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Black olives (Olea Europaea) are actually ripped olives that people use for several purposes. In the modern period, communities are exchanging their food habits. For this, the use of black olives has also become pretty vast as most existing cuisine. Despite that, why are black olives so expensive? It should’ve been cheap as the consumption rate is pretty high, right?
The main fact here is that you can’t grow olive trees anywhere you want. You need to plant olive trees in a very warm environment where rain isn’t pretty regular; for example: in Texas, Arizona, and California. Besides, Kalamata and Californian black olives are developed from some specific olive types.
As planting olives everywhere isn’t possible, most manufacturers and resellers import this fruit from various states and countries. This makes the price of a unit of olive more than expected. And most importantly, big manufacturers are now selling black olives by canning. So, the canning and preserving process also puts some impact on the olive price.
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Are Black Olives Natural? Things You need To Know
First of all, black olives aren’t fully black. When some olive fruits get totally ripened, they acquire a deep violet or reddish texture on top that we find black from a distance.
Obviously, you can make any green or unripe olives black by letting them stay on the tree and ripe naturally.
So, black olives are actually natural. But here’s the catch. Olive fruits don’t ripen in every season. Yet, people demand to have black olives in their pizza and pasta regularly.
To fulfill consumers’ demand and produce enough supplies, commercial organizations make normal olive ripe artificially using the oxidation formula.
That’s why it’s hard to know how much of your purchased black olives are artificial or natural these days.
Note: A recent survey says most canned and preserved olives are ripped with the help of some human-made formulas. But nothing to worry about here, no method hampers food safety at all.
Best Black Olives to Buy: Let’s Know My Recommendation
Nowadays, most chefs prefer to use canned black olives as they’re easy to process and cook. So, if you’re asking about what’s the best black olives brand currently, I’d say it is PEARLS.
You can find several best canned black olives types from the brand easily. Among them, I’ve found PEARLS Olives to GO is the best option till now.
The product comes with plastic containers that ensure food safety along with holding the natural food values. Also, the pitted large olives from California are easily usable in any type of dish without washing or checking.
This product is very good for people suffering from diabetes or high cholesterol issues for quite a long time.
But if you don’t like Californian olives, then you can rather try Mario Camacho Brainless Pouch olives. These olives are not artificially ripped.
Instead, the company has used sea salt to ripen naturally. These packeted olives are great for people looking for a low-carb diet.
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Why are Black Olives So Expensive? Top 3 key Reasons
Now, let’s go to our main discussion, the key reasons why are black olives so expensive.
I’ve pointed out three major factors increasing the price of black olives.
1. Greater Food Value:
Nutritionists always suggest black olives in their patients’ diet chart as an easy way to consume protein, minerals, carbs, and fatty acids. These food values help to grow muscles and tissues quickly in your body.
Along with that, the fat from olives tends to fill the need for cholesterol. So, people who are willing to lose weight can also have black olives with their everyday meals.
2. Massive Demand:
The demand of black olives is getting higher day by day. But surprisingly, the demand for olive oil hasn’t decreased a bit. Thus, no matter which condition the olive is in or how the olive is produced, the supply isn’t enough against the demand ratio.
According to some business researchers, the consumption rate of olive products is rapidly increasing in populated countries like India, China, USA, South Africa, etc.
If these areas, having thousands of people in every square mile, do trading million dollars’ olives in a month, you can imagine how popular the fruit has become.
3. Fewer Natural Production:
“The olive tree is surely the richest gift of heaven. I can scarcely expect bread.” – Thomas Jefferson, American Diplomat.
Olive is a seasonal fruit. You can’t naturally grow fruits from olive trees every month. Moreover, olive fruits need at least half a year to get ripened.
To fill the immense demand of olives as a food ingredient, farmers and agro companies are forced to take some artificial methods to grow more olives in off seasons too.
For that, they have to invest extra cash in cultivation, maintenance, and transportation. Furthermore, the places where olives grow well aren’t very dense. That’s why preservation and canning cost also increases the price of a unit of black olives.
Note: Black olives sold loose and fresh are way more expensive than canned olives. Because they are naturally ripped and the taste is genuine. Although each olive fruit sold in that way can’t be good. Canned ones assure each fruit is good to consume.
What Does Black Olive Taste Like? Explore Truth
Black Olive has a mild and salty flavor. Harvesting black olive is an interesting story. They are left in the tree for 6 months to fully ripen. Depending on the curing process, the taste of black olives differs.
