My Marinated Olives are quickly and easily made and will be ideal served alone as a simple appetiser or as part of an antipasti selection. They are packed full of flavour, infused in a blend of warmed extra virgin olive oil, citrus peels, garlic, chilli and dried oregano. It could not be easier to prepare homemade marinated olives to enjoy.
3cups(400 g) olives - I use a combination of Kalamata and Sicilian See Note 1
2teaspoondried oregano
1cup(250 ml) extra virgin olive oilSee Note 2
4clovesgarlic - peeled and cut in half
6stripslemon peel
3stripsorange peel
½long red cayenne chilli/pepper – finely sliced (seeds removed) – or more to tasteSee Note 3
Instructions
Add your olives and dried oregano to a bowl or jar.
Cut the chilli in half lengthways, remove the seeds and membrane. Finely slice the chilli and add as much or as little as you like.
Peel and finely slice the garlic.
On low heat, gently warm the olive oil, garlic, chilli and citrus peels in a small saucepan for 5 minutes.
Top the olives with the warm olive oil mixture.
Serve warm, or allow the flavours to infuse for a minimum of 4 hours.Enjoy the olives, along with the flavour-filled oil, with crusty bread.
Use the olives and oil within 4 days. See the note in the blog post regarding safety precautions.
Notes
Use a variety of olives for different tastes and to add colour to the dish. These olives have been cured - ie: purchased from the supermarket, not fresh off a tree.
For the best flavour, we use extra virgin olive oil. Use the best quality olive oil that you have.
Cayenne chillies are long, slender chillies/peppers. They are often mild in flavour, but the heat can vary. Add the amount of chilli according to your preference.
Please note, the nutritional information is based on three cups of olives and includes the oil that the olives are marinated in. It does not include what the olives are served with. The nutritional information is an estimate only.