Brining

Brine Curing 

To begin, brine is by definition a mixture of water and salt.
Method: To begin the curing process, the olives are soaked in brine, (which you've made), for approximately 30-40 days. During this time period, it is important to put the olives in fresh brine solution because they begin to ferment in it over time.
Taste/Flavor: Brined olives have a sour taste because while they ferment in the brine, they produce a lactic acid that gives them this flavor.
Region: Throughout my research I've seen brining labeled as the Sicilian treatment, so it is plausible, that this particular process is prominant in Sicily.

Sources: Click on the title for further information.

Olive Curing on Film

Below I have a series of video's I would like to share with you that show the process of olive curing from the perspective of one of the largest olive companies in the world (Bell Carter Foods), as well as how to cure your own olives at home. For the Vimeo video on Bell Carter Foods, the information about curing begins at around 2:37 minutes. The information before while interesting isn't pertinent to this topic. The remainder are short youtube videos from videofilmik who uses monotonous 1:00-2:00 minute sequences to show the processes that are happening. See if you can identify the type of curing going on :-). I hope you enjoy the films and find them informative.


From Tree to Table from Bell Carter Foods on Vimeo.

Cure Olives.Part 1. Get Them.

  

Cure Olives. Part 2. Score them, Brine them.

Cure Olives. Part 3. Change Brine Weekly

Olives and Oleuropein

What is oleuropein and what does it have to do with olives? I’m glad you asked. Oleuropein is a phenol that causes olives to taste bitter. The bitter taste is a defense mechanism to discourage animals from eating the plants. There are however methods that can be used to eliminate this element, if not completely, enough so that they are edible. Without going to much into specifics about its benefits, it is good to note that Oleuropein is an antioxidant. Some of its benefits is that it helps to fight off free radicals in the body. In order to get rid of this phenol, it is necessary to complete a process called olive curing. In my research I have discovered numerous ways to cure olives. Here is a succinct list of six: (1) Dry-Cured Olives; (2)Brine-Cured Olives; (3)Lye-Cured Olives; (4)Fresh-Water Cured Olives; (5)Oil-Curing; and (6) Sun Curing. Below is a diagram of the phenol oleuropein. What it is showing are the different chemical bonds that combine to become oleuropein.


For further information click on the hyperlinked words which will lead you directly to the sources and information that I used to write this post.