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Easy Marinated Olives

Homemade Marinated Olives are fragrant and juicy and super easy to make. Flavored with garlic, lemon, and rosemary, these olives are a great addition to a cheese board, antipasto platter, and even make a beautiful edible gift!

bowl of marinated olives with a cheese board

Marinated Olives

Olives seem to be playing a big part of my diet lately. It’s not a bad thing since olives are very healthy. Full of vitamin E, which is good for your skin and mine since I am getting wrinkles at a rapid pace, and good fats.

I care about all the nutritional information associated with olives but I am really excited about the taste. Popping them in my mouth and getting that burst of salt and the tang of the brine and biting into the chewy flesh is just a good.

I don’t even mind if the olive still has a pit in it because I can nibble on that while doing other things.

Other than using them on my Meze Hummus Platter, my Summer Antipasto Tapas Cheese Board, and my Winter Holiday Cheese Tray. I could just open a jar and start eating.

My favorite olives to snack on have always been basic black olives. The ones you bust out of the can and pop on the end of your fingers. I always put one olive on each finger before I started eating them.

It used to drive my mom crazy that I would eat all the olives off her relish tray before any of the guests have arrived.

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labeled picture of olive ingredients

Ingredients Needed

  • Castelvetrano olives
  • Kalamata olives
  • olive oil
  • rosemary
  • lemon zest
  • garlic
  • spices
  • balsamic vinegar

Best Types of Olives to Use

Castelvetranos: A green olive from a region in Southwest Sicily. Bright green with a crisp bite but with a slight buttery flavor.

Kalamata: A dark purple olive from Greece that is usually brined in a wine vinegar to leave only a slightly bitter taste at the finish.

Cerignola: These large green olives from Italy and plump and meaty!

Spanish Queen: From Spain like the Manzanilla, it’s plump and perfect for martinis.

Black: Popped right out of the can, these are great for marinating.

Manzanilla: A big green olive from Spain, they are light green and meaty. Usually stuffed with a pimento and used in cocktails.

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How to make Marinated Olives

First: Remove olives from jar and discard brine. Don not rinse the olives. Layer the olives in a jar.

Second: Add olive oil and garlic to a small saucepan and cook until the garlic starts to turn brown. Add the rosemary, lemon, and red pepper flakes. Cook for 2 minutes.

Third: Remove from the heat. Add the balsamic vinegar and stir to combine. Pour over the olives and let sit for at least 10 minutes. Store until ready to use.

For the full recipe and detailed instructions, please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

close up of olives in a white bowl

How long do they last?

If kept in the refrigerator, these olives will mast up to 3 months if they don’t get eaten first.

Do they need to be refrigerated?

Yes, they do. Unless you do a traditional hot water canning technique, these olives will need to be stored in the fridge. There are other ingredients that haVe been added, like the fresh rosemary, that can spoil.

How to serve marinated olives

These Marinated Olives are perfect for snacking, tossing in your lunch box, adding to your salad, or standing on their own on your cheese board! And they are gluten free!

fork with cheese and olive

Tapas Tips & Tricks

  • use quality olives to make the best marinated ones.
  • bring the olives to room temperature before serving.
  • use fresh herbs and garlic for the best flavor.
  • add some lemon zest to the jars before adding the olive oil.
  • feel free to use thyme, rosemary is just my favorite herb.

If you love this recipe as much as I do, please write a five-star review in the comment section below (or on Pinterest with the “tried it” button – you can now add pictures into reviews, too!), and be sure to help me share on facebook!

bowl of olives with text "marinated olives"

This Marinated Olives recipe is the perfect snack for day or night. Full of healthy fats and Vitamin E, these olives marinated in olive oil and balsamic vinegar are the perfect food to satisfy that salty snack craving!

More Easy Tapas Recipes

white bowl of olives and rosemary

Marinated Olives for Your Cheese Board

Marinated Olives are the perfect snack for day or night.  They are the perfect food to satisfy those salty snack cravings and add some wow to your cheese board!
4.36 from 14 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Easy Finger Foods
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 2 cups
Calories: 104kcal
Author: Jennifer

Ingredients

  • 1 cup Castelvetrano Olives
  • 1 cup Kalamata Olives
  • 1 cup olive oil
  • 2 tablespoon rosemary leaves
  • 2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
  • 2 garlic cloves sliced thin
  • 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon zest
  • rosemary sprigs for jars

Instructions

Drain the olives

  • Remove olives from the jar/can without the juice.
  • Place olives in a glass bowl or jar.

Prepare the marinade

  • In a small saucepan, add the olive oil and garlic.
  • Heat over medium heat for 2 minutes or until garlic starts to turn golden brown.
  • Add the rosemary and the red pepper flakes.
  • Cook for 2 minutes.
  • Remove from heat and add the vinegar.
  • Pour over the olives and let sit for at least 10 minutes. An hour is better.
  • Store in the refrigerator until all the olives are eaten!

Notes

The olive oil will solidify in the fridge but will return to a liquid state at room temperature.  Just remember to remove the olives from the fridge at least 20 minutes before you serve them.
*If you like this recipe, please leave me a comment and rate it with some stars.  Thank you!

Nutrition

Serving: 1/8 cup | Calories: 104kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Sodium: 2mg | Sugar: 1g

This recipe adapted from A Dish of Daily Life.

Fiesta Friday December Recipes

{originally posted 12/13/16 – photos and recipe updated 02/16/21}

©TakeTwoTapas.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.

Recipe Rating




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Wednesday 1st of April 2020

[…] show stopping recipe that your guests will enjoy and then have just a few nibbles such as these easy marinated olives from Take Two Tapas (or just pick our your favorite from your local grocery stores olive […]

Andrea

Monday 20th of August 2018

I could eat these all the time. I love olives and your marinade sounds Delicious!

Andrea

Monday 20th of August 2018

I could eat these all the time. I love olives and your marinade sounds Delicious!

Rigatoni with Sausage & Broccoli Rabe - LeMoine Family Kitchen

Tuesday 10th of January 2017

[…] Marinated Olives made by Take Two Tapas […]

Cristina at Ava's Alphabet

Saturday 7th of January 2017

Oh, yum! These olives look amazing! Pinned and sharing. Thank you for linking up at Family Joy Blog Party. We hope to see you at our next party starting on Sunday at noon EST!