Fried Tuscan Olives Recipes

FRIED OLIVES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spread walnuts onto a baking sheet.
• Toast in the preheated oven until nuts start to turn golden brown and become fragrant, 10 to 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
• Combine walnuts and bread crumbs in a food processor; process until finely ground but mixture is still light and airy. Spread into a shallow pan and set aside.
• Beat eggs and water together in a shallow bowl. Spread flour on a shallow plate. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Dip olives, a few at a time, into the beaten eggs. Roll in flour, then dip again into the beaten eggs. Let excess egg drip off the olives, then roll in the walnut mixture. Transfer to the lined baking sheet. Repeat until all the olives are coated with the walnut mixture. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before frying.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 360 degrees F (180 degrees C). Lower 12 olives into the oil and fry until coating is golden, about 45 seconds. Drain briefly on paper towels. Repeat with remaining olives. Serve warm.

ITALIAN FRIED OLIVES

Steps:

• Special equipment: a pastry bag, a plain tip with a 1/4-inch opening
• In a small bowl, combine the cheeses, thyme, and lemon zest. Place the cheese mixture into the pastry bag. Pipe the cheese mixture into each olive.
• Place the flour in a small bowl. Pour the beaten egg in another small bowl and the bread crumbs in a third small bowl. Dredge the olives in the flour. Using a slotted spoon, remove the olives and place in the bowl with the beaten egg. Coat the olives with the egg and transfer to the bowl of bread crumbs. Coat the olives with the bread crumbs.
• In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, pour in enough oil to fill the pan about 1/3of the way. Heat over medium heat until a deep-frying thermometer inserted in the oil reaches 350 degrees F. (If you don't have a thermometer a cube of bread will brown in a couple of minutes.) Fry the olives, in batches, for 30 to 45 seconds until golden brown. Drain the fried olives on paper towels. Cool for 5 minutes.

FRIED STUFFED OLIVES

Steps:

• Make a paste of the garlic, anchovy paste, lemon zest, thyme and basil.
• Stuff olives using a pastry bag.
• Roll stuffed olives in the flour, dip in eggs and then roll in crumbs.
• Fry in oil at 250 to 275 degrees until crisp and golden brown.
• Drain on a paper towels.
• Serve hot.

DEEP-FRIED OLIVES

Steps:

• Crush the breadcrumbs in a bag using a rolling pin or in a food processor. Tip into a shallow dish with the berries, then season and set aside. Toss the olives in the flour. Put the beaten egg in a large bowl, add the coated olives and move them around to coat. Turn them one by one in the breadcrumb mixture, then put on a plate until ready to fry.
• Heat the oil in a large pan to 180C, then fry the olives for 1-2 mins, or until golden and sizzling. Drain on kitchen paper and leave to cool for a few mins as they'll be very hot inside.
• To make the lemon and vermouth mayo, mix the vermouth with the mayonnaise and lemon juice. Serve the warm, deep-fried olives alongside the mayo.