Up to this point in your life you’ve probably already made your choice about which types of olives are best for you. For that very reason today we’re just going to stress out the differences between the two most common olive sorts.
Shall we begin with some history? First of all, olives (just like tomatoes) are fruits! Also they have been cultivated by people for thousands of years and today they’ve become a must on almost every dining table. Originally, they come from traditional places like Italy, Greece, Spain and some not-so-traditional like Switzerland.
The easiest way to distinguish olives is to divide them in black (or dark) and green ones. Remember: no natural olive will have black tarry color that is equally saturated both from the inside and out. In this case they’re most probably dyed!
Ok, let’s get to the essence here!
- People associate dark olives with more light taste than the green ones. In most of them you can even feel the fruity note and that’s because they are usually ripe. Differently, the green olives have a denser, more bitter taste as they are still quite solid.
- Another difference between both types is the oiliness. Normally, the black ones are oilier than the green and you probably know this from your experience with these fruits!
- The most popular type of dark olive is Kalamata, a.k.a. Kalamon. It’s no surprise that this sort comes from the Greek city of Kalamata. These olives are usually preserved in vinegar, olive oil and even wine! Their delicate taste makes them good for basically all kinds of dishes. What about the green ones? They are often being pitted and stored in brine. Inside them you can normally find pepper, almonds, garlic and others. Some of them even have a slightly sharp touch!