Some varieties of black olives are soaked in a sodium hydroxide (Lye) for balancing the bitterness and making them more edible.
Children usually don’t love black olives because of their distinct flavor. Some types of black olives are soaked in salt and olive oil. This process is called salt-cured and it has a bitter taste.
Overall, black olives used mostly are preferred to have a salty and moist flavor. But some have bitter flavor as well and a few people love them.
A Quick Recipe Using Black Olives- Tapenade
Course: AppetizerCuisine: French6
servings10
minutes15
minutes168.38
kcal25
minutesBlack olive tapenade is a classy spread, served with bread. While choosing black olives, opt for non-bitter olives like Kalamata, Niçoise, etc., or else the tapenade would not taste good.
With honey, vinegar, and caramelized onion, it enhances your taste bud with savory tang.
Ingredients
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: 3 tbsp.
Shallot: 3 (160 g)
Pitted Black Olive: 300 g
Honey: 3 tbsp.
Balsamic Vinegar: 2 tbsp.
Kosher Salt: ½ tsp or to taste
Ground Black Pepper: ¼ tsp or to taste
Directions
- Step 1: Roughly chop olives, thinly slice shallots and ground black pepper just before cooking.
- Step 2: Take out a frying pan and add 1 tbsp. of EVOO over medium heat.
- Step 3: Place thinly sliced shallot. Reduce the heat to low, poach them slowly until the shallots are caramelized.
- Step 4: Now, add chopped olive and stir over medium heat for 1 minute. After that, turn off the heat.
- Step 5: Bring out a meat mincer and place the shallot-olive mixture on it.
- Step 6: Add 2 tbsp. of balsamic vinegar along with 3 tbsp. of honey.
- Step 7: Next thing up, pour 2 tbsp. of EVOO, ½ tsp of kosher salt, and ¼ tsp of freshly ground black pepper.
- Step 8: Process all in the meat mincer for 3 minutes to 5 minutes.
Homemade black olive tapenade is ready to enjoy.
Chef’s Note:
- If you don’t have meat mincer, process with a food processor as long as you have a pureed base. Enjoy with any type of bread, salad or sandwich spread. It lasts for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Store in the airtight box for having it flavorful.
What are the Health Benefits of Eating Black Olives?
“I eat nothing that’s processed or refined- no high fructose corn syrup, no sugar, no trans-fats. I eat a lot of fish and monounsaturated fats from olives, olive oil, and nuts. A lot of organic fresh fruits and vegetables. No bread. No gluten. No wheat. No rice.” – Dean Karnazes, American Author.
Black olives are loaded with iron, polyphenols, beta carbonate, and vitamin E. There are several health benefits people get from consuming black olives on a daily basis.
According to nutritionists, black olives have heart-healthy benefits and should be on the diet of every person.
Top 4 heart-healthy benefits:
- The antioxidants in black olives reduce chronic diseases like cancer, inflammation, heart diseases, etc.
- Black olives help to regulate cholesterol levels.
- Black olives are great for keeping eye health stable.
- Consuming black olives on a regular basis, promotes great skin health.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Is it bad to eat a lot of black olives?
Eating too much black olive can be bad for anyone. Consuming only 56 to 84 grams of black olive per day is recommended.
Usually, we get olives preserved in brine. The high salt level can cause serious harm like high blood pressure, stroke, and heart attacks.
Are olives black naturally?
Yes, olives are naturally black. At first, olives are green, but as they ripen, the color turns out black.
But you can also find artificially ripened black olives too. Although artificially ripened olives have no color added, they can’t be considered fully natural.
Why don’t black olives have pimentos?
Black olives are tangy themselves. Pimentos are for green olives as they are not naturally edible. If pimentos are used in black olives, they will become tangier, and the actual taste would go wrong.
Are black olive Kalamata olives?
Kalamata olives are one of the variants of black olives. They are found in Greece. Kalamata has a different texture and unique flavor itself. Unlike other black olives, they are bigger and have more nutritional value.
Summary
Expensive or not, black olives and very nutritious and tasty fruits. Rarely you can find someone having a bad experience from consuming black olives.
As the supply of raw fruits is less than the consumer demand, the manufacturers and suppliers are forced to keep the black olives price higher than green olives. In a way, black olives don’t seem expensive when comparing the taste with other olive variants.
