A few words about Kalamata Olives
The region of Kalamata in southwestern Peloponnese, home of the world famous ‘Kalamata Olives’ or ‘Calamon Olives’, the best olive type in the world, is the most associated Greek region with olive production. The region is characterized by mild winter and cool summer.
As a food group, Olives are classified as fat. Depending on their size, 8-10 olives represent an equivalent fat, giving you 45 calories, and as many as 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Olive’s nutritional value considered as high as olive oil’s, but they differ because Olive oil contains only fat, while olives contains, in addition to fat, water, small amounts of protein and carbohydrates. Moreover, olives contain vitamin E and elements such as calcium, potassium, phosphorus, iron and magnesium, while they are also rich in antioxidants. The only disadvantage for olives preserved in brine, is that they contain enough sodium.
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The bitterness and relative fermentation are due to sinking olives in brine (salt of 5 to 8 %) for at least two months. After two months the olives coming from the brine pass for 24 hours in clean water for rinsing and slight oxidation. It is packed in containers and each container is then filled with new brine (salt 6-8 %). In the end, 40 to 60 grams of oil are added in each container, that prevent the growth of unwanted microbes which create the known bad film on the surface of the brine.
