Olives make for a great snack. But should you choose green or black ones? What is the difference? Here are some answers to your most pressing olive questions

Olives are an indispensable part of Mediterranean cuisine, whether served as an appetizer with wine or on a pizza.

While to some it might not matter so much if their olives are black or green, there’s a vast difference – and not just in taste and texture, according to Germany’s Federal Centre for Nutrition (BZfE).

Dark olives are ripened olives

The longer olives are allowed to ripen on the tree, the more they change colour – from green to almost black. With that colour change comes a more intense flavour. Harvesting and processing darker olives is more complicated, however, because you can’t just shake them off the tree – they have to be picked by hand so that the skin doesn’t burst, which is why they tend to be more expensive.

Dark olives are at their most flavourful when preserved in virgin olive oil. The oil further refines their taste and gives them their characteristic flavour, according to the BZfE experts.

However, be cautious when buying black olives, as they may not be all that they seem, the experts warn. Take a close look at the list of ingredients of black olives that have been pickled in brine – in some cases unripe green olives are turned black with the help of iron gluconate.

Green olives: From bitter to delicious

Green olives are still firm when they are shaken from the tree. But at that stage they are extremely bitter, which is why they cannot be eaten right away. To make them edible they have to be “debittered,” and one way of doing that is by soaking them in brine which is changed several times.

The taste can also be refined by adding vinegar and spices such as thyme, oregano or garlic. Pitted green olives are often offered with different fillings, including garlic, almonds, peppers or anchovies.