gives its pungent smell and caustic effects. What is not so well known is that it also serves as a hepatotoxic substance – liver damage alert. (1) Lye is certainly no better for you health, as well. Instead, an alternative method of sun-drying followed by the use of salt-solution brine as a curing medium safely and effectively ripens the olives for proper culinary use.
“Olives may be so prepared as to be eaten with good results at every meal. The advantages sought by the use of butter may be obtained by the eating of properly prepared olives. The oil in the olives relieves constipation, and for consumptives, and for those who have inflamed, irritated stomachs, it is better than any drug. As a food it is better than any oil coming secondhand from animals. When properly prepared, olives, like nuts, supply the place of butter and flesh meats. The oil, as eaten in the olive, is far preferable to animal oil or fat. It serves as a laxative. Its use will be found beneficial to consumptives, and it is healing to an inflamed, irritated stomach.” (2).
Olive Benefits
The fat contained in olives is primarily monounsaturated, mostly (75%) oleic acid, an omega 9 essential fatty acid also found in avocados and durian. According to the American Heart Association, these same fats can help reduce bad cholesterol in the body, and lower your risk for cardiovascular disease and incidence of stroke. (3) Olives are also supply a sufficient source of fat-soluble vitamin E, in the form of alpha tocopherol. Furthermore, as in the leaf and oil, the whole olive contains the bitter plant phenolic compound called oleuropein, and its derivative hydroxytyrosol. These molecules are both found to be “potent antioxidant and radical scavengers with anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory properties.” (4) The fatty olive delight has proven in studies to show protective effects against many metabolic disorder, as well. (5)
If you would like the best sun-dried, salt-cured certified Organic Botija Olives then come down to Paradise Fields Farm Store, and while your here ask us how you can use it the make the best butter replacement in town!
If you wish to reach out to us, call us at (289) 522-0202 or drop an email at hello@paradisefields.ca.
Sources:
1 - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35950544/
2 – https://m.egwwritings.org/en/
3 - https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/fats/monounsaturated-fats
4 - https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4227229/
5 - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26851532/