Oliva negra o blava

Photo by serjan midili on unsplash

'Blue' olives
Rain water
Vinegar
Garlic, bay leaf
Virgin olive oil, salt

The last Majorcan olives to ripen on the tree, those which missed the last trip to the oil press and yet were spared by the thrushes, aren't really black but more of an indigo colour. Some people prepare them the same way as whole green olives, although there's no need to soak them first to get rid of the bitterness; nor do they keep quite as long. This is how Na Fiola, the baker, prepares them:

"Wash the olives and place them in a clean alfabia (glazed amphore-shaped pot). For every two kilo of olives add four cloves of garlic, two bay leaves and two coffee spoons of salt. Prepare a mixture of two parts vinegar to three of water and pour it over the olives until they are covered. Add a dash of virgin olive oil (to keep the flavour in and the microbes out) and leave them, covered with a saucer, for at least a month. The olives will be an intense black colour."