:QUOTE [quotetype:personal] Raw olives are inedible. Cured olives are worth waiting two months for. :INFO Why Olives Must Be Cured Fresh olives contain oleuropein, a bitter phenolic compound that makes them inedible straight from the tree. Curing removes or neutralizes oleuropein through one of three methods: water curing (slowest, mildest), brine curing (classic, complex), or lye curing (fastest, used commercially). Home curers typically use water or brine. The process takes weeks to months depending on method and olive size. :COUNTER.half 2 to 4 Weeks | :COUNTER.half 8 to 10 Percent :PATH Score or Crack the Olives Make cuts or crack each olive to allow curing liquid to penetrate. | :INFO Score or Crack the Olives For water curing, cut two slits in each olive down to the pit with a sharp knife. For brine curing, crack each olive with a mallet or the flat of a heavy pan — just enough to split the skin. This allows the curing medium to reach the inner flesh and draw out oleuropein. Do not remove pits — they help the olive hold its shape during curing. :PATH Begin the Water Cure Submerge cracked olives in cold water and change it daily. | :INFO Begin the Water Cure Pack olives into a glass jar and cover with cold water. Weigh them down with a zip-lock bag filled with brine to keep them submerged. Change the water every day. After 1 week the water will run less dark. After 2 to 4 weeks, taste an olive. Bitterness should be mild to gone. Green olives take longer than ripe black olives. :PATH Transfer to Brine Once cured, pack in 8 to 10 percent salt brine with herbs. | :INFO Transfer to Brine Dissolve 80 to 100g of non-iodized salt per liter of water. Add flavorings: garlic cloves, lemon peel, bay leaves, chili, or fresh herbs. Pack the de-bittered olives into clean jars and pour brine over to cover completely. Seal and refrigerate. Flavor develops over the next 2 to 4 weeks as the olives absorb the aromatics. :CHECKLIST What You Need [ ] Fresh cured-variety olives (Manzanilla, Castelvetrano, Kalamata) [ ] Non-iodized salt — iodine inhibits curing [ ] Large glass jars [ ] Weights to keep olives submerged [ ] Aromatics: garlic, lemon, bay, chili, herbs :NOTE Use the Right Olive Variety Not all olive varieties cure well at home. Manzanilla, Sevillano, and Mission olives are bred for curing. Ornamental or unripe olives often have too much oleuropein to cure effectively with water alone and require lye treatment. Source fresh olives from a farmers market or olive farm in fall — that is when they are harvested. :QUOTE [quotetype:personal] Every jar of olives in a deli case started exactly like this. :LINK https://honest-food.net/how-to-cure-olives/ Hank Shaw — How to Cure Olives at Home