Curing Olives

If you are successful in growing olives, try curing them at home. The lye treatment removes the bitterness and the brine is what cures them. If you are not planning on consuming the olives within a few weeks you need to process and can them.
HINT: Be sure olives are completely covered by solution during all stages of curing. Exposure to air darkens the olives.

STEP BY STEP PROCEDURES

1. LYE TREATMENT
   1 Soak 12 hours in lye solution – 4 Tablespoons lye to 1 gallon cold water solution should not be over 65 to 70 degrees F before adding olives. Stir occasionally.
   2 Drain and soak 12 more hours in fresh lye solution. Cut into a large – lye will change the flesh to a yellow-green color, penetrating to the pit.
   3 If the lye has not penetrated to the pit, soak an additional 12 hours in a fresh lye solution.
2. RINSE
   1 Rinse in cold water.
   2 Soak 6 hours in fresh, cold water.
   3 Change the water and soak 6 more hours in fresh, cold water. Repeat this 4 times a day for 4 to 8 days until there is no lye taste.
3. BRINE CURE
   1 Cover with salt brine – 6 Tablespoons salt per gallon of water. Let stand two days. Refrigerate and use within two weeks. To keep longer then two weeks, follow the next two steps or process in a pressure canner.
   2 Cover with salt brine – 13 Tablespoons salt per gallon of water – store one week.
   3 Cover with fresh salt brine – 1 pound or 1-2/3 cups salt per gallon of water – let stand 10 to 12 days.
   NOTE: For options 2 and 3, use the olives within two to four months. Before eating, soak olives overnight in fresh water to remove excess salt. Use within three days after soaking.

SPOILAGE:
If at any time the olives become soft or bad smelling, do not eat or even taste them. Also, mold or scum may form on the brine, skim it off as soon as it appears. If the mold growth is heavy, destroy the olives.

CANNING:
Olives are a low acid food and require careful handling to prevent botulism. Olives MUST be canned in a pressure canner. The complete directions for canning can be found at the library, generally under Home Pickling of Olives.